Aldershot Town welcome members of 10 The Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment to the EBB Stadium on Saturday to celebrate the Regiment’s award of the Freedom of the Borough of Rushmoor.
The Regiment, based at Gale Barracks in Aldershot, will receive almost 200 free tickets donated by Farnborough-based BAE Systems as part of our Seats For Soldiers initiative.
The Regiment will march through Aldershot on Saturday morning, led by the Brigade of Gurkhas Band and their own Regimental Pipes and Drums. Following an inspection by Mayor of Rushmoor Martin Tennant, the parade begins outside the Princes Hall at 11am and is expected to take approximately 45 minutes on its way along Grosvenor Road, Station Road, High Street and back to Princes Way.
A reward for the renowned bravery and courage of the Gurkha troops, the Freedom was bestowed by the Borough Council in July 2015 on a Regiment which has been based in Aldershot for 14 years. During that time it has completed four operational tours of Iraq and Afghanistan and is expected to remain in the town for the foreseeable future.
BAE Systems provides some of the world’s most advanced, technology-led defence, aerospace and security solutions and employ a skilled workforce of some 82,500 people in over 40 countries. Working with customers and local partners, they develop, engineer, manufacture and support products and systems to deliver military capability, protect national security and people and keep critical information and infrastructure secure.
As a founder signatory of the UK Government’s Armed Forces Corporate Covenant, BAE Systems is proud to support serving personnel, veterans and military families. This includes supporting our employees who are active members of the reserves or cadet forces, hosting reserves recruiting teams, and providing employment opportunities for service leavers. They also support partners and families of service personnel and encourage our employees to volunteer and raise funds for Armed Forces charities. In 2015, BAE Systems gave £5.9m globally to Armed Forces charities and organisations through its Community Investment programme.
Since September 2014, Seats For Soldiers has donated over 2000 free tickets to service personnel and their families thanks to the sponsorship of some of the UK’s biggest companies. Aldershot Town were one of the first sporting organisations to sign the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant, to honour and support all past and present members of the British Armed Forces. The principles of the Covenant dictate that no member of the Armed Forces Community should face disadvantage in the provision of public and commercial services, and in some circumstances may receive special treatment.
