After reading all the comments following the Jaysley Beck inquest I felt I had to write in and describe my experience.
I’m a veteran of 18 years and left the Army in 2020. During my time in service I was sexually assaulted by a colleague after a night out.
I never told anyone about this incident at the time for a number of reasons, but the main one was that no one would believe me as I had been drinking.
A few years later I attended a reunion with five girlfriends, and it came to light that three of us had endured similar experiences during our time serving with the Armed Forces.
We decided we should speak out and agreed to tell the Royal Military Police (RMP).
One of the women was still serving so she said she would write a statement supporting what was discussed at the reunion but didn’t want to make an official complaint as she was in the RMP.
This went to court martial, where I was asked to stand up in front of the person who had assaulted me and be questioned. I did this not realising I would be required to stand less than two metres away from him.
After I had spoken, the jury (of five males) made a declaration that one of them knew me so would need to be swapped out.
At this point I requested that the panel be changed to include at least one female and was told “you get what you get”.
I later discovered the accused was found not guilty and continued to serve. I was also told there would be no appeal, that it was “done and dusted”.
I often look back and wonder if the result would have been different if the panel had contained both sexes. – Name and address supplied
Director Military Court Service, Cleaven Faulkner, replies:
I’m very sorry to hear that someone’s experience of the miltary court has not been a positive one.
Without knowing the identity of the individual – and therefore the case – it is impossible to comment on all the details.
However, the fact this veteran’s case pre-dates January 1, 2023 is crucial as this is when the law was changed.
Now the court administration officer must appoint at least one man and one woman to every court martial board.
Also, since September 2023 all court martial boards must be tri-Service.
Please be assured that the diversity and transparency of our procedures have been transformed for the better, giving personnel a much improved experience when they are in the military court system.
I am really concerned about the lack of funding for essential infrastructure repairs at my Reserve centre.
Despite experiencing repeated issues, including a leaking roof and non-functional emergency lights, repairs have not been carried out by the maintenance contractor, Vivo.
Since we switched to this company for all infrastructure-related issues in August 2024, the process of arranging engineer visits has become painfully slow.
The jobs simply won’t get done if their cost exceeds a £3,600 limit and therefore ours have not been dealt with at all. That’s becoming increasingly frustrating for everyone and poses risks to both the functionality of the centre and the safety of its users.
The Defence Infratstructure Organisation, who are ultimately responsible for this failure, must take a more proactive approach to ensure that all requirements and approvals are promptly addressed, not just those that cost under £3,600.
We need additional funding in place and a more efficient system for solving these problems as they arise.
My Reserve unit takes great pride in maintaining a facility that supports soldiers and potential recruits in their training. However, without adequate finances and timely repairs, the centre cannot fulfil its purpose effectively.
The building needs to remain in good condition if the operational readiness of our personnel is to be guaranteed.
Also, encouraging individuals to join the Army Reserve is a challenge in itself, and that task is made even more difficult when the site is not up to standard.
The Army should be ensuring our centres are safe, functional, and properly equipped now – not at some undetermined point in the future. – Name and address supplied
As the Army and wider defence modernise how their workforces conduct digital business, how much consideration is being placed on the need to ensure the relevant applications and tools are friendly to those who may have dyslexia or even dyscalculia?
I have been in the Armed Forces for some 26 years and am only now starting to feel that my dyslexia is impacting my performance – and those concerns are largely due to my limited ability to read from apps within the personnel management systems.
I am sure there are many other defence personnel out there who, like me, are now finding using these applications problematic, so the MoD needs to act. – Capt Anthony Brown, RLC
Being an ex-Regular who is now a Combined Cadet Force school staff instructor, I was dismayed to find out that 18 military obstacle courses are being closed down due to cost pressures, including our local one.
We employed the obstacle course whenever we used the local camp for field days. It is a big loss as this is an attractive and challenging facility for our cadets.
Our unit may be prepared to maintain a streamlined course to enable a basic layout (eg, walls, monkey bars) to continue and be inspected as required.
Could this be a feasible option that the respective budget holder would consider? – Calvin Routledge, Lancaster Royal Grammar School CCF
