believe housing’s gold standard support for armed forces

believe housing first signed the Armed Forces Covenant in January 2020, formalising its commitment to support armed forces personnel, veterans, and their families.

By August of the same year, it had already achieved the Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme bronze award, quickly followed by the silver.

In the summer of 2024, it proudly received the gold award in recognition of its unwavering support and advocacy for the military community.

Nik Welsh, Executive Director of Communities and Customer Services, said: “With 600-plus employees and more than 18,000 homes, our commitment to the forces community applies to both colleagues and customers.

“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.”

As an employer, believe housing proactively recruits from the forces community and continuously improves its colleague offer. Initiatives include making it easier for employees to take paid leave and volunteer days for military service. This inclusive approach ensures that veterans and reservists can seamlessly integrate into the workforce, bringing their talent, skills, and experience to the organisation.

believe housing’s support extends beyond its employees to the wider community. The organisation collaborates with the Armed Forces Outreach Service, which it part-funds, to provide comprehensive support to customers and potential tenants from the Forces community. This support ranges from help to apply for housing and furnish homes to employability and benefits advice.

It has also supported the military community by awarding grants to a variety of groups, from local cadets to buy laptops and help young people complete Duke of Edinburgh expeditions to a veterans’ charity so it could host art activities for mental wellbeing.

To find out more about how believe housing supports the military community, visit: support for military personnel | believe housing.