At In Professional Development, we have chosen to make a £500 donation to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal. Our team is made up of individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, including some who have served in the military. Honouring our service members is a fundamental value within our organization.
We believe that this donation contributes to our commitment to this vital cause. It is our way of expressing gratitude to our employees who have military backgrounds and to all service members who have dedicated themselves to the service of their country. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of this important mission.
The Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion is the UK’s largest military charity. Founded in 1921, the Royal British Legion is made up of 180,000 members and 110,000 volunteers. As a collective, they work together to provide an essential support service for active and retired service members and their families from all of the branches of the UK armed forces. The Royal British Legion’s aim has always been to give these service members who have given their all for our country the essential support that they need the most. The Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal raises funds and support to enable them to provide this much needed support and to also raise awareness and social support for their charity and for the armed forces community.
How Does Your Donation Help?
The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal raises the funds and the support needed to help retired and actively serving members of the armed forces by providing financial support, physical, emotional and psychological support and career advice to help them make the transition from military to civilian life as easy as possible when they leave the armed forces. Many service members won’t ask for support, even if they need it, therefore it is the Royal British Legion’s purpose to provide them with this vital support regardless. Your donation will help them to provide service members and their families with continued support throughout their lives.
A Message From Our Ex Military Employees
"Remembrance day is a day to reflect and remember those who gave so much to protect our freedoms. It’s our duty to make sure that not one of those sacrifices is forgotten."
- Kirralee Green , Management Accountant (InPD) -
"I left the Regular Army last year, after 33 years, but still serve as a Reservist.
One significant change is the amount of stability I now feel. After 14 different houses over the years it’s good to be settled and part of a wider community in rural Northumberland.
The military equips us with many transferable skills. In particular I’ve noticed how adept Veterans are at getting on with other people regardless of their background or culture. We’re also good at being comfortable with uncertainty and finding solutions to emergent problems. Almost goes without saying but we’re pretty good leaders, followers and team players too.
More than anything else - it’s the camaraderie I miss. I owe the people I worked alongside so much. They helped, guided and supported me when I needed it most. I couldn’t have wanted a better group around me when times were tough.
I remain connected with my friends through my Regimental Association, of which I am now President, and know just how valuable the work of the service charities are. They have supported our membership immeasurably over the years. Thank you for all you do for us and for Veterans more widely."
- David Clouston, Tutor -
"My time in the Armed Forces offered huge variety of unique and challenging experiences. There was a lot of emphasis on physical fitness, but it’s really the habits of mind that endure. For me, it was understanding that the privilege of leadership is gifted by others through their willingness to follow. To lead effectively, you have to serve authentically. Once people realise that you take your obligations as a leader sincerely, you can ask almost anything of them. That’s the relationship of trust and confidence that you carry, and it’s the biggest intellectual and emotional commitment that I took away from the Armed Forces."
- James Fowler, Tutor -
The Armed Forces Covenant
The Armed Forces Covenant: This is an initiative that ensures that current and retired service members and their families are treated fairly in civilian life. In Professional Development have signed this initiative, and we have since been awarded a Forces Friendly Employer Silver Award by the North West of England and the Isle of Man Reserve Forces and Cadets Association (NW RFCA) on behalf of the MOD Employer Recognition Scheme for our support for our retired service member employees and service member customers and their families. Some examples of our commitments to the armed forces community are supporting military reservists and ex-military service people, assisting them in returning to civilian life, providing discounts for ex-service people and their family members on our training courses, and providing internal training opportunities for ex-service members.
Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Reserve & Cadets), Major General Marc Overton said:
“I would like to thank and congratulate the recipients of this year's Employer Recognition Scheme Silver Awards. A Silver award recognises the fantastic efforts of employers throughout the UK who have both elevated their commitments under the Armed Forces Covenant and provided actual benefits to the Armed Forces Community.”
“The winners should all be proud of their life-changing impact and fresh opportunities they are providing to our Reservists, veterans and their families. The number of winners this year yet again shows that the Armed Forces family talent pool is also providing tangible business benefit.”
Military Charity Partnerships
At In Professional Development, we have a number of related partnerships and affiliations with military charities. Like the Royal British Legion, these charities, organisations and initiatives strive to also provide vital support to the armed forces community. We are very proud of these partnerships, affiliated charities and initiatives, such as;
- Career Transition Partnership: This organisation focuses on assisting service leavers with making the transition from the military sector to the private sector. CTP provide resettlement services for those leaving the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Marines, regardless of the amount of time that they have served. They also operate as an intermediary service for employers wishing to hire from the service leavers and veterans pool of talent; one of the ways that an organisation can assist service members to make the transition from a military career to a civilian career as smoothly as possible.
- Forces Families Jobs: This organisation serves as an online training and employment platform for the partners of those currently serving in the armed forces. They see the importance in not only supporting service members, but also their partners. It can be difficult for partners of service members to study and to find the right career, especially if they have had to relocate or move overseas due to their partner’s role within the military. As a result, FFJ provides a virtual platform that allows partners of service members to learn valuable skills and to find flexible career opportunities that can accommodate their military lifestyle.
- SSAFA, The Armed Forces Charity: This organisation has been providing practical, emotional and financial support to the armed forces and service member’s families since 1885. At In Professional Development, we see the value that this organisation brings in supporting the armed forces community, and we have engaged in an ongoing fundraising campaign for SSAFA, with a target to raise £5,000 for this charity through a series of activities such as a company sponsored skydive, regular coffee mornings, social media marketing to our professional network to raise awareness and encourage donations, and a fundraising web page where our employees and followers can make their own donations.
Donate to The Royal British Legion
The service that our armed forces have provided to us is one that cannot be repaid, but the Royal British Legion will greatly appreciate any donation that you can make, regardless of the amount. Please click here to find out more about all the work that they are doing for our armed forces, and please click this link to make your donation now.
