Allan Webb Ltd is delighted to have been awarded the Gold Award from the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) less than 1 year after receiving the Silver Award. This is testament to the company’s ongoing efforts in supporting Veterans, Reserves and spouses of service men and women.
Having worked in the Defence sector for over 60 years, the contribution of our veteran and reservist community has been invaluable. Their insight and experiences when helping deliver an array of core supportability engineering outputs to the MoD and Industry Partners has helped AWL stand out as experts in our field. We are proud that currently over 20% of AWL employees are veterans.
Since signing the Armed Forces Covenant in 2017 we’ve been better placed to focus our policies and working environment to take into account the unique demands placed upon service personnel and their families.
To ensure that our AFC responsibilities are fully realised, the company set up a dedicated team of AFC Ambassadors, who have helped oversee the company’s efforts in bringing our in line with the Gold standard.
We are fully engaged with the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to employ suitable service leavers wherever possible and have support structures in place to assign appropriate mentors to new employees to ease their integration into the company. The mentor scheme also helps ensure that our new joiners’ true potential is met and training is provided wherever possible.
We have comprehensive policies in place to support Reservist employees during times of mobilisation; through pre-deployment preparation, deployment and re-introduction back into the company on demobilisation. Our Reservists and Veterans have also built up a positive internal network to support any ‘non veterans’ who are considering joining the Reserves and, as a company, we ensure that information is readily available to aid in the decision making process.
Our journey is far from over and we aim to continue to improve our polices in an effort to make Allan Webb a Best Practice employer for Armed Forces, Reserves and spouses/partners of service men and women.
An integral part of Allan Webb’s Corporate Social Responsibility is to support the Armed Forces outside of company employment. We’re always on the lookout for worthy causes, both nationally and locally, to support. The company provides a focal point for all fundraising efforts and raising awareness for the causes and, where possible, contributes financially to supplement the teams fundraising.
We are a longstanding supporter of SSAFA, the armed forces charity, attending and sponsoring a number of events each year to help raise funds for the amazing work they do.
We’re also a proud supporter of the Gloucesershire Army Cadets Force and have been fundraising to reduce barriers of entry but help fund suitable footwear for the Cadets. You can find out more here.
‘A whole lot actually; first it enforces that Allan Webb truly understands and recognises the many positive attributes that Reservist, Service leavers, their spouses and Civil Service personnel bring to the company. Moreover, it demonstrates their commitment beyond just waving the banner, it shows they’ve woven the AFC into the very fabric of the company, making it an environment that promotes the very best from the Armed Forces community.
The Gold Award shows that Allan Webb understands the individual, their needs and commitments, be it as a reservist or as someone transitioning from service life, helping to drive down unnecessary stress and worry or uncertainty and instead replacing it with positive growth. In achieving Gold, it shows that Allan Webb is able to go that extra mile, taking time and effort to invest back into Armed Forces community, delivering ongoing support be it to the local Cadet Force, taking time out to providing honest advice and guidance to service leavers or enabling seamless mobilisation for Reserves Service.
So the Armed Forces Covenant Gold award to me means one of confidence, reassurance, positive engagement and commitment to me as a service leaver.’
– Colin Peace, Allan Webb AFC Ambassador
‘We’re incredibly proud and honoured to receive the Gold Award for the Armed Forces Covenant Employer Recognition Scheme. At Allan Webb, we’ve always been strong advocates of the skills and capabilities our ex-military personnel can bring to our team, and this has been reflected in the incredible levels of performance and growth that we see in our company today.
The most important thing for us, as a company, is that our employees feel supported and valued so that they can fully realise their potential here; being part of the ERS Gold membership is certainly an important part of that goal.
To be recognised as a company that is doing the right things in supporting our Veterans, Reserves and spouses/partners of those still serving is an incredible achievement. We don’t want to rest on our laurels of the Gold Award however, there is still much more we can do, and aim to be an exemplary AFC Champion and employer for many years to come.’
-Rory Lipington, Managing Director of Allan Webb
Our AFC Ambassador Team is dedicated to helping promote the Armed Forces Covenant and its policies both internally and externally and would be delighted to open up a dialogue with anyone interested in working with us.
If you’re interested in becoming a member of the AFC, a Reservist, looking for employment after service, or simply wish to discuss how Allan Webb can help support our Armed Forces, we’d be delighted to chat with you. Please get in touch via afc@allanwebb.co.uk.
The Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) is primarily designed to recognise and encourage private sector employers who support defence and inspire others to do the same. Awards are tiered Bronze, Silver and Gold and are presented to organisations that pledge, demonstrate and advocate support to defence and the armed forces community and align their values with the Armed Forces Covenant.
In order to be awarded the Gold Award, participating organisations are required to:
Click here to find out more about, or get involved with, the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme.
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