Mission Employable UK

Every child deserves to feel seen, understood and supported in school. For children from Armed Forces families, however, that journey can be very different from that of their peers.

In this latest episode I had the privilege of speaking with Amy Kennedy, whose passion and expertise shine a light on the lived experiences of military connected children. We discuss the impact multiple moves and missed SEND can have on education and career choices and together, we explored a simple but powerful question:

What do we wish every school knew about military children?

While military life is often associated with resilience, adventure and service, the reality for many children is far more complex. Frequent relocations, changing schools, long periods of parental deployment and the uncertainty that comes with military life can all have a significant impact on a child's education, wellbeing and sense of belonging.

During our conversation, Amy shared valuable insights into the unique challenges these children face, but also the incredible strengths they develop along the way. Adaptability, independence and resilience are qualities many military children possess, yet these strengths should never mask the need for understanding and support.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

In this episode I sit down with Adam 'Joe' Lawton who was just 17 years old and on his first deployment in the far East when his ship HMS Sheffield, got diverted to support British Forces in the Falklands conflict. It took a direct hit from an Argentine missile.

Some years later, after service, and when living in Australia, Adam found the events of 1982 replaying themselves in his head. Increasingly affected by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder he resolved to return to the Falklands to confront the demons from his past and then travel onwards to Argentina to meet the two fighter pilots carrying the Exocets, one of which sank HMS Sheffield.

He wrote a book called 'Journey to Peace' which documents not only the realities of war and survival, but also the long personal journey through trauma, reconciliation, and ultimately peace, receiving outstanding 5-star reader reviews.

This upcoming episode is an honest, powerful conversation about service, sacrifice, resilience, PTSD and finding forgiveness. 

Adam talks eloquently about the importance of sharing lived experiences across generations to help those who have served in combat, lead a successful life outside of service.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

Ash Alexander-Cooper OBE is a former specialist military unit commander in the British Armed Forces, who has been shot and wounded multiple times during combat missions. During a two-decade career, Ash became one of the most operationally experienced officers of his generation, spending nearly 7 years deployed, and leading elite forces in some of the world’s most complex and hostile environments.

In addition to being a world-championship athlete, artist and musician, he’s an acclaimed author and global expert on high performing leadership. 

He’s a passionate advocate of supporting charities and gives a great deal of his time to helping others. 

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

This episode focuses on three powerful and insightful conversations with service leavers, who all give moving accounts of the barriers they have overcome, including the loss of limbs and time spent in prison, to achieving success beyond service life. Their deep commitment to improving the outcomes for service leavers is evident and powerful.

Understanding that support is available is critical. From employment pathways and skills translation to emotional wellbeing and community integration, Paul, Darren and Cassidy share a snapshot of their own journeys to success. 

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

In February I was invited to join the Forces Transition Group roadshow in Cheltenham to record the voices of transitioning personnel and employers seeking to hire from our military community.

I had the absolute pleasure of connecting with so many inspiring individuals, it was such a pleasure to record so many ‘hunters’ and ‘seekers’ voices for this special live edition of Mission Employable UK.

From HR leaders to service leavers, the consensus is clear: the bridge between military life and civilian careers is getting stronger every day thanks to the tireless work of the Forces Transition Group Ltd team.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

The Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) plays a pivotal role in strengthening the Armed Forces Covenant by acknowledging and rewarding UK employers who demonstrate outstanding support for the armed forces community. By providing a framework for organisations to pledge their commitment, from Bronze to Gold awards, the ERS not only raises awareness of the unique skills and experiences that ex-service personnel, reservists, and their families bring to the civilian workforce but also actively encourages their employment and professional development. This directly underpins the broader Defence Recognition Scheme, which seeks to build a mutually beneficial relationship between the armed forces and society. This ensures that those who serve, or have served, and their families are treated with fairness and respect, and are not disadvantaged. In this episode I chat with Kerryanne Wilde, the ERS Director for the North West of England and her role as my Defence partner supporting my company Careers Ideas Ltd, to move from Bronze to Silver.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

Miliary spouses bring a powerful, often overlooked skill set shaped by constant change. They are the hidden ranks with a highly desirable skill set most employers are unaware of. They are experts in adapting to new environments, navigating change and operating in complex and unfamiliar environments all whilst maintaining family stability.  This repeated exposure to disruption builds exceptional strength in change management problem solving, resilience and cross function communication, often with limited information.  

In this episode we chat with Ella Cartwright and her husband John, a serving soldier recently back from a 6 month deployment alongside Anna Bell, a former RAF combat medic, military spouse and now a Lecturer in Adult Nursing on their experiences of giving up a career to forge a new path and the impact on the wider family of deployments.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

For this episode we’re diving into Military Civil Work Attachments — a powerful but often underused route for serving personnel to gain real-world experience before transitioning into civilian employment.

I’ll be sharing my story of hosting a serving soldier on a Civil Work Attachment through my company Careers Ideas Ltd. Over the placement, I saw first hand just how effective these attachments can be — not only in building confidence, but in giving someone the chance to apply their knowledge and skills in a live environment and see how their military experience translates directly into civilian projects and teamwork.

We talk about what made this placement work so well, how Civil Work Attachments benefit both the individual and the business, and why employers should be paying more attention to this brilliant bridge between service and civilian careers.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

In this episode, I'm joined by John Stephenson from the Forces Transition Group an organisation dedicated to helping service leavers navigate the often challenging move from military life into civilian employment.

John is well known for his straight-talking honest advice, where he breaks down what really works on a CV, what transferable skills employers are looking for, he talks about their nationwide job fairs which are always sell out events and the kind of employers who attend them, connecting service leavers directly with organisations who understand their value.

If you’re transitioning out of the Forces, supporting someone who is, or simply curious about how veterans’ skills translate into the workplace, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.

Your Transition, Your Story covers the backstory of why Deborah Collier wanted to set up a Podcast for service leavers. Through her company Careers Ideas Ltd, she signed up to become a holder of the Employer Recognition Scheme, moving from Bronze to Silver, offering Civil Work Attachments and Career support to transitioning personnel and their families. An Army Veteran, and a Chartered Fellow in Project Management and Leadership & Management, she brings fresh insight into the challenges and joys that leaving the Armed Services can bring.   

Deborah works with a range of private and public sector organisations to support skills development. She delivers work ready skills programmes to young people beginning their career journeys and supports senior leaders in developing a diverse workforce. 

She is an Associate member of the Electech Innovation Engineering Cluster and sits on Lancaster & Morecambe District Armed Forces Steering Committee. She is a member of Lancashire Skills and Employment Hub and delivers training to academic organisations on supporting military students.  Deborah is a Safer Recruiter for the DFE and focuses on supporting careers in Engineering, Business, Sport and Defence.

She is currently working in partnership with several academic institutions to research the impact on forces children's educational outcomes through multiple deployments and the career impact on military spouses.  Her work has led to invitations to present key findings at the SCiP Alliance Conference 2025, Lancashire Inclusion Summit  and Lancashire Careers and Future You Conference.

She is mother to an RAF serving soldier and has a deep knowledge and understanding of SEND.

Thank you for listening to Mission Employable UK, a podcast dedicated to ensuring your journey from serving to civvy street is smooth.

Follow us, as we chat to service leavers, employers and everyone in-between to gain real insight into life outside the barracks.