Ambulance service holds wreath laying ceremony for Remembrance Day

East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) has honoured the courage and commitment of the armed forces community at a wreath laying ceremony ahead of Remembrance Day.  

Today (Friday, 10 November), colleagues gathered at the Trust’s headquarters in Melbourn and took two minutes to silently pay their respects to the millions of heroes who served for and protected their country. 

EEAST has also re-signed the Armed Forces Covenant and has again been awarded the Gold Award with the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme for a further five years. The Gold Award recognises those organisations that have proactively demonstrated their Forces' friendly credentials during their recruitment and selection processes. 

Terry Hicks, armed forces champion, said: “As a trust we are immensely proud of the support we show veterans and their families. 

“We are also a Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance accredited trust, which drives us to offer support to our patients and staff who are part of the armed forces community.” 

The Trust has also installed unknown Tommy statues at ambulance stations across Cambridgeshire thanks to funding from the East of England Ambulance Service Charity.   

Terry commented: “The choice of the Tommy statues was based on the links we have with many of our staff who are service veterans. The statue remembers the sacrifices, not only of the First World War, but symbolises reflection from armed conflicts and suffering in the many years since and we will continue, once again, to proudly display poppies on our ambulance fleet.”