An 80-year-old man is enjoying some renewed independence after a successful fundraising campaign to replace his stolen mobility scooter.

Kenneth Godbold had his scooter taken from the garage opposite his home in Apsledene, Gravesend back in November.

The former military serviceman, who has had operations on both hips and wears a pacemaker, bought it last June at a cost if £450 and could not afford another huge outlay to pay for a replacement.

However, kind-hearted strangers came to his rescue. More than £200 was raised through online donations and armed forces charity SSAFA added another £570 to the total, meaning Mr Godbold was the grateful recipient of a new state-of-the-art scooter.

“I am very grateful because it’s really helped me out,” said Mr Godbold, who lives with wife Mavis, 78. “When we go out to Lakeside, Bluewater, places like that, I can’t walk around them so I needed a scooter.

“I really do appreciate it because now I can do what I want to do when I’m out. Mavis can go off and do her shopping and I can still get around myself.

“The scooter has helped with going into Gravesend town centre and getting round there, too.

“It’s a lot lighter than the old one and it goes into the car with a bit more room, and I have insured it this time.”

SSAFA got involved after the charity’s divisional secretary for Dartford and Gravesham, Mary Walker, read about the theft in the Gravesend Messenger.

Mr Godbold had received help from SSAFA a few years ago when he needed a stair-lift for his home, and Mrs Walker, who has volunteered for SSAFA for 11 years, got in touch to ask if he needed assistance again.

SSAFA secured funding from Mr Godbold’s old regiment — The Royal Logistics Corp — to pay for an occupational therapist to assess Mr Godbold’s needs and ensure he was provided with a suitable scooter, with the rest of the money added to the online donations to pay for it.

It is the latest in a long line of success stories for SSAFA in north Kent, with Mrs Walker presented with a Gravesham Community Award by outgoing mayor of Gravesham Cllr Greta Goatley just before she stepped down as mayor.

“We probably help around 80 people a year, although unfortunately we’re starting to lose some of the older ones from the Second World War,” said Mrs Walker, who got involved after the charity helped her father, who was in the Royal Air Force.

“Others go back to the Falklands, the Suez Canal, and then right up to Afghanistan and Iraq. There has always been people around who need help. Most of the younger ones we get are homeless or have debt problems.”

SSAFA, formed in 1885, works with other charities to help ex-servicemen, with the Dartford and Gravesham branch made up of just six people, all of whom are volunteers. It relies on donations to keep up with divisional costs.

All veterans from the army, navy, merchant navy, and RAF, are catered for, whether they need help with household items, medical problems, debt advice, or homelessness.

If you are in need of help from SSAFA, or know someone who is, call 01622 792363.