BAE Systems has become the Army Benevolent Fund’s (ABF) longest-running corporate sponsor, providing 25 years of charitable giving in support of serving soldiers, veterans and their families.
Since being formed in 1999, BAE Systems has made an annual donation to the Army Benevolent Fund (ABF) totalling more than £1.2 million in funding. Over the years, employees from across the business have also supported the charity with hundreds of hours of fundraising.
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the ABF, the Army’s national charity. Since 1944 the charity has supported veterans, soldiers and their families through life’s challenges – such as bereavement, getting back to work and elderly care. Last year, it helped over 75,000 people through its grants for individuals and funding for other charities.
Funding from donors, including BAE Systems, is essential for the charity to continue its life-changing work with veterans and serving soldiers such as Dave. Dave is based in Tidworth, and since 2006 has served as a regular with the Royal Welsh, including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Dave joined the Small Arms School Corps in 2015 and, since 2019, has been a Warrant Officer Class Two.
Hearing that six young children were going to be taken into care, Dave and his wife, Elaine, decided to bring them into their home and foster them. But they soon faced financial pressure caused by the extra costs of caring for young children. The Army Benevolent Fund’s partner charity, SSAFA, assisted the family and the ABF provided £4,000 towards household appliances and help with the children’s needs.
Dave says:
“I used all our savings and did not know where to go. We needed six of everything, including car seats, beds and clothes. Without the assistance of the ABF, SSAFA and Regimental Associations, I don’t know what we would have done. The ABF has been amazing and we could not have had a happy family in our home without their support. Thank you.”
Peter Monteith, Chief Operating Officer, Army Benevolent Fund, said:
“We’re hugely grateful for the continued support of BAE Systems whose contributions have made a significant difference to the work we’re able to do. Our partnership over a quarter of a century has made the company our longest serving corporate supporter and we look forward to continuing to work together to make a difference to Army personnel, veterans and their families.”
Gabby Costigan, Group Managing Director, Business Development, BAE Systems said:
“As a veteran of the Australian Army, I have seen first-hand the important role that charities like the ABF play in providing critical support to people both in service and when they leave. I’m very proud of our partnership with the ABF and the contributions that our employees are able to make to support such a worthy cause.”
The ABF is one of a number of military charities supported by BAE Systems, which has donated £35 million over the past 10 years to help serving personnel, veterans and preserve military heritage. The company is a founding member of the Armed Forces Covenant and employs more than 2,000 veterans and reservists in the UK, many of whom play an active role to help make BAE Systems a preferred employer for service leavers.
The Army Benevolent Fund works with corporate partners in a range of ways to meet our shared goals and support the Army community. As well as meeting corporate social purpose objectives, these relationships allow partners to engage employees, strengthen brands, grow networks and demonstrate their commitment to the Army family, as well as meeting corporate social purpose objectives.
For more information, visit https://armybenevolentfund.org/
