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About us

Cobseo, the Confederation of Service Charities, provides a single point of contact for interaction with Government, including local government and the Devolved Administrations; with the Royal Household; with the Private Sector; and, of course, with other members of the Armed Forces Community. This allows Cobseo Members to interact with all interested parties and especially to cooperate and collaborate with others in order to provide the best possible level of support to beneficiaries.

Hear more from our Members in the video below:

The stated objectives of Cobseo are to represent, promote, and further the interests of the Armed Forces Community by:

Exchanging and coordinating information internally.
Identifying issues of common concern and coordinating any necessary and appropriate action.
Acting as a point of contact for external agencies to the Members of Cobseo.
Representing and supporting the needs and opinions of its Member organisations, individually and collectively at central and local government levels and with other national and international agencies.

The values of Cobseo:

It has been agreed that members of the Confederation of Service Charities should share the following values:

Support – the principal focus of our activities must be to aid our beneficiaries
Co-operation – embrace every opportunity to collaborate with others, to enhance the support available to our beneficiaries
Innovation – develop new ideas and practices that will add real value to our activities and that have lasting impact on our beneficiaries
Integrity – operate to ensure that we are open and honest, always acting in the best interests of our beneficiaries
Accountability – ensure that our standards of Governance and procedures are fully compliant with best practice
Compliance – guarantee that all our fundraising activities are in line with the current Code of Fundraising Practice, ensuring the good reputation of the Service Charity sector
Equality – commit to meeting best practice standards in terms of equality, diversity and inclusiveness; as well as identifying and addressing areas of disadvantage or unfair treatment faced by Serving Personnel, Veterans, and their families

The Armed Forces Community

Where the phrase “Armed Forces Community” is used in any Cobseo communications, it is meant to include all those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces of the Crown, the families of both, and those who are bereaved. This includes all Veterans and their families. Veterans are defined as anyone who has served for at least one day in the Armed Forces.

Find out more about the Armed Forces Covenant here.

The Cobseo Members’ Directory

Please note that the Cobseo Members’ Directory lists Cobseo Members that provide support to the Armed Forces Community. Recommendations for Cobseo Membership are made to the Executive Committee on a quarterly basis following conclusion of a process of due diligence. This should not be taken as an exhaustive list of all services on offer to the Armed Forces Community, and Cobseo is not liable for any services that fail to meet an individual’s requirements or standards.