Gold Award in Defence Employer Recognition Scheme
Aberdeen City Council has been awarded a prestigious Gold Award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) and becomes one of only 127 employers across the United Kingdom to receive the Gold Award, having previously achieved a Silver Award in 2017.
The scheme awards organisations that pledge, demonstrate or advocate support to defence and the armed forces community, and align their values with the Armed Forces Covenant.
The latest achievement highlights the work we we have undertaken since 2017 which saw a refreshed Armed Forces Covenant in 2018 and an agreement to allocate up to 1% of the city’s 2000 new council houses to those leaving the armed forces, with a further 0.5% being adapted for those injured in service.
We recognise the value which serving personnel, reservists, veterans and military families bring to the city, and have committed to the Armed Forces Covenant which will strengthen the work and partnership the Council has with the Armed Forces.
Aberdeen is an Armed Forces friendly city that recognises the service of all British Armed Forces personnel and those of the Commonwealth of Nations.
The Lord Provost of Aberdeen is Aberdeen’s Armed Forces Champion.
The Armed Forces Covenant
The Armed Forces Covenant is based on the premise that those who serve or have served, and their families deserve respect, support and fair treatment.
The Armed Forces Covenant includes these key commitments:
- We will offer up to 1% of our 2,000 new Council houses to those leaving the armed forces, and adapt up to a further 0.5% for those injured in service.
- We will support the employment of veterans and work with the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to establish a tailored employment pathway for Service leavers.
- We will support the employment of Service spouses and partners, and provide advice services to support cadet forces to prepare for future employment.
- We will support our employees who are members of the Reserve forces, including by accommodating their training and deployment where possible.
- We will offer support to our local cadet units, either in our local community or in local schools and we will engage with local schools and communities to promote the role and benefits of cadet forces and Reserve Armed Forces.
- We will work with other organisations across the city to promote sporting opportunities for the armed forces.
- We will arrange for colleagues from SAAFA, the Armed Forces Charity, to use a council office one day a week to improve access to support for veterans.
- We will ensure that Armed Forces Personnel are not disadvantaged when it comes to gaining a place at a school for their children.
- We will take part in Armed Forces Day.
We are setting up a working group to ensure we meet these commitments. We will update this page with more information about the working group when it is available.
You can find out more about our support to the armed forces on the Aberdeen City Council website