believe housing has received a Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Award for its unwavering support to the military community.
The Employer Recognition Scheme rewards employers that pledge, demonstrate or advocate support to defence and the armed forces community with a bronze, silver, or gold award.
Organisations must also align their values with the Armed Forces Covenant, which believe housing first signed up to in January 2020.
By August that year it had achieved the bronze award and went on to receive silver before achieving gold in summer 2024.
Nik Turner, Executive Director of Communities and Customer Services, said with 600-plus employees and more than 18,000 homes, believe housing’s commitment to the forces community applies to both colleagues and customers.
She said: “We have worked hard to create an environment that supports armed forces personnel, veterans, and their families and we encourage our partners and contractors to do the same.
“Receiving this gold award is an achievement we are very proud of, but it doesn’t stop there for believe housing.
“We will continue to support defence and inspire others to do the same.”
As an inclusive employer, believe housing proactively recruits from the forces community and continually seeks to improve its colleague offer, which recently included making it easier to take paid leave and volunteer days for military service.
It also works with organisations such as the Armed Forces Outreach Service, which believe housing part funds, to support customers from the forces community. This support ranges from providing veterans with employability advice and help to furnish their home to awarding grants to local cadet groups.
Alan Smith, Chief Executive of believe housing, said: “We are immensely proud to have achieved this gold award.
“Veterans and reservists can bring exceptional talent, skills and experience to an employer and we seek to embrace those attributes, ensuring that a military background is not a barrier to working with us.
“It works alongside everything else we do to be an inclusive organisation at every level, giving people opportunities to enhance their skillset, use their interests and experience and redirect them into communities after their service is complete.
“It really fits with our ‘life without barriers’ vision.”
To find out more about how we can support, visit: support for military personnel | believe housing
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