
“The Best Place to Be a Veteran” (?): An Examination of the Current Veteran Experience Within the United Kingdom
By: Hannah Johnstone
References
- Ahern,
J.,
Worthen,
M.,
Masters,
J.,
Lippman, S.
A., Ozer,
E. J., &
Moos,
R. (2015).
The challenges of Afghanistan and Iraq Veterans’
transition from military to civilian life and approaches to
reconnection. PLOS ONE,
10(7),
e0128599 . DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0128599 - Armed Forces Act 2011, c.18,
Parliament of the United Kingdom. (2011).
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2011/18/contents - Ashworth,
J.,
Hudson,
M.,
Malam,
S.,
Donovan,
N.,
Deane,
H.,
Martin,
D., Royal British Legion,
Forces in Mind Trust, & Compass Partnership.
(2014). A UK household survey of the ex-service
community. Royal British Legion.
https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/get-involved/things-to-do/campaigns-policy-and-research/policy-and-research/the-uk-ex-service-community-a-household-survey - Atherton, S. (2009). Domesticating military masculinities: Home, performance and the negotiation of identity. Social & Cultural Geography, 10(8), 821–836. DOI: 10.1080/14649360903305791
- Bailey, M., Phillips, R., & Morrison, Z. (2023). Improving access to service charities for female veterans. Robert Gordon University. DOI: 10.48526/rgu-wt-2079145
- Binks, E., & Cambridge, S. (2018). The transition experiences of British Military Veterans: Military transition experiences. Political Psychology, 39(1), 125–142. DOI: 10.1111/pops.12399
- Blackham, J. J., & Prins, G. (2007). The Royal Navy at the brink. The RUSI Journal, 152(2), 10–17. DOI: 10.1080/03071840701349901
- Bray,
I.,
O’Malley,
P.,
Ashcroft,
S.,
Adedeji,
E., &
Spriggs,
A. (2010).
Estimating the proportion of prisoners in England and Wales who are
ex-Armed Forces – further analysis [Project report].
Ministry of Defence. Retrieved from
https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/975425 - Brewer,
J., &
Herron,
S. (2022).
Understanding “negative transitioning” in British
ex-service personnel [End-of-Award Report]. Forces
in Mind Trust.
https://www.fim-trust.org/project/understanding-negative-transitioning-in-british-ex-service-personnel/ - Burdett, H., Woodhead, C., Iversen, A. C., Wessely, S., Dandeker, C., & Fear, N. T. (2013). “Are you a veteran?” Understanding of the term “veteran” among UK ex-Service Personnel: A research note. Armed Forces & Society, 39(4), 751–759. DOI: 10.1177/0095327X12452033
- Chandler, D. G., & Beckett, I. F. W. (2003). The Oxford history of the British Army. Oxford University Press.
- Defence Committee.
(2011, December
15). The Armed Forces Covenant in action? Part 1: Military
casualties. UK Parliament.
https://committees.parliament.uk/work/2181/the-armed-forces-covenant-in-action-part-1-military-casualties/publications/ - Doherty,
R.,
Robson,
A., &
Cole,
S. (2019).
Armed Forces Charities—Sector trends (focus
on). Directory of Social Change.
https://www.dsc.org.uk/publication/focus-on-armed-forces-charities-sector-trends/ - Eaton, K. M., Hoge, C. W., Messer, S. C., Whitt, A. A., Cabrera, O. A., McGurk, D., Cox, A., & Castro, C. A. (2008). Prevalence of mental health problems, treatment need, and barriers to care among primary care-seeking spouses of military service members involved in Iraq and Afghanistan deployments. Military Medicine, 173(11), 1051–1056. DOI: 10.7205/MILMED.173.11.1051
- Fear, N. T., Jones, M., Murphy, D., Hull, L., Iversen, A. C., Coker, B., Machell, L., Sundin, J., Woodhead, C., Jones, N., Greenberg, N., Landau, S., Dandeker, C., Rona, R. J., Hotopf, M., & Wessely, S. (2010). What are the consequences of deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan on the mental health of the UK armed forces? A cohort study. The Lancet, 375(9728), 1783–1797. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(10)60672-1
- Finnegan, A., & Randles, R. (2022). Prevalence of common mental health disorders in military veterans: Using primary healthcare data. BMJ Military Health, 169(6), 523–528. DOI: 10.1136/bmjmilitary-2021-002045
- Finnegan, A., Salem, K., Green, N., Ainsworth-Moore, L., & Ghomi, M. (2023). Evaluation of the NHS England ‘Op COURAGE’ high intensity service for military veterans with significant mental health problems. BMJ Military Health. DOI: 10.1136/military-2023-002385
- Fitzpatrick, L.
I., Prior,
S., &
Forsyth, P.
K. (2018). An
evaluation of V1P Centres across Scotland. Veterans
First Point.
https://www.veteransfirstpoint.org.uk/news/v1p-scotland-evaluation-2018 - Forces in Mind Trust.
(2021). Forces in Mind Trust – Policy statement
on finance.
https://www.fim-trust.org/outcome-area/finance/finance-policy-statement/ - Fulton, E., Wild, D., Hancock, J., Fernandez, E., & Linnane, J. (2019). Transition from service to civvy street: The needs of armed forces veterans and their families in the UK. Perspectives in Public Health, 139(1), 49–58. DOI: 10.1177/1757913918785650
- Future Agenda & Forces in
Mind Trust. (2021). Lifting our sights: Beyond
2030—The impact of future trends on the transition of our Armed Forces
community from military to civilian life. Forces in
Mind Trust.
https://www.fim-trust.org/project/beyond-2030-the-impact-of-future-trends-on-the-transition-of-our-armed-forces-community-from-military-to-civilian-life/ - Goodwin, L., Wessely, S., Hotopf, M., Jones, M., Greenberg, N., Rona, R. J., Hull, L., & Fear, N. T. (2015). Are common mental disorders more prevalent in the UK serving military compared to the general working population? Psychological Medicine, 45(9), 1881–1891. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291714002980
- Gordon, K., Burnell, K., & Wilson, C. (2020). Outside the military “bubble”: Life after service for UK ex-Armed Forces personnel. Frontiers in Public Health, 8, 50. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2020.00050
- Hatton, P. (2016). Exploring Members of the UK Armed forces experience of recovery after treatment for a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder [Doctoral dissertation, University of East London]. DOI: 10.15123/PUB.5403
- House of Commons Defence
Committee. (2018). Mental Health and the Armed
Forces, Part One: The Scale of mental health issues.
House of Commons.
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmdfence/813/81302.htm - House of Lords.
(2016, May
25). The Union and devolution inquiry.
UK Parliament.
https://committees.parliament.uk/work/5602/the-union-and-devolution-inquiry/publications/ - Hunt, E. J. F., Wessely, S., Jones, N., Rona, R. J., & Greenberg, N. (2014). The mental health of the UK Armed Forces: Where facts meet fiction. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 5(1), 23617. DOI: 10.3402/ejpt.v5.23617
- Iacobucci, G. (2022). Covid-19: Military drafted in to tackle staffing crisis in London hospitals. BMJ, 376, o47. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.o47
- Institute of Medicine.
(2012).
History, diagnostic criteria, and epidemiology . In Committee on the Assessment of Ongoing Effects in the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Eds.), Treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder in military and veteran populations: Initial assessment (pp. 25–58). National Academies Press.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK201095/ - Johnstone, H., & Cogan, N. (2021). ‘He messaged me the other night and said you are my saviour’: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of intimate partners’ roles in supporting veterans with mental health difficulties. Journal of Military, Veteran and Family Health, 7(2), 61–70. DOI: 10.3138/jmvfh-2019-0055
- Keeling, M., Wessely, S., Dandeker, C., Jones, N., & Fear, N. T. (2015). Relationship difficulties among U.K. Military Personnel: Impact of sociodemographic, military, and deployment-related factors. Marriage & Family Review, 51(3), 275–303. DOI: 10.1080/01494929.2015.1031425
- King’s Centre for Military
Health Research and Academic Department of Military Mental Health.
(2023). The Mental health and wellbeing of the UK Armed
Forces community.
https://www.fimt-rc.org/article/20230301-the-mental-health-and-wellbeing-of-the-uk-armed-forces-community-march-2023 - Kirk-Wade,
E. (2022,
November
11). 2021 census: How many veterans are there?
UK Parliament.
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/2021-census-how-many-veterans-are-there/ - Kirk-Wade,
E., &
Mansfield,
Z. (2023). UK
Defence Personnel Statistics (7930). UK
Parliament.
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7930/ - Knipe,
E., &
Hookway,
E. (2023,
November
9). UK armed forces veterans, health and unpaid care, England
and Wales: Census 2021. Office of National
Statistics.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/armedforcescommunity/articles/ukarmedforcesveteranshealthandunpaidcareenglandandwales/census2021 - Lord Ashcroft.
(2014). Veterans’ Transition Review.
https://www.veteranstransition.co.uk/reports/ - Lowe, K. N., Adams, K. S., Browne, B. L., & Hinkle, K. T. (2012). Impact of military deployment on family relationships. Journal of Family Studies, 18(1), 17–27. DOI: 10.5172/jfs.2012.2003
- Mansfield, A. J., Schaper, K. M., Yanagida, A. M., & Rosen, C. S. (2014). One day at a time: The experiences of partners of veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 45(6), 488–495. DOI: 10.1037/a0038422
- Mellotte, H., Murphy, D., Rafferty, L., & Greenberg, N. (2017). Pathways into mental health care for UK veterans: A qualitative study. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 8(1), 1389207. DOI: 10.1080/20008198.2017.1389207
- Ministry of Defence.
(2017). Veterans: Key facts.
https://www.armedforcescovenant.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Veterans-Key-Facts.pdf - Ministry of Defence.
(2019). Population projections: UK armed forces
Veterans residing in Great Britain, 2016 to 2028.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/population-projections-uk-armed-forces-veterans-residing-in-great-britain-2016-to-2028 - Ministry of Defence.
(2022a). Statutory guidance on the Armed Forces
Covenant Duty.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/armed-forces-covenant-duty-statutory-guidance - Ministry of Defence.
(2022b). UK Armed Forces mental health: Annual summary
& trends over time, 2007/08 to 2021/22.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62b03e138fa8f5357984239b/MH_Annual_Report_2021-22.pdf - Murphy, D., & Busuttil, W. (2020). Understanding the needs of veterans seeking support for mental health difficulties. BMJ Military Health, 166, 211–213. DOI: 10.1136/jramc-2019-001204
- Murphy, D., Palmer, E., & Busuttil, W. (2016). Mental health difficulties and help-seeking beliefs within a sample of female partners of UK veterans diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 5(8), 68. DOI: 10.3390/jcm5080068
- Murphy, D., Palmer, E., Hill, K., Ashwick, R., & Busuttil, W. (2017). Living alongside military PTSD: A qualitative study of female partners’ experiences with UK Veterans. Journal of Military, Veteran and Family Health, 3(1), 52–61. DOI: 10.3138/jmvfh.4011
- National Statistics.
(2023). Homelessness in Scotland:
2022–23. Scottish
Government.
https://www.gov.scot/publications/homelessness-in-scotland-2022-23/ - Northern Ireland Statistics and
Research Agency. (2019). UK Armed Forces
Veterans topic report.
https://www.nisra.gov.uk/sites/nisra.gov.uk/files/publications/uk-armed-forces-veterans-topic-report.pdf - Office for Veterans’
Affairs. (2022). Veterans’ strategy
action plan
2022–2024 (CP 598).
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/veterans-strategy-action-plan-2022-to-2024 - Office of National
Statistics. (2023, February
3). Characteristics of UK armed forces veterans, England and
Wales: Census 2021.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/armedforcescommunity/articles/characteristicsofukarmedforcesveteransenglandandwalescensus2021/census2021 - Oster, C., Morello, A., Venning, A., Redpath, P., & Lawn, S. (2017). The health and wellbeing needs of veterans: A rapid review. BMC Psychiatry, 17(1), 414. DOI: 10.1186/s12888-017-1547-0
- Palmer,
L.,
Rona, R.
J., Fear,
N. T., &
Stevelink, S. A.
M. (2021). The
evolution of post-traumatic stress disorder in the UK Armed Forces:
Traumatic exposures in Iraq & Afghanistan and responses distress (TRIAD
study). King’s Centre of Military Health
Research.
https://kcmhr.org/pdf/2021_TRIAD_report.pdf - Parry, K., & Pitchford-Hyde, J. (2023). ‘We may have bad days … that doesn’t make us killers’: How military veterans perceive contemporary British media representations of military and post-military life. Media, War & Conflict, 16(3), 440–458. DOI: 10.1177/17506352221113958
- Pease, J. L., Billera, M., & Gerard, G. (2016). Military culture and the transition to civilian life: Suicide risk and other considerations. Social Work, 61(1), 83–86. DOI: 10.1093/sw/swv050
- Phillips, R. (2020). The stigmatized hero? A review of UK opinion polls and surveys on perceptions of British Veterans in UK society. Journal of Veterans Studies, 6(1), 64. DOI: 10.21061/jvs.v6i1.150
- Phillips, R., Connelly, V., & Burgess, M. (2021). Representations of British Armed Forces veterans in the press: A qualitative analysis of newspaper articles. Journal of Political & Military Sociology, 47(1). DOI: 10.5744/jpms.2020.1003
- Phillips, R. H., Connelly, V., & Burgess, M. (2020). Exploring the victimization of British Veterans: Comparing British beliefs about veterans with beliefs about soldiers. Armed Forces & Society, 48(1), 0095327X2094224. DOI: 10.1177/0095327x20942244
- Phillips, R. H., Connelly, V., & Burgess, M. (2022). How do sociodemographic characteristics influence UK civilian opinions of UK Armed Forces Iraq and Afghanistan veterans? A mixed-method approach. Armed Forces & Society, 49(2), 0095327X2110703. DOI: 10.1177/0095327x211070321
- Randles, R., & Finnegan, A. (2022). Veteran help-seeking behaviour for mental health issues: A systematic review. BMJ Military Health, 168(1), 99–104. DOI: 10.1136/bmjmilitary-2021-001903
- Resnick, E. M., Mallampalli, M., & Carter, C. L. (2012). Current challenges in female veterans’ health. Journal of Women’s Health, 21(9), 895–900. DOI: 10.1089/jwh.2012.3644
- Rhead, R., MacManus, D., Jones, M., Greenberg, N., Fear, N., & Goodwin, L. (2022). Mental health disorders and alcohol misuse among UK military veterans and the general population: A comparison study. Psychological Medicine, 52(2), 292–302. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291720001944
- Robson,
A.,
Cole,
S., &
Doherty,
R. (2019).
Armed forces charities in the criminal justice system.
Directory of Social Change.
https://www.dsc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/DSC-Armed-Forces-Charities-in-the-Criminal-Justice-System.pdf - Scottish Veterans
Commission. (2017). Veterans health &
wellbeing in Scotland: Are we getting it right?
Scottish Veterans Commissioner.
https://www.gov.scot/publications/veterans-health-commissioner-think-piece/documents/ - Scottish Veterans
Commission. (2018). Veterans’ health and
wellbeing: A distinctive Scottish approach.
https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/research-and-analysis/2018/04/veterans-health-wellbeing-distinctive-scottish-approach/documents/00534530-pdf/00534530-pdf/govscot%3Adocument/00534530.pdf - Short,
R.,
Dickson,
H.,
Greenberg,
N., &
MacManus,
D. (2018).
Offending behaviour, health and wellbeing of military
veterans in the criminal justice system. PLOS
ONE, 13(11),
e0207282 . DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0207282 - Stevelink, S. A. M., Jones, M., Hull, L., Pernet, D., MacCrimmon, S., Goodwin, L., MacManus, D., Murphy, D., Jones, N., Greenberg, N., Rona, R. J., Fear, N. T., & Wessely, S. (2018). Mental health outcomes at the end of the British involvement in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts: A cohort study. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 213(6), 690–697. DOI: 10.1192/bjp.2018.175
- Stevelink, S. A. M., Jones, N., Jones, M., Dyball, D., Khera, C. K., Pernet, D., MacCrimmon, S., Murphy, D., Hull, L., Greenberg, N., MacManus, D., Goodwin, L., Sharp, M.-L., Wessely, S., Rona, R. J., & Fear, N. T. (2019). Do serving and ex-serving personnel of the UK armed forces seek help for perceived stress, emotional or mental health problems? European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 10(1), 1556552. DOI: 10.1080/20008198.2018.1556552
- Strong, J. D., Crowe, B. M., & Lawson, S. (2018). Female veterans: Navigating two identities. Clinical Social Work Journal, 46(2), 92–99. DOI: 10.1007/s10615-017-0636-3
- The Royal British
Legion. (2011a). Literature review: UK veterans
and homelessness.
https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/docs/default-source/campaigns-policy-and-research/litrev_uk_vets_homelessness.pdf - The Royal British
Legion. (2011b). Literature review: UK veterans
and the criminal justice system.
https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/docs/default-source/campaigns-policy-and-research/litrev_uk_vets_crim_justice.pdf?sfvrsn=6e0c84bf_2 - Truusa,
T.-T., &
Andrew Castro,
C. (2019).
Chapter 2- Definition of a veteran: The military viewed as a culture . In C. A. Castro & S. Dursun (Eds.), Military veteran reintegration: Approach, management, and assessment of military veterans transitioning to civilian life (pp. 5–19). Academic Press. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-815312-3.00002-4 - Waddington,
B. (2023,
January
19). General health, England and Wales: Census 2021.
Office for National Statistics.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthandwellbeing/bulletins/generalhealthenglandandwales/census2021 - Williamson,
V.,
Harwood,
H.,
Greenberg,
K.,
Stevelink, S. A.
M., &
Greenberg,
N. (2019).
Impact of military service on physical health later in life:
A qualitative study of geriatric UK veterans and
non-veterans. BMJ Open,
9(7),
e028189 . DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-028189 - Williamson, C., Palmer, L., Leightley, D., Pernet, D., Chandran, D., Leal, R., Murphy, D., Fear, N. T., & Stevelink, S. A. M. (2023). Military veterans and civilians’ mental health diagnoses: An analysis of secondary mental health services. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 58(7), 1029–1037. DOI: 10.1007/s00127-022-02411-x
- Wilson, G., Hill, M., & Kiernan, M. D. (2018). Loneliness and social isolation of military veterans: Systematic narrative review. Occupational Medicine, 68(9), 600–609. DOI: 10.1093/occmed/kqy160
- Wragg, D. (2007). RAF Handbook 1939–1945 (1 st ed.). Sutton Publishing Limited.
- YouGov.
(2022). Perceptions of UK armed forces ex-service
personnel On behalf of the Office of Veterans Affairs’.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/perceptions-of-uk-armed-forces-ex-service-personnel
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21061/jvs.v10i2.536 | Journal eISSN: 2470-4768
Language: English
Page range: 90 - 101
Submitted on: Nov 23, 2023
Accepted on: Feb 11, 2024
Published on: Apr 23, 2024
Published by: Virginia Tech Publishing
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
© 2024 Hannah Johnstone, published by Virginia Tech Publishing
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.