From forces to energy: Centrica celebrates 500th ex-forces hire

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• 500 veterans, service leavers and military spouses have joined Centrica since the launch of its Armed Forces Pathway in 2021, with the programme set to welcome more

• Former service personnel now work across smart energy, engineering, heat pumps and senior director roles, with 24% joining as apprentices

• Milestone marked during visit by Local Energy and Jobs Minister Martin McCluskey and Veterans Minister Calvin Bailey to new £35 million Centrica Park training academy

Centrica has delivered its ambition set in 2021 to recruit 500 Armed Forces veterans through its dedicated Armed Forces Pathway, a route into the business created specifically to help service leavers, reservists, military spouses and veterans build rewarding civilian careers across the energy sector.

Since setting out to build a “net zero battalion”, Centrica has helped people from the Armed Forces community move into future-focused careers across the business that help keep customers warm, maintain critical energy infrastructure, install low-carbon technologies and develop the next generation of engineers. Service leavers have gone into roles including smart energy apprenticeships, service and repair engineering, heat pump installation, project management, change delivery and senior leadership. 

Centrica is also helping veteran talent progress once inside the business. Around a quarter of those hired joined as apprentices and Centrica’s newly developed 12-month Military & Elite Athlete Talent Placement Programme has seen a retention rate of 85%, with 34% of participants promoted into leadership roles within 18 months.

The milestone was marked at Centrica’s new £35 million Centrica Park research and training facility, where the Veterans Minister Calvin Bailey and the Local Energy and Jobs Minister Martin McCluskey met veterans who have made the transition from military service into civilian careers.

Among the veterans now working at Centrica are a former Royal Air Force linguist, Army dog handler, infantry officer, Royal Navy weapons engineer and a former Assistant Chief of Staff, Medical at NATO.

Chris O’Shea, Chief Executive at Centrica, said: ‘‘The quality of colleagues we have recruited from the Armed Forces has blown me away. People who are trained to lead, to make decisions under pressure, to solve complex problems methodically and to put service to others first. Those skills are invaluable in a business like ours, where colleagues support millions of customers and help operate critical energy infrastructure every day. 

“We set out to recruit more veterans because we knew they would bring the strong operational discipline, resilience, teamwork and leadership our business needs. Reaching our 500th hire is a fantastic milestone and a reflection of the exceptional talent within the Forces community. I look forward to us adding many more in the years to come."

Local Energy and Jobs Minister Martin McCluskey said: "Veterans bring problem-solving skills, technical expertise and leadership experience that are hugely valuable to the fast-growing clean energy sector.

 “Centrica's Armed Forces Pathway is exactly the kind of support we want to see from the private sector to help military leavers access the up to 400,000 extra jobs in clean energy coming to the market by the end of this decade – from plumbers installing heat pumps to offshore wind engineers and welders building nuclear power stations.”

Minister for Veterans and People, Calvin Bailey MBE MP, said: “Leaving the Armed Forces is a major change, but it doesn’t mean leaving behind the skills, values and sense of purpose developed through military service. 

"As someone who has made that transition myself, I know how important it is to find an employer that recognises what veterans bring to the workplace. Through its support for the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme and its commitment to recruiting from across the Armed Forces community, Centrica is showing what's possible when businesses back that talent.

“The leadership, adaptability and problem-solving skills developed in the Services are in demand across the UK economy, and Centrica's 500th veteran hire is a powerful example of what can be achieved when businesses back that talent.”

Centrica recruits from across the wider Forces community, including service leavers, veterans already working in industry, reservists, military spouses and adult cadet instructors.  Since its inception, the Pathway has been expanded to include elite athletes – including Olympians and Paralympians. The expanded Military & Elite Athlete Talent Placement Scheme aims to bring these unique skillsets into the business and integrate them into Centrica's future leadership pipeline.

The milestone sits alongside the company’s wider investment in future talent, including its commitment to hire 500 apprentices, with veterans playing an important role in supporting customers, strengthening Britain’s energy infrastructure and training the next generation of engineers.