Covenant & Services Awards Shortlisted Nominees Announced for 2025 Ceremony
The list of shortlisted nominees has been announced for the 2025 Covenant and Services Awards.
The Services Awards which take place each summer and produced by the National Armed Forces & Emergency Services Events (NAFESE) team, celebrate the best in service from armed to emergency to volunteer and will take place on Thursday July 3 at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland.
The 2025 event takes on a special addition in the form of the Covenant Awards ‘25 - a one-off celebration marking 25 years since the inception of the modern Armed Forces Covenant.
The Covenant Awards features three categories - Most Outstanding Charity/CIC, Most Outstanding Private Sector and Most Outstanding Public Sector and is designed to showcase companies who have gone the extra mile in one form or another during the 25 years since the Armed Forces Covenant was first mentioned.
The Services Awards features nine categories - Most Outstanding Royal Navy/Royal Marines, Most Outstanding Police/Law Enforcement, Most Outstanding British Army, Most Outstanding NHS/Healthcare, Most Outstanding Royal Air Force, Most Outstanding Fire Service, Most Outstanding Volunteer Service, Mental Health Champion (across all services) and Most Outstanding Overall.
This year’s awards features an array of positive and selfless stories across the services sector and include lifesaving skills which saved a baby’s life, stories of physical stamina all in the spirit of fundraising for good causes and tales of professionalism.
The Most Outstanding Police Category even includes the story of Baloo, a former Police Dog, now doing outstanding things for mental health, after her release from Essex Police due to injuries sustained on duty.
Event Director for NAFESE, Mal Robinson added, “each year you think you have heard it all in terms of heroism and selflessness, when it comes to people in the services and each year, you become equally as humbled and astounded at the sheer level of integrity of the most professional of people…it really is a proud moment for everyone, when the awards come round each year.”
Councillor Harry Trueman, Sunderland City Council's Armed Forces Champion, said: "We’re delighted to have been shortlisted for the most outstanding public sector category of the awards.
“As a city we're hugely proud of our connections with the Armed Forces. We have a strong network of organisations which work hard, through our Armed Forces Partnership, to support our tri services and the 11,000 veterans living in our city, as well as their families.
“And we recognise and value the enormous contribution that serving and former personnel make to communities across our city.”
The shortlisted nominees in full are as follows:
Covenant Awards
Most Outstanding Charity/CIC
Veterans in Crisis
Military Veteran Football Club
Walking with the Wounded
Most Outstanding Private Sector
Believe Housing
Amanet
Most Outstanding Public Sector
East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
Liverpool John Moores University
North East Ambulance Service
Sunderland City Council
Services Awards 2025
Most Outstanding Royal Navy/Royal Marines (in Association with the National Federation of Demolition Contractors)
Mr David Bathgate (Veteran) - Military vs Cancer
HMS WIldfire
Most Outstanding Police/Law Enforcement
Baloo - Essex Police, The National Police Wellbeing Service (Oscar Kilo)
PC Nicola Crabbe - Wiltshire Police
Most Outstanding British Army
Lt Col Matthew Cann - RMP, Loan Service Team Brunei
11 EOD&S Regt RLC
Capt David Ridley - 8 Rifles
Mr Andrew Cammiss (Veteran) - East Durham Veterans Trust
Most Outstanding NHS/Healthcare (in Association with Training in Care)
Laura Lawton & Newmedica
East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
Mr Josh Plumpton - North East Ambulance Service
Mr Martin McKie - North East Ambulance Service
Most Outstanding Royal Air Force
Cpl Gillian Craig - RAF Police, RAF Honington
WO Ian Pallace - JFC Naples
Mr Andrew Holloway (Veteran) - Amazon UK
Mr Dougie Brimson (Veteran) - Red Bus Movies
Most Outstanding Fire Service
Crew Commander Danielle Hood - West Midlands Fire Service
Karl Learniham - Barnstaple Fire Station
Most Outstanding Volunteer (in Association with Stagecoach)
Sdn Ldr Thomas - RAF Cadets
Mrs Lindsay Sykes - The Scouts
Mental Health Champion (in Association with Aviation Action)
Mr Sean Phelps (Veteran) - HM Prison Service
Mr David Bathgate (Veteran) - Military vs Cancer
The Covenant & Services Awards’ winners will be announced on the evening of Thursday July 3 at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland in a black-tie ceremony.
Tickets and more information are available by contacting hospitality@nafese2023.com
NAFESE 2025 The National Armed Forces & Emergency Services Events (NAFESE) Team is delighted to announce the launch of their main event for 2025 - The National Armed Forces & Emergency Services Event 2025 (NAFESE 2025). NAFESE 2025 will take place on Wednesday April 9 at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland and Beacon of Light, Sunderland and it is the only National event celebrating the communities of both the forces and blue light services under one roof. NAFESE 2025 will be the third year of the event and the biggest to date, incorporating not one, but two sites adjacent to each other at the prestigious Sunderland Stadium of Light - home of the event for the past two years. The National Armed Forces & Emergency Services Event typically features a Recruitment & Resettlement Zone for those leaving the services, a STEM Village for visiting schools and colleges, a Regional Showcase Hub for local brands and firms to showcase themselves on a National stage and an Armed Forces Veterans Breakfast Club - open to all attendees and exhibitors on the day and featuring guest speakers. As mentioned, for the first time, NAFESE will be staged over two sites - The Stadium of Light and the Beacon of Light - and also for the first time, NAFESE will feature a trade show element for the forces and services…the only one of its kind in the UK covering ALL of the services. NAFESE 2025 is set to be the biggest event ever staged for the service family in more ways than one! Commercial Opportunities for NAFESE 2025 Main Event Partner/Sponsor Your company/brand name included in the title of the event 2 x 6ms x 2ms stands at NAFESE 2025 - one at the Stadium of Light site and one at the Beacon of Light site Full page editorial and full page advert in Eyes Front - the official national event magazine for NAFESE 2025 Opening speech for NAFESE 2025 by a spokesperson of your choice at the Armed Forces Veterans Breakfast Club Promotional video footage on your company from the NAFESE team in the lead up to the event Your company video footage on all screens within the Stadium of Light at NAFESE 2025 10 tickets for the Armed Forces Veterans Breakfast Club at NAFESE 2025 Your logo on all event literature in the build up and at all events Optional extra of a presentation area inside the Beacon of Light at NAFESE 2025 1 x tables of 10 at the Covenant ‘25 Gala Ball held in London on April 2 (more info to be sent) Your company colours displayed on the entire outside of the Beacon of Light in the evening ahead of NAFESE 2025 Your logo on the cover of the Covenant ‘25 Anniversary Brochure inside the NAFESE Directory for 2025 Full page welcome, full page editorial and full page advert inside Covenant ‘25 Anniversary Brochure inside the NAFESE 2025 Directory Associate Sponsor Associate Sponsorship of both NAFESE 2025 1 x 6ms x 2ms stand at NAFESE 2025 at the location of your choice (either Stadium of Light or Beacon of Light sites) Full page Advert inside Eyes Front - the official magazine for NAFESE 2025 6 tickets for the Armed Forces Veterans Breakfast Club at NAFESE 2025 Your logo on all event literature across all events 1 x table of 10 at the Covenant ‘25 Gala Ball on April 2nd in London Your logo on the cover of the Covenant ‘25 Anniversary Brochure inside the NAFESE 2025 Directory 1 x full page advert inside the Covenant ‘25 Anniversary Brochure inside the NAFESE 2025 Directory STEM Village Sponsor 1 x stand space at the entrance to the Village 1 x full page advert in the event brochure Your logo on signage within the STEM Village Half page editorial feature in NAFESE 2025 Community Directory Regional Showcase Hub Sponsor 1 x trader stand space at the entrance to the Hub 1 x full page advert in the event brochure and various features in local press Your logo on signage within the Hub Selfie Frame Sponsor Your logo on the selfie frame used by the official photographer at NAFESE 2025 1 x exhibitor stand space at NAFESE 2025 1 x full page advert in the event brochure at NAFESE 2025 Exhibitor Stands - Stadium of Light 1 x full stand space at the NAFESE 1 x full listing in the official event brochure and online Stakeholder Engagement Package Do you feel you are a viable stakeholder to the NAFESE but can not make the event? We have the Stakeholder Engagement Package available allowing you presence there on the day. The package includes: Quarter Page space within the event brochure Promotional items of your choice to the event bag Both items are handed out at the Breakfast Club and Exhibition Please email hospitality@nafese2023.com for further information and pricing.