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Ligtas Partners with Hire a Hero UK to Build Careers After the Armed Forces
NEWS
November 2026
Ligtas is proud to announce our partnership with Hire a Hero UK, a charity supporting service leavers and veterans as they move into meaningful civilian careers.
Together we are creating routes into health, safety and fire roles for people whose service has already given them the skills to keep others safe.
Many of our colleagues have a military background; their risk management and problem solving skills are assets to our industry, helping our clients protect people and property. Through this partnership, we will help those transitioning into civilian life build meaningful new careers at Ligtas.
Why military experience matters in health and safety
Health and safety consultancy involves understanding risks, finding practical solutions and communicating with people. Military service can provide valuable experience in each of these areas.
Depending on their role, service leavers may bring technical knowledge, experience in risk assessment, leadership skills or the confidence to raise concerns in challenging situations. These strengths can provide a foundation for consultancy, supported by the relevant qualifications and professional development.
The transition still takes preparation. Translating military experience into language civilian employers understand, identifying suitable roles and adjusting to a different working environment are all part of the process.
How Hire a Hero UK supports the transition from service to civilian life
Hire a Hero UK helps service leavers and veterans turn their military experience into opportunities for civilian employment by:
- Helping them translate service experience into a CV
- Connecting them with employers who value their skills
- Providing access to training and mentoring.
Support can begin while someone is still serving, helping them prepare for their next role before leaving the Armed Forces. By bringing together practical guidance, development opportunities and connections with employers, the charity helps people take informed steps towards a new career.
Careers with purpose at Ligtas
Ligtas is a multi-accredited, national health and safety consultancy with over 30 years’ experience of keeping people safe. We provide health and safety, fire and legionella consultancy and training solutions across a variety of sectors, and are trusted experts for leading UK organisations and global brands.
Our mission is clear: we empower organisations to build proactive, sustainable safety cultures, protecting lives and delivering real impact for our clients. This is what we call ‘Safety beyond compliance’.
How will our partnership work?
Ligtas will support Hire a Hero UK by raising awareness of the charity’s work and providing employment and training opportunities for veterans leaving the Armed Forces.
Our vacancies will be posted on the Hire a Hero UK website, and service leavers who have registered there will be matched to suitable roles and supported through the recruitment process.
Typical entry level roles at Ligtas are Junior Health, Safety and Fire Consultants, or Trainee Fire Door Inspectors. Gaining a NEBOSH National General Certificate (comparable to an A Level in H&S) is a good starting point for these positions.
If you already have a more advanced qualification such as a NEBOSH Level 6 National Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety or equivalent, alongside relevant practical experience, you could apply for a Health, Safety and Fire Consultant role.
All positions are fully supported with training, mentoring and shadowing on site until you are confident and competent to work independently. Future opportunities can then include more specialist roles such as a Senior Fire Consultant or a management position.
We aim to recruit people who live within two hours’ drive of the area they will cover, helping to limit travel and time away from home. Some additional travel and occasional overnight stays may be needed to support colleagues to cover annual leave or meet peaks in demand.
How Ligtas helps you build a new career
Your experience is the starting point. In an initial conversation with our recruitment team, we’ll discuss your skills, qualifications and location, and explore how your experience fits the role you’ve applied for. We’ll then work through a Training Needs Analysis together to identify your development needs and map out a career path.
Once you join, your induction introduces you to our policies, procedures, your new colleagues and our communication processes, so you understand how we work and where to find support.
Your development plan may include nationally recognised NEBOSH qualifications, from the General Certificate through to the Diploma, depending on your existing qualifications and role. Relevant Ligtas-certified courses, including Safeguarding, Cyber Security and GDPR, help you build the wider knowledge needed for your position.
You’ll also shadow experienced consultants on client sites, putting your learning into practice with guidance and support. As you develop the necessary skills, experience and confidence, your competence is assessed before you’re authorised to undertake specific activities, such as risk assessments, audits, reporting and advising clients.
This support is backed by a rewarding employment package, including a competitive salary and bonus scheme, pension, healthcare cash plan, payment of professional membership fees and 25 days’ holiday, increasing to 30 with service, plus bank holidays. Flexible working arrangements, vehicle options for eligible roles and opportunities to share in the business’s future success help support a rewarding career with Ligtas.
From Army Life to Health and Safety Consultancy - Jon’s experience
Jonathan Ely is a Health, Safety and Fire Consultant who has been with Ligtas for four and a half years. Here, he shares his experience of leaving the Army, building a civilian career and finding greater stability for his family.
Which branch of the Armed Forces did you serve in, and what was your role?
I spent seven years in the Army. I spent two years in the Intelligence Corps, then decided to re-role into the Royal Army Medical Corps, where I became an Environmental Health Technician for the next five years.
What prompted you to leave the Armed Forces?
I’d reached a bit of a crossroads between my professional and personal life; I was newly married, with our first child on the way. I’d picked up a back injury, and I had gained some really good qualifications.
I’d also picked up some good experience around the world, including operational experience in Bosnia, Northern Ireland, Afghanistan and Iraq, and decided that I was ready to move back into civilian life.
How did you find the transition into civilian employment?
It was relatively straightforward for me. Because I was a little bit older joining the Army (23), life after the Army was less fearsome than if I had joined at, say, 16.
I also had a raft of qualifications that were recognised in the civilian world, which made finding a job in the field relatively straightforward.
The main challenges were finding work that started seamlessly after leaving the Army, organising somewhere to live and tailoring my CV into something that translated my military service into civilian skills.
Which skills and experiences from military service have been most useful in your work?
Being used to working long days, being able to engage with employees at all levels, a “can-do, will-do” attitude, willingness to travel, being presentable and smart, and trying to find practical solutions to problems that have been identified.
Honesty and a willingness to “speak truth to power”.
What attracted you to Ligtas?
I like the people, the work, the hours and the customers. The package is ok.
What do you enjoy about your role at Ligtas?
I enjoy the freedom of the role; the variety of site visits and being able to work from home. I think I would be bored if I worked in the same place day in, day out.
I also enjoy the flexibility of the role. If I need to take a bit of time, there is some flexibility built into the diary.
How has civilian life affected you and your family?
I now appreciate the stability and the ability to put down roots somewhere, with no more three-year postings around the world and no last-minute deployments overseas for six months or more, missing key moments with my family and disrupting education.
What advice would you give someone leaving the Armed Forces who is considering a career in health and safety?
Use your last 12 months after signing off to pick up relevant qualifications in the sector. Get a decent CV written that translates your military skills into civilian skills, and get a couple of non-military opinions on it.
Network with professionals in the sector to see how their careers have developed and whether there are any particular fields you would like to specialise in, such as fire, construction or aviation.
Understand that your military rank is relatively meaningless in the civilian world, but your experience and skills are an advantage.
If you can get a decent period of leave, see if you can get some time as an intern to gain non-military experience in the sector and identify any supplementary skills you need, such as IT skills.
Accept help from the various organisations that support the transition from service life into civilian life.
Interested in building a new career with purpose?
If you are leaving the Armed Forces or are a veteran, explore our vacancies and the support available to you from Hire a Hero UK.
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