Armed Forces Covenant

In 2010, the Prime Minister spoke of his intent to ‘rebuild’ the Military Covenant. Shortly afterwards, it was announced that a new tri-Service Covenant setting out the Government’s obligations and commitments to the Service Community would be written, and in May 2011 the Armed Forces Covenant (AFC) was published. The Covenant itself is accompanied by a more detailed document, ‘The AFC: Today and Tomorrow’, which summarises the scope of the Covenant and the future commitments being implemented to support it.

What is it?

To find out more about the AFC, please click here: The Armed Forces Covenant

In short the AFC is a strategy which builds on the previous administration’s Service Personnel Command Paper to outline the Government’s aspiration that the Armed Forces Community should suffer no disadvantage in accessing public or commercial services as a result of their Service, and that they should receive special treatment where appropriate. These key principles have been enshrined in law after the Armed Forces Act received Royal Assent; this is the first time the existence of the Covenant has been recognised in statute. This does not mean that legally enforceable rights are created for Service Personnel, but it does mean that the Defence Secretary has to report annually to Parliament on performance against the Covenant with a particular focus on the areas of health, education, housing and the operation of inquests.

The AFC is a process, not an event and will grow and evolve; new measures can, and will be introduced as the Covenant matures but it should be remembered that the Covenant seeks to ensure that service personnel and families suffer ‘no disadvantage’ in accessing public or commercial services as a result of their Service, and that they should only receive special treatment where appropriate.

One of the key measures of the AFC was the launch of a Community Covenant scheme. A Community Covenant is a voluntary statement of mutual support between a civilian community and its local Armed Forces Community.

To read more about the Community Covenant please click here: Community Covenant In Action