mental health

Day One, Week One: Veteranhood

Excerpt from Joe Glenton's new book outlines the violence inherent in the British Army's basic training and explores what impacts this can have on mental health.

Notes on attending the inquest into Sean Benton’s death at Deepcut barracks

Last week the Coroner at Working Coroner’s Court delivered the findings into the circumstances of Sean Benton’s death at Deepcut Barracks in June 1995. Sean was the first of four soldiers to die there between 1995 and 2002. ForcesWatch have been monitoring the inquest; this article shares our records from the inquest and notes on the final findings.Download the full notes

Parliamentary mental health inquiry shows youngest military recruits and those from disadvantaged backgrounds face greater mental health risks than others in the forces

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.’

6 veterans per day seeking post-traumatic stress help – military charity

Experts warn the “floodgates” of post-traumatic stress are about to open, as a top armed forces charity claims mental health issues among military personnel have risen 26 percent over the last year.

British armed forces suffer record levels of alcohol abuse

More than 1,600 service personnel required medical treatment in the past year

Drone Wars: Pilots reveal debilitating stress beyond virtual battlefield

"To extinguish a person's life is a very personal thing. While physically we don't experience the five senses when we engage a target — unlike [how] an infantryman might — in my experience, the emotional impact on the operator is equal."

ForcesWatch submission to Defence Select Committee inquiry on Military Casualties

ForcesWatch's submission to the Defence Select Committee inquiry on Military Casualties draws on our research published in The Last Ambush.

Mental health warning for young soldiers

Young soldiers from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to suffer from mental health problems, according to a report out today published by lobby group Forces Watch.

PTSD report finds veterans from disadvantaged backgrounds most at risk

Forces Watch report calls for the minimum age of recruitment to be raised to 18 to avoid exposing the youngest soldiers to the most trauma

PTSD ‘most common in young soldiers’ says new report