A Decade of the Covenant: A review of delivery and impact of ten years of the Armed Forces Covenant (Main Report)

Abstract: This research builds on our earlier research for FiMT which was reported in Our Community – Our Covenant. This research is broader than our earlier  work in three respects: we were asked to look at the impact of the Covenant as well as the delivery of it; the scope includes other service providers, including the NHS, as well as local government; the research covers the delivery of the Covenant in Northern Ireland as well as in England, Scotland and Wales. It is important to note that the research coincided with the passage of legislation introducing a statutory duty in relation to the Covenant through the Armed Forces Act 2021. We adopted a three-stage approach to our research: an initial scoping stage, including scoping interviews and workshops; the core data collection stage including surveys, interviews, themed discussions and literature reviews; an analysis, synthesis and reporting stage including a series of sense-making workshops. First, our theory of change which provides a coherent picture of the logic underpinning the delivery of the Covenant from inputs to outcomes and impacts. Second, our identification of five key drivers of disadvantage facing members of the AFC. They are: geographical relocation; aspects of life in the AFC; aspects of the transition to civilian life; a lack of understanding about the AFC within councils and other public service providers; and a lack of understanding of the Covenant and the support associated within the AFC. Third, we have identified three cohorts within the AFC, the members of which experience the drivers of disadvantage in different combinations in relation to different public services. The cohorts are: serving people and their families; personnel and families in transition; and veterans.