CCS has had the honour of being awarded the 2023 Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) silver award in recognition of the fantastic work taking place across the Trust to support veterans, reservists and their families within our community.

The Defence ERS recognises positive actions taken by organisations to help ensure members of the Armed Forces, including existing or prospective employees who are members of the association, are not unfairly disadvantaged during recruitment and are supported in the workplace.

The recent accolade follows the Trust pledging its support to the military community and receiving the ERS bronze award in October 2022 after signing the Armed Forces Covenant.

Clare Dinnick, Project Manager for the Veteran Aware Programme for CCS, said: “We are thrilled to have received the silver ERS award and are looking forward to attending the presentation ceremony at Madingley Hall in October.

“The award reflects the hard work CCS has been doing, building on foundations already in place, to support veterans, reservists and their families by making sure they are being fairly represented and given appropriate employment opportunities.”

Dr David Vickers, Medical Director, Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust and Veteran Aware Project Sponsor, said: “We’re delighted to receive this award which demonstrates we’re a forces-friendly employer and open to employing reservists, Armed Forces veterans (including the wounded, injured and sick), cadet instructors and military spouses/partners.

“CCS is embarking on a journey to become a Veteran Aware NHS Trust, and this is another significant step towards gaining accreditation.”

Veteran Aware is part of the Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance (VCHA), which consists of more than a hundred NHS providers in England who have been accredited as exemplars of the best care for veterans, helping to drive improvements in NHS care for people who serve or have served in the UK armed forces and their families.

David Wood, Regional Lead for Veteran Aware, said: “I am so pleased to see that Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust has achieved its Defence Employer Recognition Scheme silver award, demonstrating the Trust’s commitment to supporting the military community, and as part of its progress towards accreditation to become Veteran Aware.”

Kristina Carrington, Regional Employer Engagement Director for the East of England, added: “We congratulate Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust on being awarded their Defence Employer Recognition Scheme Silver Award in recognition of the intention to support Defence People, and are looking forward to working with them on their journey to attaining a Gold Award.”