The recognition scheme encourages employers to support and advocate support for the armed forces community, and inspire others to do the same.
Being awarded Gold is a recognition of our commitment to our military recruitment programme encompassing:
- Entry pathways for those from the defence sectors, collaborating with clients, charities, and other organisations to attract those leaving the military into the sector.
- Employment of military reservists, ex-veterans, and military spouses.
- An internal ex-forces working group within our offices that all ex-forces personnel can join in order to share their experience to improve our programme, and have the support of fellow military leavers.
- Regular communications with our site-based staff to ascertain which staff are ex-forces, and provide support where necessary.
- Opportunities for valuable feedback from our workforce to influence our activities.
- Paid additional leave for reservists to attend training and cadet force adult volunteers to attend training.
- Collaboration with Claire’s Court CCF to deliver careers based transferrable skills workshops.
VGC employs 13 veterans and actively supports ex-forces personnel. VGC have established an Armed Forces/Defence Working Group to assist veterans’ transition, influence ex-forces recruitment, mentor site-based staff, and promote VGC at events.
We partner with Claires Court School’s CCF, delivering employability skills and military career insights. We also highlight links between military experience and construction management to inform university choices. VGC has hosted visits to military bases, showcasing partnerships with Armed Forces personnel.
We have developed an apprenticeship scheme for military leavers with training partners. We support Armed Forces professionals’ CPD through webinars, shared best practices, and access to the VGC Academy. A military-specific award is planned for our annual recognition program.
VGC welcomes applications from military spouses/partners, offering tailored support during deployments, injuries, or bereavement, recognising physical and mental health impacts. We currently employ a military spouse who we facilitated working from her military spouse’s most recent posting to enable her continued employment with us.
Our HR policies provide compassionate leave for those bereaved by Armed Forces losses. For two years, VGC has collaborated with CTP, sharing job opportunities, hosting online events, and working with Careers Managers to help service leavers identify transferable skills and transition into civilian roles.
“We are incredibly proud to have achieved the Gold Award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme. This honour reflects our deep commitment to supporting those who have served in the Armed Forces. Veterans bring exceptional skills, resilience, and leadership to our workforce, and we’re proud to offer a working environment that values their experience, supports their transition to civilian life, and provides real career opportunities. This award is a testament to our whole team’s effort in making VGC a forces-friendly employer.”
– Ciara Pryce, Chief Executive Officer, VGC Group
Meet some of our staff that were also ex-forces:
(In order from left to right) David Brevitt, Zara Mackintosh, Ryan Reese
We have been a proud signatory of the Armed Forces Covenant for a number of years, and are looking forward to officially receiving our award and a ceremony in the Autumn.
