The Growth Company Limited
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 The Growth Company Limited 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 The Growth Company Limited 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
We also pledge the following:
Raising awareness with colleagues, through ongoing communication, and creating more focussed training for employee groups who directly support veterans or those transitioning from the Armed Forces; Continuing to offer support to colleagues with their mental health, establishing connections with mental health awareness groups and charities; Building relationships with local links and communities; Reviewing and improving relevant policies for Reservists to ensure we offer the relevant support to our colleagues who choose to be members of the Reserve Forces, whilst also looking to expand support for family and dependants of Armed Forces; Seeking to increase our reach and attract veterans to work for The Growth Company by: Looking at guaranteed interview schemes for ex-Armed Forces individuals looking at qualifications and equivalents (the forces now also use some courses delivered by the ILM for management training) Advertising and sharing our vacancies with the Resettlement programme through their job boards and job fairs (across the UK) and making connections with the local recruitment offices Promoting GC as an Armed Forces friendly organisation Offering and promoting our products and services to those leaving the Armed Forces: Skills for Growth offer for those who may wish to start a business Courses available to grow their skills Employability skills supporting those transitioning or having finished service Basic skills support for those leaving the forces such as cooking skills, budgeting skills, housing Dishonourable discharge looking at ways for us to support those who have left the Armed Forces this way
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.