Sir Michael Fallon, the Defence Secretary, has announced that 1,500 different UK organisations have signed the Armed Forces Covenant. This Covenant is a pledge by those organisations to treat Service personnel and veterans fairly.
The 1,500th signature was made by Travis Perkins during the third annual Partnering with Defence conference for employers at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London. Travis Perkins is a Building materials supplier That has now agreed to provide Armed Forces personnel and veterans with a mixture of different work experience placements throughout their organisation.
This covenant is designed to make sure that the people who have served or still serve our country are supported in an increasingly better way. The covenant has reached a significant milestone by engaging with 1,500 organisations who hope to help forces personnel and veterans by utilizing their unique set of skill and experience.
Travis Perkins is pledging to support members of the Royal Engineers in gaining NVQ qualifications for construction skills. The Building materials supplier currently employs nine reservists and members of the Armed Forces community across the country. The company is able to provide military personnel with the opportunity to build a career outside of the military, as well as allow them to use the skills they already have.
Prior to this announcement, the Defence Minister announced that the UK’s main broadband providers, that represents 95% of the broadband market in Britain have agreed to waive fees on contracts for personnel that have had to cancel their subscription when posted away. This posting usually happens with very little notice. The broadband providers doing this are Virgin Media, Sky, Talk Talk, BT, EE and Plusnet.
Other positive outcomes from the covenant includes better motor insurance, better access to banking facilities. There has also been improved access to mentoring and work experience places, as well as improvements to the credit rating system, to put former personnel in a better position when looking for a mortgage, or having to rent their home when posted overseas.
