UK Armed Forces Veterans Lapel Badge

UK Armed Forces Veterans Lapel Badge

For generations our Armed Forces have served their country across the world in many roles from war fighting, peacekeeping and reconstruction to home defence. In so doing, they have defended our country, our way of life and our cherished values. A large number of our veterans are young and active and now use the skills, the discipline and the leadership qualities they learned in the Armed Forces to benefit their civilian employers and the wider community. The Ministry of Defence Strategy for Veterans highlights that because of all this it is important to focus on supporting veterans of all ages, by celebrating, and raising public awareness of, their achievements and their contribution to society. To promote recognition of veterans by the wider British public the unique and unifying symbol of the HM Armed Forces Veterans Badge was introduced.

The UK Armed Forces Veterans Lapel Badge was launched in May 2004 by the Minister of Veterans, to raise the profile of veterans by assisting the wider public to recognise them. The first veterans badge was issued to Lord Healy, a veteran of the Battle for Monte Cassino, on 10 May 2004, which initiated the roll out of the badge to the Second World War veteran generation. Since then eligibility to apply for the badge has been extended in sequential phases to all veterans. This has now closed the gap between those who apply for their badge and those who receive it automatically on leaving the Services.

The badge is an enamelled, engraved, and pinned, lapel badge featuring the words HM Armed Forces Veteran, which encompass the Tri-Service, Anchor, Crossed Swords and Eagle motif. Its symbolism is intended to unite all veterans in recognising the commonality of their service, to encourage a sense of unity and community between surviving veterans and to ignite public recognition of current veterans and their continuing contribution to society.

Eligibility

Criteria

All those who have served in HM Armed Forces.

Exceptions

Veterans who served in Armed Forces of other Countries and those who served alongside HM Armed Forces are not eligible (eg. Canadian Navy or Royal Australian Air Force).

Posthumous requests

The badge is a survivors badge and therefore is not issued posthumously.

The only exceptions are War Widows and Widowers who are in receipt of a War Widows/Widowers Pension paid by the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency. This is in recognition of the fact that their death was due to their military service.

How to apply

You can apply by any of the following methods:

Click on one of the links below to access the application form.

How to apply

You can apply by any of the following methods:

Click on one of the links below to access the application form.

Application Forms

§ Acrobat Reader Version

§ Microsoft Word Version

§ Rich Text Format (.rtf)

Please ensure you complete the form as fully as possible.

You may post or fax your completed form to the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency.