LANTRA SIGNS THE ARMED FORCES COVENANT AND BACKS NEW INITIATIVE TO CONNECT VETERANS WITH LAND-BASED CAREERS
Lantra has formally signed the Armed Forces Covenant at the National Transition Event (NTE) 2026, marking a significant step forward in strengthening connections between the Armed Forces community and the UK’s land-based industries.
Held at Silverstone Circuit, the National Transition Event brings together service leavers, veterans, reservists, and their families with employers and industry bodies seeking to harness the valuable skills and experience developed through military service.
Lantra’s signing of the Armed Forces Covenant reflects its commitment to supporting service leavers, veterans, reservists, and military families through training, skills development, and employment opportunities across the land-based sector.
Following the Covenant signing, Lantra is pleased to announce an exciting partnership with Mission Community and other rural industry bodies to strengthen pathways into land-based careers for the Armed Forces community.
The collaboration will support the launch of the Land-Based Industry Guide for the Armed Forces Community, a new resource designed to showcase the breadth of opportunities available across the rural economy and help service leavers better understand how their military skills translate into civilian careers. The guide highlights career pathways across key sectors including land-based engineering, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, estate management, and the equine industry.
This initiative builds on the foundations laid by the Veterans Rural Skills Partnership, established by the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), which brings together industry bodies, employers, and training organisations to address skills shortages while creating meaningful opportunities for veterans within the rural sector.
Lantra will play a key role in helping to identify and develop clearer training and career pathways into the land-based industries, supporting recognition of transferable military skills and aligning them with the workforce needs of the sector.
Specialist organisations such as HighGround, widely recognised for their expertise in supporting veterans into land-based employment, will also play an important role in helping service leavers explore practical opportunities across the rural economy.
Each year approximately 16,000 people leave the UK Armed Forces, bringing with them leadership experience, technical capability, and operational expertise that align strongly with many roles across the rural economy.
By working collaboratively with Mission Community and industry partners, Lantra aims to ensure the land-based sector becomes a visible and viable destination for service leavers seeking meaningful second careers.
Andrew Palmer of Lantra said: “Signing the Armed Forces Covenant is an important step for Lantra and reflects our commitment to supporting those who serve or have served. The land-based sector offers a wide range of rewarding careers, and veterans bring many of the skills and attributes our industries value. By working with Mission Community and partners across the sector, we want to help build clearer pathways that connect military talent with opportunities in the rural economy.”
Mission Community works across UK industry sectors to support Armed Forces engagement and help organisations access the skills and experience of service leavers, veterans, reservists, and military families.
Daisy Coleman of Mission Community added: “The rural economy has enormous potential to offer meaningful and purpose-driven careers for the Armed Forces community. By working with Lantra and partners across the industry, we are helping highlight these opportunities and ensure that veterans, reservists and their families can see it as a viable and rewarding career destination.”
The forestry sector represents one of the many opportunities highlighted within the guide. In 2025, CONFOR, the UK’s Confederation of Forest Industries, signed the Armed Forces Covenant with support from Mission Community, further strengthening the sector’s commitment to engaging with the Armed Forces community and highlighting forestry as a growing career pathway.
Lantra and Mission Community will continue working with partners across the rural economy to develop resources, engagement activities, and sector initiatives that support veterans and strengthen the future workforce of the UK’s countryside industries.
Notes to Editors
The Land-Based Industry Guide for the Armed Forces Community will provide an overview of career opportunities, transferable military skills, and sector insights across agriculture, horticulture, forestry, land-based engineering, estate management, and the equine industry.
The initiative forms part of wider efforts to connect the Armed Forces community with industries experiencing skills shortages while supporting long-term workforce development across the rural economy.
The National Transition Event (NTE) is the UK’s leading Armed Forces engagement event, connecting service leavers, veterans, reservists, and their families with employers and industry partners.
Lantra is an independent, awarding/accreditation body which exists to help the land-based and environment industries meet their skills needs. We develop and certify specialist training and qualifications for a range of industries.
We do this by working in partnership to:
· Attract, develop, and retain a diverse workforce
· Train people to work safely, productively, and sustainably
· Encourage and support a commitment to Lifelong Learning
· Understand sector skills needs to anticipate future skills and learning requirements.
Organisations interested in supporting the initiative or learning more about opportunities to engage with the Armed Forces community in the land-based sector are encouraged to get in touch.
For further information please contact:
dc@missioncommunity.org