We are delighted to announce that last night at the Armed Forces Covenant celebrations we achieved the Silver Award for our work supporting defence personnel.
Working with the Armed Forces Community
Lily Boag presenting her report to Essex County Council Public Health team
Over the past year, we have built on our previous research with the armed forces community by exploring the ‘Healthcare Experiences of the Armed Forces Community in West Essex‘. Through in-depth engagement with members of the armed forces community, healthcare professionals and representatives from military charities, we developed twelve case studies that formed the foundation of this report. These stories highlight both the challenges faced and the resilience shown by those who serve or have served. Drawing from these findings, we have developed a series of recommendations to improve healthcare experiences and strengthen both current and future NHS service provision.
We also facilitate the Armed Forces Working Group, which is a bi-monthly meeting online that enhances collaborative working to ensure the armed forces community are at the forefront of services’ minds to support the community. We have members from the ICB, local councils, EPUT, Essex County Council and other charities. It is co-chaired by Healthwatch Essex and Essex County Council, and the group share latest research, new services, funding opportunity, and updates to enable true collaboration and partnership working.
Healthwatch Essex have a commitment to employ staff who are members of the Reserve Forces, and we recognise the valuable contribution that Reservists make to the UK Armed Forces, their communities and the civilian workforce. We have a Reserve Forces Training & Mobilisation Policy that outlines the support we can offer staff relating to training commitments and mobilisation.
Our Information and Guidance Team are also regularly on hand to support armed forces personnel, both past and present, in accessing the health and social care support that they need.
The Award
The Silver Award central on the awards shelf
Sam Glover, CEO, attended the celebration in Cambridge to collect the award on behalf of Healthwatch Essex. She said: “Healthwatch Essex are so pleased to be awarded the Silver Award. Essex is a proud military county with a long history of supporting veterans, forces families and reservists. We have been able to do this through our engagement and research and are current employers of both reservists and veterans. This award allows us to promote the fact we are reservist friendly employer and share with our colleagues and partners that we are working with the Armed Forces Covenant. We are committed to continuing this support and working towards Gold.”
The Armed Forces Covenant said on their website: “The Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) acknowledges employers that provide exceptional support to the Armed Forces community and Defence by going above and beyond their Covenant pledges. Through a 3-tier approach of bronze, silver and gold awards, the scheme recognises the different levels of commitment provided by employers. This allows the Ministry of Defence to publicly thank and honour those organisations for their support. You can nominate yourself for a bronze award. Silver and gold awards are bestowed to organisations meeting specific criteria.”