Armed Forces Week: flag raising ceremony at Shire Hall, Cambridge

A flag raising ceremony has taken place at Shire Hall to mark the start of Armed Forces Week (24-29 June).

The event recognises the contribution made by the men and women across the city and the county who are serving, or have served, in the military.

Cambridge City Council and Cambridgeshire County Council are two of the signatories to The Armed Forces Covenant, a commitment from public and private organisations to support the active and retired Armed Forces.

Cambridge City Council’s representative on the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Military Covenant Board, Cllr Mike Davey was at the ceremony today (Monday, June 24), alongside he Chairman of the County Council Cllr Mac McGuire, and Colonel Roger Herriot OBE, Deputy Lieutenant and President of the Cambridgeshire Royal British Legion.

Cllr Davey said: “As a signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant, the city council is honoured and privileged to commemorate Armed Forces Week and recognise the brave men and women who serve, or have served, their country.

“In Armed Forces Week it is important to reflect upon the sacrifices they have made and in raising awareness to ensure they are given the community support they so richly deserve.

“We have recently developed an action plan to back up our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, and are applying for Bronze status in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme.

“The plan sets out a range of ways in which the council will raise awareness of the support that is on offer from a wide range of organisations, as well as look at how our services can better support ex-military personnel and their families.”

Cllr Mac McGuire, Chairman of the Armed Forces Covenant Board in Cambridgeshire and chairman of the County Council said: “We are committed as a board to working with our partners to raise awareness of our Armed Forces Community and remove the disadvantage they may face due to their service. The board works tirelessly to implement strategies across the county to ensure that the covenant aims are upheld.

"The recent covenant project, funded by the Covenant Fund Trust has given us the resource to drive forward the covenant agenda to better the lives of our military community past and present.

“At the start of Armed Forces Week we will be raising the flag in recognition of all our service community do for our country, with various events being undertaken across the county to mark Armed Forces Day on Saturday 29 June.”

The creation of local ‘Community Covenants’ complement, at a local level, the armed forces covenant, which outlines the moral obligation between the nation, the government and the armed forces. The aim of a community covenant is to encourage local communities to support the armed forces community in their area and promote understanding and awareness among the public of issues affecting the armed forces community. Further information can be found at armedforcescovenant.gov.uk/