Greater Manchester leaders signed a joint pledge yesterday (April
3), to commit to doing all they can for those who have served
their country in our city-region.
The Greater Manchester Armed Forces Covenant Roadmap – signed by
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy , GMP Chief Constable, Stephen
Watson, and GMFRS Assistant Chief Fire Officer, Sarah Nattrass –
set out the ambition for making our city-region the best place in
the UK for former and serving service personnel to live.
The covenant is a formal commitment for local authorities and
partners from across all sectors, including health and Voluntary
and Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE), to do
everything they can to improve the lives of Greater Manchester's
Armed Forces community.
Serving members of the forces, serving reservists who are often
overlooked, veterans, their families and carers, as well as
cadets and adult volunteers; are all equally important in Greater
Manchester's mission to do its utmost to prevent disadvantage
through service, past or present.
Mayor of Greater Manchester, , said: “Our Armed
Forces community are incredibly important to us and have too
often wrongly been an afterthought in policy making in the past.
That is why Greater Manchester puts such importance on our Armed
Forces Covenant to make our city-region the best place in the UK
for our serving and former service men and women to live.
“I'm proud to re-sign the covenant and continue our trailblazing
work, alongside the incredible work our fire service and GMP are
doing, to ensure that our Armed Forces family are a central
pillar to our transformative Live Well ambitions.”
The signing of the roadmap highlights the covenant's importance
in the GMCA's decision-making, to deliver the best outcomes for
residents in our city-region, and is a key component of our
transformative Live Well agenda, working side by side with our
Armed Forces community and partners to improve their lives.
Craig Monaghan, veteran and founder of the Spearhead
Foundation plus Invictus Games athlete, said: “The
signing of this roadmap and the embedding of a more joined up
approach across Greater Manchester is great to see. I know from
my own experiences, and from veterans I see every day, that we
need the support and understanding of the system every step of
the way. The Greater Manchester Armed Forces Covenant Roadmap is
a massive step in building on the successes of the covenant and
making the lives of our Armed Forces community even better.”
Sarah Nattrass, GMFRS Assistant Chief Fire Officer,
said: “We are proud to have maintained the gold standard
in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme which recognises our
ongoing work to ensure the Service is a forces friendly employer.
“We are incredibly grateful for our large armed forces family and
the re-signing of the covenant shows our commitment to supporting
veterans, reservists and their loved ones and to make sure we are
making a difference for those who have given so much for this
country.
“Our Armed Forces Network is a very important part of our
service, and we will continue to work with partners to look at
how we can all make a difference for the armed forces community.”
GMFRS is recognised nationally for its outstanding support of the
armed forces community in the city-region. The service is Gold
rated by the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme, which
recognises GMFRS's role in supporting a large number of veterans
and reservists working at the service as well as its support for
the armed forces community in the city-region.
GMFRS also has a thriving Armed Forces Staff Network, which
provides an internal support network for all colleagues currently
serving as a reservist, military veterans, and forces family
members.
Chief Constable Stephen Watson QPM said: “We're
delighted to re-sign this Armed Forces Covenant as we continue
our unwavering commitment to protect those in our society who
have themselves committed so much to protect us.
“We're already leading the way in UK policing in looking after
our ex-service personnel with the introduction of the Forcer
Protocol. GMP was the first force to provide this specialist
response to missing veterans, which has been vital in finding
more than 100 former servicemen and women in their time of need
since its launch in 2023
“At GMP, we have a significant number of officers who have either
previously served in the Armed Forces or has a loved one that
does. To this end, I am proud that we are already recognised as
being a gold-standard employer as part of the Defence Employer
Recognition Scheme.
“We support our veterans, whether it be in our organisation or in
the wider community, such as through our GMP armed forces
steering group, or by being a leading figure in veteran referrals
as part of Operation Nova. I am proud of the service we give to
those who have served us, and it is our honour to continue doing
this.”
GMCA has worked closely with the Ministry of Defence to develop
this roadmap and to highlight the work that can be done through
local government partnerships to achieve our joint goals with the
Armed Forces community.
The first Armed Forces Covenant was signed in 2014, with this
roadmap setting out the steps to take its success further.
