What is the ARMED FORCES COVENANT all about?
T
he Armed Forces Covenant is about ensuring that the Armed Forces community does not face disadvantage
because of their links to the Armed Forces. This is a broad and diverse community and the Covenant will apply to the different groups within that community in different ways.
For regular serving personnel the Covenant has helped service personnel with home ownership; ensuring personnel are able to apply for service families accommodation online; doubling Council tax relief twice; exempting payments made under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and the War Pensions Scheme from the assessment for Universal Credit; doubling the tax free Operational Allowance; making £3 million per year available for state schools with children of service personnel; working with credit reference agencies to ensure service people are not disadvantaged by mobility requirements in accessing credit; establishing ‘shadow postcodes’ to give service personnel and their families equal access to online goods and services and to overcome credit reference difficulties arising from the lack of a recognisable UK postcode; providing all new service entrants with a financial capability briefing; launching the MoneyForce website to improve financial awareness.
The Government also intends to: establish a single living accommodation management information system; introduce new ways of working with the Service Complaints Commissioner; consider whether there could be more flexibility in the provision of service accommodation.
For reservists much of the Covenant applies in the same way as it does to regular personnel and steps are being taken to ensure they are not disadvantaged as a result of their service.
This includes improving healthcare when not mobilised, including access to full occupational health assessment, dental
www.raf-ff.org.uk
assessment, rehabilitation for injuries received while training, improved access to mental health support. The Government intends to provide an allowance for paid annual leave; provide a defined contribution for all paid service in the Reserve Forces to the future Armed Forces Pension Scheme; extend access to the Standard Learning Credits Scheme to all members of the Reserve Forces.
One of the Covenant’s key principles is that special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given the most, such as the injured and the bereaved. The Covenant continues to apply to members of the Armed Forces and their families even after they have left service. The Covenant also recognises the contribution that is made by the families of serving personnel, reservists and veterans. The Covenant has helped by introducing the Service Pupil Premium for the children of those serving; introducing a ‘Pupil information profile’ to help with the transfer of key information when service children move from one school to another; allowing infant schools in England to exceed the 30 pupil limit for classes in order to accommodate children of service personnel; making a further £5 million available to upgrade service family accommodation.
It is recognised that there is still more to be done to support families. Among other things, the Government intends to gather evidence of the particular needs of service children when it comes to childcare provision within the UK to identify whether there is any disadvantage because of the nature of their work; consider whether there could be more flexibility in the provision of SFA, such as extending entitlement to those in long- term relationships.
It’s about local communities The Covenant is not just about the Government delivering commitments on a national level and hundreds of local communities have signed a Community Covenant. This is a voluntary statement of mutual support between civilians and the Armed Forces in their area to encourage
mutual understanding and to bring the two communities together. Alongside it runs the Community Covenant Grant Scheme, set up to fund projects that support its aims.
There is also the Corporate Covenant which is a public pledge from businesses and other organisations who wish to demonstrate their support for the Armed Forces community.
It’s about fair treatment For most of the Armed Forces community, the Covenant is about removing disadvantage so service people get the same outcome as the civilian community. For example, a family is posted somewhere new, they shouldn’t struggle to get their child into a local school. The Government make sure this doesn’t happen by letting schools go over their maximum class size to fit in a child of service personnel.
It’s about special consideration It’s not about getting special treatment that ordinary citizens wouldn’t receive, or getting a better result. For those who have given the most, such as the injured and the bereaved, there is an exception. For example, the Government makes sure that service personnel with genital injuries are guaranteed three cycles of IVF on the NHS and has established a scholarship fund for bereaved children of service personnel.
How does the Corporate Covenant fit into the ‘Covenant family’?
The Corporate Covenant has been designed to complement the Armed Forces Covenant and sit alongside the Community Covenant. All Corporate Covenants include a core statement of commitment that those adopting the scheme sign up to. That no member of the Armed Forces community should face disadvantage in the provision of public and commercial services compared to any other citizen and that in some circumstances special treatment may be appropriate.
Further details on all aspects of the Armed Forces Covenant can be found at:
www.raf-ff.org.uk or from the
www.gov.uk website.
Envoy Spring 2014 35
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