Businesses and organisations across Tees Valley were invited to make a formal commitment to service personnel, veterans, reservists and their families at a special event at Teesside Airport.
The Bugle Breakfast was scheduled for Thursday, 12 February 2026. Its central purpose was practical: give employers a supported route to sign the Armed Forces Covenant and agree the pledges their organisation would carry forward.
What signing the covenant means
The Armed Forces Covenant is a national promise that people who serve, or have served, should not be disadvantaged because of that service. For an employer, a pledge can cover fair recruitment, recognition of military skills, support for reservists and understanding the needs of service families.
Signing is a public statement, but the value lies in what happens afterwards. A veteran may bring leadership, logistics or technical experience that does not map neatly onto a civilian job description. A reservist may need predictable support around training or mobilisation. The covenant asks organisations to turn goodwill into policies that work in those situations.
Advance booking was essential because pledges, certificates and checks needed to be prepared before the event.
A breakfast built around introductions
The 11am programme was due to include Dame Susan Snowdon, Lord-Lieutenant of County Durham, chief executive Tom Bryant, Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen and airport managing director Phil Forster.
Members of 8th Battalion, The Rifles, based in Bishop Auckland, were also expected to attend, with live buglers opening a session of networking between employers, reservists and civic representatives.
The had signed the covenant almost six years earlier, while Teesside Airport had joined the scheme more recently. Organisers wanted the breakfast to widen that group by helping businesses understand both their responsibilities and the experience former service personnel can bring to a .
The event was positive without being purely ceremonial. Its test would be the number of organisations that arrived with a credible pledge and then used it in recruitment, staff support and everyday management.
Archive : Date, attendees and covenant details were checked against the Tees Valley Combined Authority announcement originally published on 9 December 2025. The original date and featured image are preserved.