The Vale Of Glamorgan Council Hosts Armed Forces Covenant Meeting

The Vale of Glamorgan Council has held its Armed Forces Covenant meeting, which saw serving, and veteran, Armed Forces representatives from the Vale of Glamorgan attend to discuss the current issues that affect the Armed Forces community in the local area. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The Vale of Glamorgan Council hosts the Armed Forces Covenant meetings every two months, and July saw the Royal British Legion’s ‘Count Them In’ scheme discussed in a question and answer session with Peter Evans, Royal British Legion Public Affairs Manager for Wales. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The ‘Count Them In’ scheme – “We count on them – let’s count them in” – aims to increase what we know about the Armed Forces population of the UK. The Royal British Legion stresses that, despite an estimated 1 in 10 of the UK population being members of the Armed Forces community, there’s limited information about where those members live, and what their needs may be. They say that, by adding questions to the 2021 Census, our communities can improve their understanding of this unique community, and ensure that politicians, charities and service providers meet the needs of our serving personnel, veterans and their families across the UK. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

A recent Council meeting – held on 25 July – saw the Vale of Glamorgan Council approve of the scheme, unanimously supporting the motion. The Vale of Glamorgan Council aims to support the scheme by ensuring that the Armed Forces community will not face disadvantage in the provision of services, and notes that increased statistical data on the Armed Forces community would greatly assist in the planning and provision of services addressing the unique needs of the Armed Forces community living within the Vale of Glamorgan. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The Leader of the Vale of Glamorgan Council, Cllr. Neil Moore, has described the Council as being proud of its Armed Forces community, saying: “This Council is proud to support the Armed Forces community and endorses the British Legion ‘Count Them In’ campaign which calls on the UK Government to include specific questions relating to this unique community in the next UK Census to help us understand the numbers, locations and needs of members of the Armed Forces community, thereby allowing us to deliver the best possible services for people who have served their country.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Cllr. Anthony Powell, the Vale of Glamorgan’s Armed Forces Champion, chaired July’s Covenant meeting, and also expressed his pride at the Vale endorsing the ‘Count Them In’ scheme. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The next Armed Forces Covenant meeting is scheduled to be held on 30 September, 2016. If you are interested in attending the meeting, contact Mark Petherick, Cabinet Officer for the Vale of Glamorgan Council, on mpetherick@valeofglamorgan.gov.uk. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​