Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Source: gov.uk (2025-11-10)

We, the undersigned, commit to honour the Armed Forces Covenant and support the Armed Forces Community. We recognise the value Serving Personnel, both Regular and Reservists, Veterans and military families contribute to our business and our country.

The Armed Forces Covenant

An enduring covenant between the people of the United Kingdom, Her Majesty’s Government and all those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces of the Crown and their families

The first duty of Government is the defence of the realm. Our Armed Forces fulfil that responsibility on behalf of the Government, sacrificing some civilian freedoms, facing danger and, sometimes, suffering serious injury or death as a result of their duty. Families also play a vital role in supporting the operational effectiveness of our Armed Forces. In return, the whole nation has a moral obligation to the members of the Naval Service, the Army and the Royal Air Force, together with their families. They deserve our respect and support, and fair treatment.

Those who serve in the Armed Forces, whether Regular or Reserve, those who have served in the past, and their families, should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services. Special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such as the injured and the bereaved.

This obligation involves the whole of society: it includes voluntary and charitable bodies, private organisations, and the actions of individuals in supporting the Armed Forces. Recognising those who have performed military duty unites the country and demonstrates the value of their contribution. This has no greater expression than in upholding this Covenant.

Section 1: Principles of the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant

1.1 We Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust will endeavour in our business dealings to uphold the key principles of the Armed Forces Covenant, which are:
- no member of the Armed Forces Community should face disadvantage in the provision of public and commercial services compared to any other citizen;
- and in some circumstances that special treatment may be appropriate especially for the injured or bereaved.
Section 2: Demonstrating our commitment

2.1 Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust recognises the value serving personnel, reservists, veterans and military families bring to our business. We will seek to uphold the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant, by pledging to the following:
- Armed Forces Friendly
- UK Service Veterans And Leavers
- UK Service Spouses And Partners
- Flexible Leave For Spouses
- UK Reservists
We also pledge the following:

Armed forces friendly: continuing to provide a range of veteran support services as part of Op COURAGE: The veterans mental health and wellbeing service, which includes the transition, intervention and liaison service, complex treatment service and in addition be part of the provider collaborative, to provide the high intensity service -Continuing to work with veteran-focused voluntary sector organisations to deliver, augment or extend the above services -Publishing the details of these services and how to access them on our website -Displaying the armed forces covenant service on our website -Sympathetic treatment of annual leave requests before, during or after a partner’s overseas deployment -Sympathetic treatment of special leave requests for a bereaved employee or one whose partner has been injured -Offering one week paid and a second week unpaid leave to undertake Reservist training commitments -By working in partnership with CTP to support and employ veterans who are leaving the armed forces -Register with CTP Right Jobs -Recognising military skills and qualifications when selecting new staff -Offer placement opportunities within the Trust as an element of personal development -Supporting ex-servicemen through honorary contracts to complete their practice hours

2.2 We will publicise these commitments through our literature and/or on our website, setting out how we will seek to honour them and inviting feedback from the Service community and our customers on how we are doing.