Hampshire County Council has agreed to sign a renewed Armed Forces Covenant - continuing its long-standing commitment to ensuring that serving and veteran members of the Forces, and their families, are treated fairly and are not disadvantaged when accessing public services such as education and healthcare.
Maria Miller MP said, “Basingstoke has strong links to the armed forces with many families having loved ones either currently serving or with a proud record of services. We may not have any military bases directly located in the borough of Basingstoke & Deane we are home to many armed forces personnel, veterans, cadets and reservists, with Odiham RAF Base just a stone's throw away.
“All our armed forces provide protection to our country, sacrificing some civilian freedoms and sometimes suffering serious injury or death. Their families also provide vital support, and it is therefore our moral obligation to give all personnel and their families the fair treatment and respect they deserve”.
Hampshire County Council actively supports Hampshire schools and leads a network of school Service Coordinators in their pursuit of best practice for pupils from military families. Armed Forces Personnel and their families can find other sources of support through the County Council’s Armed Forces webpagesand Connect to Support Hampshire. External grants are available to support Hampshire’s Armed Forces Community, for example the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, which has several different grant streams open each year.