Steve Gaskell spent a large portion of his career in the Army and whilst in his position as Captain in 2^nd Battalion of the Princess of Wales’ Royal Regiment he began looking for his next career on civvy street.

In June 2013 he started his own business coaching business by taking on an ActionCOACH franchise. Helping business owners all over Devon to realise their dreams and visions; the 'why I went into business in the first place'. Now Steve has been recognised by a new award specifically for those who have left the Armed Forces.

The Nationwide Resettlement Awards exist to celebrate the achievements of Service Leavers who have successfully progressed through the transition from life in the Armed Forces to life as a civilian and to acknowledge the efforts of organisations offering support to the Service Leaver during this transition.

Steve is one of just three finalists in The Marston's Award for Service Leaver Franchisee of the Year and is absolutely amazed: “Being selected as a finalist for the award really was a bolt out of the blue. Although I entered the awards I didn’t expect to have been selected as a finalist, it really is very humbling and rewarding. I have applied myself wholeheartedly towards the growth of my business and the success of the business owners I work with. It seems my consistency has paid off. I always sought to lead by example when I served as a soldier and officer and wanted nothing more than to be able to apply myself in the same way in my new venture as a business owner. To gain recognition for that is fantastic, I hope to inspire other service leavers into really applying themselves and realising their true transferable skills.”

It’s clear why the judges thought Steve was a worthy consideration for the award. In his first year he surpassed his client goals, made a profit and saw the results that his work with clients could achieve. Those clients have remained with him as he nears the end of year two with his ActionCOACH business. He now has a great client base, having helped to create over 30 new jobs, increased revenue by as much as 44% in his clients’ businesses and allowed them to gain significant time efficiencies.

“I can’t express the feeling one gets when a client highlights the impact of being able to spend quality time in their personal and family pursuits,” adds Steve.

Stephen Uden, Nationwide’s Head of Citizenship, comments: “Nationwide is proud to sponsor these inaugural awards celebrating the achievements of Service Leavers successfully progressing to civilian life and those organisations who support personnel in making that transition. For us, as a mutual with our roots in the community, we believe our members want us to do all we can to support our Forces personnel, in recognition of the contribution they make.”

The Awards will be presented to the winners at a black tie dinner at Hotel Football in Manchester on November 4th, 2015.