ForcesWatch scrutinises the ethics of armed forces recruitment practices and challenges efforts to embed militarist values in civilian society.

ForcesWatch comment

The Army’s new campaign brushes over the reality of military life – again
04/01/2019

Marketing careers which involve unique risks should be approached with a sense of social responsibility, acknowledging what is in the best interests of the target audience as well as the recruitment interests of the military.

This article was originally published in The Metro

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RAF100: A Short Counterhistory of Britain's Air Force
20/12/2018

2018 has been the centenary year of the Royal Air Force. While many think of the RAF in the sepia tones of the Battle of Britain, and the RAF leans heavily on a mystique that sets it apart from the army and navy, there is far more to be said about the service. We explore the role it has played in the last 100 years in bringing the asymmetry of air power to conflicts with often devastating effect.

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From shell shock to moral injury: a hundred years of psychological war trauma
10/11/2018

The century since the end of the First World War has seen significant development in thinking around war trauma. We explore what the current lack of recognition of moral injury and the part it plays in mental health says about our attitude to war and serving personnel.

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our projects

Military Out Of Schools

The armed forces visit thousands of UK schools each year, offering careers presentations, curriculum resources and other activities. The Department for Education are integrating activities with a 'military ethos' into Britain's education system. Should the armed forces be given access to children within education? Is the military's agenda and the promotion of 'military ethos' appropriate within schools?

Sept 2018: New briefing summarising military involvement in education and youth activities in the UK and the main concerns this raises.

Petition to the Scottish Parliament calling for scrutiny, guidance and consultation around armed forces visits to schools

Read more on our military out of schools work
Advocating for change

ForcesWatch raises concerns about the recruitment of 16 and 17 year olds into the armed forces, the lack of recognition of conscientious objection and restrictive and unclear terms of service.

Does the military give young people a 'leg-up'? The armed forces and social mobility

Read more on our work advocating for legislative change
The military in society

ForcesWatch monitor and challenge the promotion of the military as a normal part of everyday life. We believe that uncritical support for the armed forces stifles concerns about how young people are recruited and limits debate on alternatives to war.

see more on the military in society

Book: confronting a culture of militarism

At a comfortable distance from warfare, our culture easily passes over its horrific reality in favour of an appealing, even romantic, spectacle of war. Yet, over the last decade, most Britons have opposed Western military ventures abroad. This book takes a fresh look at a culture of militarism in Britain, public resistance to it, and the government's prodigious efforts to regain control of the story we tell ourselves about war.  See details & buy book

These presentations were recorded at the launch of the report Warrior Nation: War, Militarisation and British democracy by Paul Dixon (published by ForcesWatch) on 25 June 2018 in London:  

  • Warrior Nation: war, militarisation and British democracy, by Professor Paul Dixon   
  • Military Britain by Professor Joanna Bourke
  • Militarism in public life in the UK, Emma Sangster, Coordinator of ForcesWatch

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A new film about recent militarism and the battle for the hearts and minds of young people in the UK. The film follows the stories of Ben Griffin, former SAS soldier and founder of Veterans for Peace UK, and Quaker activist Sam Walton, and features the work of ForcesWatch and partner organisations. See here for screenings and how to organise one.

Take Action on Militarism: new website & resource pack

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Make a donation to our work or find out more about how you can help.

your questions

whats the problem with military recruitment?

ForcesWatch believes that armed forces recruitment practices in the UK are largely unethical. The military are reaching out to children and young people using sophisticated strategies to interest and involve them in military activities which do not deal adequately with the risks of an armed forces career but tend to glamorise and sanitise war. The military also fail to adequately inform young people of the legal obligations of an armed forces career.

See here for more.

what are your other concerns?

Taking an active part in conflict involves serious ethical questions regarding the justification of killing and the political purposes of military action. The armed forces fail to adequately address these concerns during recruitment and for serving personnel.

The more government and national initiatives which are created to show support for the armed forces, the more difficult it will become for individuals and society to reflect on the ethics of conflict and peaceful alternatives. See here for more

what should I think about before I join up?

There are ethical questions and questions about why you really want to join up and about what risks you face and what happens if you decide you want to leave. There are some very useful independent sources of advice about your legal situation as a member of the armed forces and other issues. We also have a selection of materials looking at some aspects of what it is like to serve. See here for more.

what can I do about military recruitment activity in my school or community?

The military make visits to many schools and colleges and are also active at local events. If you are unhappy about the presence of the military in your community, here are some ideas of how to address it and some materials to use. See here for more.

what have other people said about their experiences?

Very often the most useful insights into what it is like to be involved in anything is to hear directly from other people about what they have experienced. Here are some accounts of both what it is like to serve in the armed forces and what it is like to challenge the presence of the military in a community. See here for more.

how do you respond to those who don't agree with you?

We don't expect everyone to agree with us but we think there is significant cause for concern about military recruitment practices and about the way that a climate of uncritical national pride in the armed forces is being fostered which makes debate about the activities of the armed forces difficult to question. We think there should be more room for that debate. See more here.


Watch on YouTube
A funny short film by a young boy on The Militarization of Boys

Before You Sign Up

Contact us to get a free batch of these cards (or our other free materials) to distribute.

Watch this series of short fims on YouTube
16 or 17 and want to be a soldier? Watch this first.

British army: one young recruit's story, The Guardian 2013


Watch on YouTube
A 4 part investigation into 'the soldier myth' - talking to front-line soldiers about recruitment, training, fighting and coming home

Talks about militarism by David Gee and Ben Griffin from the Creeping Militarisation of Everyday Life conference. 

A very short film about our work

The Unseen March - short film with former SAS Ben Griffin, activist Mark Thomas and educationalists on ‘military ethos’ in schools. With briefings, resources and action ideas.

Teenagers voice their reaction to the military’s interest in their lives. See film and more info. With Welsh subtitles

latest news

British army 'explicitly targeting' working-class recruits, say critics
09/09/2018 The Guardian

Recruitment drive focuses on teenagers seeking adrenaline, says Child Soldiers International
Girl Guides defend controversial new deal with British army
08/09/2018 The Observer

Petition launched after members claim partnership with military runs counter to the Guides’ peace ethos
Arms industry spends millions to promote brands in schools
01/09/2018 The Observer

Defence groups sponsor lessons that promote building and sale of military hardware
UK army minimum recruitment age should be raised to 18 – survey
29/07/2018 The Guardian

ICM survey was commissioned by campaigners against child soldiers
Parliamentary mental health inquiry shows youngest military recruits and those from disadvantaged backgrounds face greater mental health risks than others in the forces
25/07/2018 ForcesWatch press release

The Defence Select Committee recommended that the Ministry of Defence ‘conducts or commissions further research into female personnel, early Service leavers and recruits under 18 to determine the extent to which they are at higher risk of developing mental health conditions.’
Warrior Nation – how the power of the military challenges British democracy
25/06/2018

A new report by a leading defence academic reveals how a 'militarisation offensive' – which began in 2006 to create support for the Afghan war - has increased the military's influence on British politics and society. (2)
British army ads targeting 'stressed and vulnerable' teenagers
08/06/2018 The Guardian

The British army has targeted recruitment material at “stressed and vulnerable” 16-year-olds via social media on and around GCSE results day, the Guardian can reveal.
News coverage of the Scottish Parliament's report on armed forces visits to schools
04/06/2018

With the publication of the Scottish Parliament's Public Petitions Committee report on our petition on armed forces visits to schools, there has been substantial coverage in the news.
see more news & articles