A Fair Deal for the Armed Forces Community

Submitted by: 10 members.
Mover: Richard Foord MP (Spokesperson for Defence).
Summation: Baroness Smith (Lords Spokesperson for Defence).

Conference notes:

1. The findings of the Haythornthwaite report which found that the most common reason for leaving the armed forces is the impact on family and personal life, and the Armed Forces Continuing Attitudes Survey which found that one third of spouses said that they would be happier if their partner chose to leave the service.
2. Ongoing issues with access to childcare for personnel and their families stationed overseas, lack of support when moving children around schools, and with spousal employment overseas.
3. The poor state of MOD housing, including sewage leaks, mould and damp, and the complaints regarding maintenance contractors.
4. Families of service personnel frequently struggle to access information about important provisions like childcare, preventing them from being able to make informed choices and leaving them feeling like they do not have agency.
5. The experience of female personnel in the armed forces, as outlined by the Atherton Report which found that "the MoD and the Services are failing to protect female personnel and to help servicewomen achieve their full potential".
6. There are over 1.8 million veterans in England and Wales according to the 2021 Census, many of whom are caught by gaps in support across services from mental healthcare to housing.
7. The cost-of-living crisis which is impacting the Armed Forces community - with veterans and their families twice as likely to be unpaid carers or to be in receipt of sickness or disability benefits.
8. The Armed Forces Covenant, which serves as a promise by the nation that the Armed Forces community is treated fairly, plays an important role but needs strengthening.
9. The role of local authorities in delivering the Armed Forces Covenant and supporting the Armed Forces community, including through education, housing and healthcare.
10. The excellent work of Councillor Armed Forces Champions in raise awareness of the needs and build support for members of the armed forces, their families and veterans.

Conference believes that:

1. The Armed Forces community - service personnel, veterans and their families - have been taken for granted for too long by the Government and deserve a fair deal.
2. It is shameful that service families are too frequently unable to get basic support such as living in a decent home or getting access to information, except through the member of the family who serves.
3. It is unacceptable that the experience of women in the armed forces and the challenges which many female personnel face, such as sexual harassment and discrimination, have not been properly addressed.
4. These factors taken together are serving to impact both retention and recruitment for the Armed Forces.
5. The make-up of the UK Armed Forces is not reflective of the diversity of British society, but it should better reflect society.

Conference therefore calls on the UK Government to establish a 'Fair Deal for Service Personnel, Veterans and Families' Commission.

Conference further urges the Government to start bringing about that Fair Deal by:

1. Strengthening the Armed Forces Covenant by placing a legal duty on the Defence Secretary and government departments to give due regard to the Armed Forces Covenant.
2. Establishing a one-stop shop for families of service personnel so they can easily access information, including the publication of a guide and an accessible helpline.
3. Aiming to reach a deal with the EU on reciprocal access for spousal employment for families of service personnel, as part of the four-stage roadmap set out in policy paper 144, Rebuilding Trade and Cooperation with Europe.
4. Improving the standard of MOD housing, including by reviewing the contract with maintenance contractors and introducing a minimum quality standard for Single Living Accommodation.
5. Accepting the recommendations of the Atherton report.
6. Abolishing the arbitrary, complex Minimum Income Requirement for spouse and partner visas, so that families, including service personnel and their families, are not forced to live apart.
7. Conducting a review of Armed Forces recruitment processes, to ensure all possible steps are being taken to improve diversity in the Forces.
8. Waiving application fees for indefinite leave for members of families of Armed Forces personnel on discharge.
9. Instructing the Office of Veterans Affairs to launch an inquiry into the impact of the cost of living crisis on the Armed Forces community.
10. Ensuring that military compensation which is awarded because of illness or injury does not count towards means testing for benefits.
11. Supporting members of the Armed Forces community who are unpaid carers, by increasing Carer's Allowance and providing unpaid carers with greater rights in the workplace and more broadly.
12. Cancelling the Conservative Government's cut to the Army.
13. Support local authorities to meet and exceed their duties within the Armed Forces Covenant and encourage councils to appoint a member as Armed Forces Champion (that haven't already done so).
14. Bolster the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme to ensure more employers achieve accreditation, and instil an expectation that all public sector organisations should be working towards Gold Award.

Applicability: Federal.

Motion before amendment

Conference notes:

1. The findings of the Haythornthwaite report which found that the most common reason for leaving the armed forces is the impact on family and personal life, and the Armed Forces Continuing Attitudes Survey which found that one third of spouses said that they would be happier if their partner chose to leave the service.
2. Ongoing issues with access to childcare for personnel and their families stationed overseas, lack of support when moving children around schools, and with spousal employment overseas.
3. The poor state of MOD housing, including sewage leaks, mould and damp, and the complaints regarding maintenance contractors.
4. Families of service personnel frequently struggle to access information about important provisions like childcare, preventing them from being able to make informed choices and leaving them feeling like they do not have agency.
5. The experience of female personnel in the armed forces, as outlined by the Atherton Report which found that "the MoD and the Services are failing to protect female personnel and to help servicewomen achieve their full potential".
6. There are over 1.8 million veterans in England and Wales according to the 2021 Census, many of whom are caught by gaps in support across services from mental healthcare to housing.
7. The cost-of-living crisis which is impacting the Armed Forces community - with veterans and their families twice as likely to be unpaid carers or to be in receipt of sickness or disability benefits.
8. The Armed Forces Covenant, which serves as a promise by the nation that the Armed Forces community is treated fairly, plays an important role but needs strengthening.

Conference believes that:

1. The Armed Forces community - service personnel, veterans and their families - have been taken for granted for too long by the Government and deserve a fair deal.
2. It is shameful that service families are too frequently unable to get basic support such as living in a decent home or getting access to information, except through the member of the family who serves.
3. It is unacceptable that the experience of women in the armed forces and the challenges which many female personnel face, such as sexual harassment and discrimination, have not been properly addressed.
4. These factors taken together are serving to impact both retention and recruitment for the Armed Forces.
5. The make-up of the UK Armed Forces is not reflective of the diversity of British society, but it should better reflect society.

Conference therefore calls on the UK Government to establish a 'Fair Deal for Service Personnel, Veterans and Families' Commission.

Conference further urges the Government to start bringing about that Fair Deal by:

1. Strengthening the Armed Forces Covenant by placing a legal duty on the Defence Secretary and government departments to give due regard to the Armed Forces Covenant.
2. Establishing a one-stop shop for families of service personnel so they can easily access information, including the publication of a guide and an accessible helpline.
3. Aiming to reach a deal with the EU on reciprocal access for spousal employment for families of service personnel, as part of the four-stage roadmap set out in policy paper 144, Rebuilding Trade and Cooperation with Europe.
4. Improving the standard of MOD housing, including by reviewing the contract with maintenance contractors and introducing a minimum quality standard for Single Living Accommodation.
5. Accepting the recommendations of the Atherton report.
6. Abolishing the arbitrary, complex Minimum Income Requirement for spouse and partner visas, so that families, including service personnel and their families, are not forced to live apart.
7. Conducting a review of Armed Forces recruitment processes, to ensure all possible steps are being taken to improve diversity in the Forces.
8. Waiving application fees for indefinite leave for members of families of Armed Forces personnel on discharge.
9. Instructing the Office of Veterans Affairs to launch an inquiry into the impact of the cost of living crisis on the Armed Forces community.
10. Ensuring that military compensation which is awarded because of illness or injury does not count towards means testing for benefits.
11. Supporting members of the Armed Forces community who are unpaid carers, by increasing Carer's Allowance and providing unpaid carers with greater rights in the workplace and more broadly.
12. Cancelling the Conservative Government's cut to the Army.

Applicability: Federal.

Amendments

Amendment One

PASSED

Submitted by: ALDC
Mover: Cllr Darryl Smalley
Summation: Cllr Clair Muir

After viii) (line 34), insert:

ix)      The role of local authorities in delivering the Armed Forces Covenant and supporting the Armed Forces community, including through education, housing and healthcare.

x)       The excellent work of Councillor Armed Forces Champions in raise awareness of the needs and build support for members of the armed forces, their families and veterans.

After 12. (line 93), add:

13.     Support local authorities to meet and exceed their duties within the Armed Forces Covenant and encourage councils to appoint a member as Armed Forces Champion (that haven't already done so).

14.    Bolster the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme to ensure more employers achieve accreditation, and instil an expectation that all public sector organisations should be working towards Gold Award.