We commit to honouring those who have served in our armed forces.

At a virtual ceremony on Wednesday 24 February 2021 NTW Solutions and its partner organisation, Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (the Trust) signed the Armed Forces Covenant and pledged support to the Armed Forces Community.

The Armed Forces Covenant is about fair treatment. For most of the Armed Forces community, the Covenant is about removing disadvantage, to provide them with the same access to services as the civilian community.

The Armed Forces Covenant sets out the relationship between the nation, the government and the Armed Forces. It recognises that the whole nation has a moral obligation to members of the Armed Forces and their families, and it establishes how they should expect to be treated.

The Covenant’s two principles are that:

• The Armed Forces community should not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services in the area where they live.
• Special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such as the injured and the bereaved.

By signing the covenant, we are recognising the value that serving personnel, reservists, veterans and military families bring to the organisation, and to our country.

The Trust and NTW Solutions have pledged to promote that we are armed forces-friendly organisations and will support the employment of veterans, recognising military skills and qualifications in the recruitment and selection process and work with the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to support the employment of service leavers.