A hospital in Clydebank has been crowned Employer of the Year at the Scottish Veterans Awards 2024.

The NHS Golden Jubilee has implemented support and policies for members of the armed forces family, including work-life balance policies which provide increased flexibility and leave.

Involved directly with the armed forces, Erskine Care and Board Military Champions, the hospital aims at raising awareness about the health and care career prospects for veterans and their families.

The board also explores several work areas, aligning with the Scottish Government's framework for ‘Increasing service leaver and veteran recruitment into health and care in Scotland’.

Clydebank Post: Nurse Sandi Bern, who was the Royal Navy's Top Reserve Recruit of the Year for 2023, was also

Gordon James, chief executive at NHS Golden Jubilee, said: "We are honoured to be named Employer of the Year at the Scottish Veterans Awards and were delighted to accept the award on behalf of past, present and colleagues from across the armed forces family.

“Our armed forces colleagues and their families have made the biggest sacrifices as part of their commitment to serve our country, and since we first opened our doors in 2002 we have been proud to do everything we can to support veterans, reservists and their families.

“We have always recognised the value of the transferable skills which these individuals bring to our workforce, and the direct benefit this has for patients from all across Scotland."

The annual awards recognise veterans who are doing great things in their communities and organisations that support the Armed Forces.

Nurse Sandi Bern, who was the Royal Navy's Top Reserve Recruit of the Year for 2023, was also shortlisted in the awards for Reservist of the Year.

The NHS Golden Jubilee has strong historic links to the armed forces.

It was built on the site of the former Beardmore Shipyards and to this day, the site is home to the permanent memorial for those who lost their lives on the HMT Lancastria.

The hospital was previously recognised as a Supportive Employer of the Armed Forces Reserves in 2013, following which it signed the Armed Forces Covenant with the Ministry of Defence in 2016.

They were the first NHS Scotland Board to receive the Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Gold Award in 2017 and bagged the award again in 2022 during the Board’s 20th anniversary.

They were named Silver Employer of the Year in the 2023 Scottish Veterans Awards.