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    • Project insight
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  • Tell your story
  • The Future
  • Get Support
  • News & Contact

 

SPO =

Spouse . Partner . Other-Half .

So, you must have known what you were getting into when you got together?!

Well, I didn't, and neither did over 100,000* UK SPOs

We simply fell in love 

Being committed to a military person, evokes incredible feelings of pride; for them, your family and our country. It is an amazing role, but sometimes, the recognition and support we need to keep going, just isn't there.

This is where the SPO Voice can change everything.

Tell your story
Take the Quiz

 

SPO Voice Project Aims

The 4 Rs ...

Research

Knowledge is power and the catalyst for change.

Rally

UK SPOs will come together, all around the world, to improve our lives

Represent

Our voices must be accurately heard by those with power, so we can drive change that works best for us

Redress

Our voices will guide policy change and generate more support and understanding

Mission Statement

By gathering research on the effects of military life on SPOs, in particular how it affects their career, the SPO Voice will rally SPOs into a worldwide collective, whose deafening voice will ensure true representation of SPOs in civilian and military organisations, thus redressing the current imbalance.

So what does this mean in 'normal' language?

We need to hear from you. We need your SPO stories which can be used as evidence to make real changes and improve our lives.

This project will take time, dedication and patience, and occasionally it will feel overwhelming, but there's a useful saying which will guide us:

'There is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.'

Collectively we can do it - the elephant will get eaten.

P.S No elephants will actually be eaten in the making of this history, we love elephants, it's just a useful metaphor ... but we're sure you knew that already!

 

Tell your story

The SPO Voice project is set up by me, Alex Kinnear-Mellor.

I'm an SPO, who married into the military in 2014.

In 2020 I hit a wall. It was clear I was in a career that should have fulfilled me, but something was wrong. Years of having to change jobs to accommodate my husband's career, had taken their toll; I felt at my absolute lowest.

After reaching out to friends and family, and being fortunate to have sessions with Sarah Barker, an Executive Coach who volunteers on the  Recruit for Spouses coaching program, I had an epiphany.

I wasn't alone. It turns out that my feelings, and the continual hurdles in my career due to being married to the military, are not unusual SPO experiences. Simply put, our working lives feel like collateral damage.

The most frustrating thing was that I had spent years having no idea that there were literally thousands of others like me, around the world.

Choices narrow, confidence crumbles, self-worth wears down.

In 2021, the SPO Voice project began.

Read more

*100,000 figure based on project calculations of an estimated 116,000 UK SPOs

Get the facts

Our Research Themes

This project has identified key themes in the challenges faced by SPOs regarding their working lives:

Childcare barriers

Connection

Exploitation

Identity

Intimidation

Knowledge

Lifestyle barriers

Opportunities

Patriarchal challenges

Representation

Worth

Read more

Looking for some help today with your career? Here's what's out there .... let us know how you get on and please share your story with the community

Help & Support

Psst ...

We'll ask you again: "So, you must have known what you were getting into when you got together?!"

Take the Quiz
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