Our Collaboration Lab is open!
Come on in to help develop our next three-year grant strategy, which will shape the grants we make from April 2027-March 2030.
Whether you’re an individual, a civil society organisation, a unit or base, a practitioner or a grant partner, there are lots of ways to get involved.
Explore our evidence and gaps map
Find out where the evidence suggests there are gaps and opportunities for the Covenant Fund to make a difference for those in the armed forces community who are experiencing the most complex disadvantage under the Armed Forces Covenant. You might want to start with the review prepared for us by our research partner, RAND Europe.
Explore RBL’s data map
With kind permission of the research team at RBL (external link), you can also download their map of public, population-level data sources about the armed forces community.
Join our online lab!
Answer questions, test assumptions and give us your feedback on the early draft priorities emerging from our evidence and gaps map. Share your experiences or observations from your own life, or as an organisation working with those with lived experiences of those issues.
Run a lab with the armed forces people you support
If you work with the armed forces community, we’d love to hear from the people you work with. We recognise that it’s your expertise which connects us with lived experience, and deep understanding of the issues the Covenant Fund is trying to help address.
Download our Lab Notes, and you’re ready to go!
Young lab
Our lab is working with young people from the armed forces community in Greater Manchester to understand the future they want to see, and to help us test how children and young people might play a much stronger role in shaping our grantmaking.
Via youth provision, colleges, and community settings, we’ll be gathering perspectives from young people (roughly aged 14–25) who are connected to armed forces communities.
This includes young people from:
- serving families
- veteran families
- very young veterans
- cadets.
Load up your lab picture
Join our online gallery of everyone who’s been part of the lab to help develop our strategy, and tell us where you are! Tag us in a pic from your organisation’s lab on social media – #CollaborationLab
Your picture may feature in our strategy document when it’s published next year. You’re responsible for making sure everyone at your lab has given permission for you to share the picture on social media, and with us.
Where you'll find us with a live lab
- Centre for Evidence for the Armed Forces Community annual conference (external link)
- Veterans' Mental Health Conference (external link)
- Veterans' Scotland Armed Forces Champions June Gathering (external link)
- NIVCA Summit (external link)
- Stronger Things Conference (external link)
- Gofod3 (external link)
- The Big Day Out, Edinburgh (external link)
- Army Servicewomen's Network Conference
- The Armed Forces Covenant Conference (external link)
- Guys and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust Armed Forces ‘ Reserves ‘ Day
- COBSEO AGM
- Pride Liverpool (external link)
- Eisteddfod y Garreg Las (external link)
- Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance annual conference
Run a lab - online training session 1, Monday 29th Jun 6-7pm
Join an MS Teams tutorial on how to run a lab with our partners Good Work With. These are entirely optional, for those who want to ask questions or get a bit more help. You only need to join one session, pick the time and date which best suits you. Meeting ID: 359 742 973 351 377 Passcode: FL68YG2X
Run a lab - online training session 2, Tuesday 30th Jun 11-12pm
Join an MS Teams tutorial on how to run a lab with our partners Good Work With. These are entirely optional, for those who want to ask questions or get a bit more help. You only need to join one session, pick the time and date which best suits you. Meeting ID: 384 742 133 698 549 Passcode: HX2ph94a
Run a lab - online training session 3, Wednesday 1 July 2-3pm
Join an MS Teams tutorial on how to run a lab with our partners Good Work With. These are entirely optional, for those who want to ask questions or get a bit more help. You only need to join one session, pick the time and date which best suits you. Meeting ID: 334 706 866 662 304 Passcode: Fw2LC7qQ
Frequently asked questions
Can my organisation run a lab?
Absolutely! Any organisation which supports the armed forces community can take part – download our Lab Notes for a complete guide to running a session with people you support. Or if you’d like to contribute as an individual from your own lived experience, join our online lab (external link) at a time that suits you.
Can I get help on how to run a lab?
Yes – we’ve teamed up with the lovely folk at Good Work With to offer online training to help you, if you’d find this useful or have questions which aren’t answered in our Lab Notes. You can sign up for those here.
Can you run a lab for me?
It’s your expertise which connects us with lived experience, and deep understanding of the issues the Covenant Fund is trying to help address. That’s why this strategy is a collaboration with you and the people you support. You’re best equipped to run a lab with your community and our Lab Notes will give you various options and full instructions on how to do it, whichever format you choose. All you need to do is follow the notes, and away you go!