NORTH YORKSHIRE COUNCIL
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 NORTH YORKSHIRE COUNCIL 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 NORTH YORKSHIRE COUNCIL 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:

Raising awareness of the Armed Forces Covenant with partners, staff and customers; and embedding awareness of the unique nature of the armed forces and its role in the UK within our organisational structures Improving the experience of armed forces customers who access council services; and evidencing this within our organisation Strengthening relationships with the armed forces community, civilian community and key partners; and renewing our collective commitment to the Covenant Providing the armed forces community with equal access to Local Authority education services, including admissions, attainment, wellbeing, transport, attendance, additional needs support (including SEND and EHCP), and use of Service Pupil Premium funding Providing the armed forces community with equal access to Local Authority housing services, including the councils allocations policy for social housing, tenancy strategies, homelessness, and disabled facilities grants Providing the armed forces community with equal access to Local Authority commissioned healthcare services, including Sexual Health Services and Drug and Alcohol Services Providing additional help and guidance for workingage veterans, to support in matching their transferable skills and abilities to education, training and employment opportunities Understanding our compliance regarding the new dueregard duty and embedding this understanding within and across our organisational structures, systems and processes Simplifying the process for the armed forces community to understand, access and navigate the education, housing and health care system within North Yorkshire Council Asking the question, have you served (and do you still serve, as a reservist) when customers access relevant council services and record this information on the relevant system ensuring our due diligence regarding proof of service and respecting the decision of those who might wish not to declare this Including the armed forces community as one of the factors we consider within our equality impact assessments to ensure the armed forces community is considered and not disadvantaged in the development, resourcing and delivery of all council policies, strategies, and plans Setting out an action plan to show how we will implement and resource the Armed Forces Covenant Policy and its key aims and objectives Setting up a monitoring regime and completing a timely review of progress Appointing a Member Armed Forces Community Champion and a named senior officer to promote the Armed Forces Covenant Policy Providing 12 days paid leave for reservist employees to attend training, and in addition, employees can request a further 10 days unpaid leave Allowing military spouses to request flexible working arrangements, including compressed working hours, parttime working, term time working and job sharing

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.