Royal British Legion Industries’ Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company (BBMC) and Scotland’s Bravest Manufacturing Company (SBMC), are both leading factories and remarkable Social Value achievements. Both factories provide direct employment and upskilling opportunities to disadvantaged military veterans and people with disabilities.
Together, the two factories (based in Aylesford, Kent, and Bishopton, near Glasgow) employ more than 130 people – more than 70% of whom are disabled military veterans or civilians. Whether facing daily challenges due to physical disability, such as amputation, or hidden disability such as post-traumatic stress disorder, those working at RBLI’s social enterprises are given the tools to change their own lives.
In addition to delivering outstanding Social Value, the factories are genuine industry-leaders in the road and rail signage production, pallet production, bespoke engineering, print, mail, and fulfilment industries. Through their activities, they champion Social Value within their own sector and across the wider industrial space.
The enterprises pride themselves on being commercially-sustainable, socially-thriving businesses. Providing first-rate products enables the factories to sustain commercial success while providing support those who need it most.
Together, both sites boast an annual turnover of £6.5m. As social enterprises, they reinvest 100% of their surplus to provide greater opportunities to the beneficiaries they support – as well as the activities of their parent charity, RBLI, which supports more than 11,000 people annually, through employment, welfare, and accommodation support.
Whilst Royal British Legion Industries has supported the country’s most disadvantaged individuals for more than 100 years, its social enterprise projects have had the most substantial impact within the last 12 months.
The UK's departure from the European Union has required adaptation in the industrial space, and led to hesitance among some stakeholders due to potential regulatory changes. Similarly, suppliers have often been unable to offer reassurances. Coupled with the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, RBLI’s social enterprises had to rapidly adapt to a new climate to maintain its Social Value delivery.
BBMC and SBMC were quick to respond, going above and beyond normal day-to-day operations to support their beneficiaries and wider communities. Their teams rose to the occasion, contributing to the pandemic response by manufacturing COVID-19 safety signage for NHS hospitals, The Prison Service, and the Scottish Ambulance Service.
Both social enterprises have remained resilient in their approach to growth, giving their beneficiaries the best employment opportunities possible. For instance, recent investments, including a state-of-the-art Cannon printer in the signs’ graphics department, has increased print production five-fold.
Some might have viewed this development as an opportunity to reduce headcount; it has instead catalysed the employment of more veterans, since the roles can only be done by trained hands.
Meanwhile, BBMC have continued their multi-million pound work as the sole provider of track-side signage for Network Rail, which has seen six physically disabled Gurkhas secure permanent employment.
During this period, RBLI’s social enterprises haven't just concentrated on securing business to serve as a platform to further their Social Value. They have also worked hard to influence industry leaders and decision makers to drive their own Social Value across industries.
In February 2022, they brought together industry leaders from the highways infrastructure sector to discuss ways for the industry to increase Social Value across their business practices.
This has resulted in new business worth up to £100,000 for the factories. But the outcome for Social Value is even more exciting: developments are now in advanced stages for a new national procurement model which will provide a greater weighting to social enterprises delivering Social Value. This, in the highways infrastructure procurement space, would be the first of its kind in England.
In addition to generating business for RBLI’s social enterprises, these developments will provide all enterprises delivering Social Value with an easier route to the infrastructure market, supporting disadvantaged communities many times over.
Meanwhile, RBLI’s factories also celebrated a landmark milestone with long-standing partner Amey plc.
The relationship between the two organisations dates back to 2014 and has seen £2.5m of road signs produced for major infrastructure projects. November 2021 saw the 20,000th sign made as part of this leading partnership.
The landmark sign was made by former Gurkha Anil Gurung, who joined RBLI in 2014 after stepping on an IED days before the end of a tour in Afghanistan. Anil has since become an expert sign maker and said it was a privilege to create the milestone sign, commenting:
It was an honour to create the sign. I have been at RBLI since we first started making road signs for Amey – I don’t know where I would be without them.
Anil Gurung, former Gurkha
Last year, SBMC celebrated having supported 91 of the country’s most vulnerable veterans, providing them with the direct employment needed to take the next steps in their lives. Underpinning this is a dedicated welfare team offering tailored support which progresses individuals at their own pace toward independent work in the civilian manufacturing space.
In the last year, alongside their unwavering commitment to Social Value, the factory has also generated sales of £1.13 million – a staggering growth on the previous year’s turnover of £312,000.
The factory has now also achieved SQA-approved centre status. Thanks to £300,000 of financial support from the Forces in Mind Trust, veterans and people with disabilities will now receive accredited training and formal qualifications whilst gaining practical and marketable work experience.
Along with providing direct support to the factory’s beneficiaries through meaningful manufacturing opportunities, this will also make SBMC a substantially more attractive proposition for prospective business partners due to the heightened skill of the team, thereby further encouraging Social Value in business supply chains.
Glasgow Caledonian University will also conduct an independent evaluation to examine the impact of military veterans attaining such recognised qualifications on long-term job prospects, work readiness, employment and mental health.
This will play a vital role in influencing RBLI’s social enterprise’s ‘move-on’ Social Value approach, with a view to replicating the most effective aspects of the model in other social enterprises nationwide.