Wiltshire covenant launched to support armed forces

Wiltshire Council has reinforced its support for the armed forces with the launch of the county's first community covenant.

This covenant is a pact of support between local residents and the armed forces community.

It aims to encourage residents to support the service community in their area and raise awareness of issues affecting the armed forces.

Having a covenant also means the council and its partners can bid for funding for schemes that support the armed forces.

The leader of Wiltshire Council, Jane Scott, said: "This covenant provides us with an excellent opportunity to reaffirm our support for the armed forces.

Many armed forces personnel live and work in our county and they contribute so much to our local communities.

We already have a good track record of working with the armed forces in Wiltshire both at a strategic and community level.

But with this covenant we can look forward to even more initiatives to support them."

Wiltshire has a significant military presence with its super garrison around Salisbury Plain.

There are approximately 30,000 military personnel and their families living in the county - 6.6 per cent of the total population.

The county is also home to a significant number of veterans.

Under the strategic leadership of the Military Civilian Integration (MCI) Programme Sponsoring Group, joint working is well established in Wiltshire to optimise the economic and social benefits of the armed forces presence in the county.

You can find more information about Wiltshire's Military Civilian Integration Programme on the WC website

You can find more information about the armed forces community covenants from the Ministry of Defence website.