A UK military charity, which will be celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2015, is paying tribute to a former Kent resident and one of the very first soldiers to land in France at the outbreak of the First World War.

Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision impaired ex-Service men and women, commemorated Alan Nichols, who spent years of his live living in Sevenoaks, for his ‘incredible, truly awe-inspiring courage’.

Alan served for the vast majority of the War before being blinded and losing his hands in a horrific training accident while working as a bomb instructor in 1917.

He worked as a butler before signing up with the 3rd Durham Light Infantry in 1907.

Alan first arrived at Blind Veterans UK’s training centre in Regent’s Park on 30 April, 1917, where he learnt Braille and typing – no mean feat for a handless man.

The charity supplied Alan with a specially-fitted Remington typewriter – the ‘shift’ key was adapted to allow him to use it with his knee and the letter keys had a metal case which corresponded to his prosthetic hand to help him type accurately.

Rob Baker, information and archives officer, said: “Alan went on to have an incredible life after sight loss – including building some of the very first World War Two-era air-raid shelters."

“Alan went on to have an incredible life after sight loss – including building some of the very first World War Two-era air-raid shelters" - Rob Baker

Alan foresaw the coming of the Second World War and, in 1938, built one of the first shelters in his own garden.

His design was similar to the shelters which later saved many people during the Blitz – a 10ft by 8ft by 18ft hole, covered by two sheets of perforated zinc, concrete and 3ft of earth.

Following his training at Blind Veterans UK, Alan went on to lecture and fund raise for the charity, as well as the RNIB.

Rob Baker, added: “Captain Sir Ian Fraser, a contemporary and fellow blind veteran, wrote that Alan was completely undaunted and always made light of his grave disability.”

The charity, which was founded in 1915 to support blinded veterans returning from the Front, now supports over 3,500 vision impaired veterans and will celebrate its centenary next year.