Nearly 40% of those who serve in the armed forces report feeling disadvantaged as a result of their service, new report reveals.
Entitled ‘Our Community – Our Covenant’, the report showed 38% of those who served in the armed forces felt their service left them disadvantaged - despite the fact this is contrary to the Armed Forces Covenant.
The Government’s Covenant has two underlying principles. Firstly, ‘members of the armed forces community should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services.’
Secondly, ‘special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given the most such as the injured or the bereaved.’
The Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT) and the Local Government Association (LGA)- supported by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) - commissioned the report to identify ways to improve the local delivery of the Covenant.
It revealed a ‘mis-match’ between what is perceived to be the Covenant’s remit and what is actually being delivered, with not all council chief executives reporting they had a ‘good’ understanding of the Covenant and an active action plan.
The report produced a number of recommendations, including the publication of an LGA and Government agreed statement on what the Covenant can and cannot be expected to deliver.
It also called for the effectiveness of local authorities’ Covenant coordinating groups to be enhanced by ensuring each has the core infrastructure in place to meet local needs.
Cllr Izzi Seccombe, the portfolio holder for community wellbeing, said: ‘All councils across the country have signed up to the Armed Forces Covenant, which demonstrates their commitment to supporting those in service, as well as their families, our veterans and reservists.
‘We are very keen to continue working with the Ministry of Defence and FiMT to help councils understand where they can better support our servicemen and women, and their families. Clearly there are areas where we can improve and we are grateful for the learning that we can take away from this important report.’
The local government ombudsman Dr Jane Martin last year warned councils to do more to adhere to the Covenant following the case of a Devon authority which declined to provide home-school transport to a forces family after they had to move home.
She said it was 'not enough for councils just to pay lip service to the Armed Forces Covenant'.
