Winsford Decides
- June 2026
Telford & Wrekin Council has a clear and sustained commitment to supporting the Borough’s Armed Forces community, which is embedded strategically, operationally and culturally across the organisation and is delivered with a wide range of local, regional and national partners.
In 2012, the Council was one of the first local authorities in the United Kingdom to sign the Armed Forces Community Covenant. Since that time, significant and sustained progress has been made in delivering on Covenant commitments, supported by the development of a strong, evolving infrastructure.
A key element of this infrastructure is the Armed Forces Covenant Partnership. Through the work undertaken by the Partnership, 163 organisations and businesses within the Borough have now signed the Armed Forces Covenant – one of the highest numbers of signatories in the West Midlands region. The Covenant is a pledge recognising that those who serve, or who have served, in the Armed Forces, and their families, should be treated with fairness and respect in the communities, economy and society they serve.
Since 2019, the Council has delivered an annual Armed Forces Day celebration event for Armed Forces families and residents. The 2025 event marked the culmination of a week of celebrations during which the public was encouraged to show their support and appreciation. The event is delivered in partnership with local and national Armed Forces charities, Covenant signatories, and Defence Industry partners. Attendance at the most recent event was approximately 5,000, demonstrating strong, consistent support from partners and residents.
The Council holds the prestigious Ministry of Defence’s Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Gold Award, first achieved in 2020 and recently reaccredited for a further five years. This award reflects the Council’s advocacy and leadership in supporting defence people issues across its workforce, partner organisations and service users.
The Christopher Turley Armed Forces Community Hub Opening
Jon Power
Head of Policy, Insight, Partnership & Elections
Telford & Wrekin Council