West Lancashire Armed Forces Covenant
Armed Forces Covenants
In response to the National Covenant, we in West Lancashire have developed our own Covenant and have established the West Lancashire Armed Forces Covenant Group to co-ordinate our approach and the help we can provide.
You can read the official West Lancashire Covenant here
The Armed Forces Covenant is a voluntary statement of mutual support between a civilian community and its local armed forces community. It's intended to complement the Armed Forces Covenant which outlines the moral obligations between the nation, the government and the armed forces at a local level.
The Covenant initiative is intended to help serving, transiting and veteran members of the armed forces, and their families, by raising awareness of their particular circumstances and needs among service providers and the civilian community, and taking action to improve services where appropriate.
We aim to encourage communities, charities, businesses, local government and health care providers to take part in the covenant to support all our armed forces living locally. This not only includes supporting personnel, but also their families and veterans, particularly where they have been injured or bereaved. By doing this we recognise what our armed forces have done for us and continue to do on a daily basis.
Armed Forces Champion: Councillor Paul Hennessey
His role is to improve access to services and support for serving and ex-service men and women.
Councillor Hennessey supports and attends regular sessions for veterans in the community. Following the monthly event at West Lancs Butchers, he said:
"It was great to see the Skelmersdale veterans today at Lancashire Butchers in Skelmersdale. I would like to thank Lancashire Butchers for hosting the veterans breakfast club which is held once a month on a Saturday. I would also like to thank Sue Dutten from the ARK who does great work for the veterans, and the Birchwood Centre for setting it up. This is great opportunity for veterans from all services to get together to meet like minded people and have a nice breakfast and cup of tea!"
"If you are a veteran in West Lancashire, please contact me for a chat and any signposting to local groups, events or sessions locally."
Email: cllr.p.hennessy@westlancs.gov.uk
Tel: 01695423872
Veterans Gateway
The veterans gateway is the first point of contact for veterans who are seeking support. The gateway aims to put veterans and their families in touch with the organisations who can provide them with the information, advice and support they need. They offer support in areas such as healthcare, housing, employability, finances and personal relationships. To reach the veterans gateway follow this link (external link).
West Lancs Ark
The GOV.UK website has guidance about the Armed Forces Covenant for communities, as well as other general Armed Forces Covenant: guidance and support.
You can also find information on the Lancashire Armed Forces Covenant Hub.
We have a silver award from the employer recognition scheme for our work to support the armed forces.
