The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise by the nation that those who serve or who have served in the armed forces, and their families, will be treated fairly. The Council, together with local partners signed the Herefordshire Armed Forces Community Covenant in May 2012.

In 2018, the Council received the Silver Award from the Armed Forces Covenant Employer Recognition Scheme. The Council is now actively working towards the Gold Award.

As part of its commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, the Council already provides support to employees who are Armed Forces Reservists, for example through paid time off to attend training. The Council did not, however, have any HR guidance explaining how the mobilisation of employees who are Armed Forces Reservists should be handled. It was therefore necessary to create this guidance which is published on the Council’s staff intranet.