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April 01 2025

A report on the challenges faced by ex-Services personnel on release from prison and the difficulties inside. By Dominic Barrett

I was born in a small town in south Yorkshire. The town has a troubled history and its fair share of socioeconomic challenges. I lived in the town until my late teens when my overbearing mother threw me out of the family home. My crime was being boisterous. Living on the streets not knowing where your next meal would come from was hard. Living off other people's handouts was worse. It was degrading and soul-destroying. 

So in my late teens I decided to up sticks and move from my roots in the north to the south of England for a fresh start. Living on the streets is hard no matter where it is. It is a hard life and takes its toll on you. You feel cold, frightened, ashamed and a failure to society. Even though some of the homeless population have had successful careers and a family life, it can only take one bad decision for your life to fall apart and spiral out of control, reaching breaking point or rock bottom.   

When you are living on the streets people often walk past you with either pity in their eyes or hold a negative judgemental opinion as to why you are homeless in the first place. Many do not see the person as human, only one of life's failures. Just another statistic. 

My break from a homeless existence came when I was walking past an Army Careers Recruitment Office. Before I knew it I was enlisted into the British Army. Some months later I arrived at my regiment, shy and introverted. Regimental life was great, it was a family that I never had growing up. 

Before I knew it I was posted to Cyprus as a United Nations Peace Keeper. When I put on the blue beret for the first time I felt so proud. Cyprus was hot and took some getting used to. Initially, the 5:30am physical training was tough, but after some time I enjoyed running through the Cypriot streets close to the buffer zone. All was going well in Cyprus with the UN until one cold night, whilst on routine foot patrol, a Greek soldier mistook me for a Turkish soldier and nearly blew my brains out. 

That experience affected me, not at the time, but later on in life where I became a ticking emotional time bomb waiting to explode. One night whilst I was on Christmas leave, that emotional time bomb went off with devastating consequences. Before I knew it I was in the criminal justice system and out of the Army. The Army was my life.

In the UK, the number of ex-Service personnel in prison is estimated to be 3.6%, as of June 2022, but I think that figure might be higher. Ex-Service members now find themselves in an inadequate, under-resourced criminal justice system, feeling isolated and on their own.
Research has highlighted that veterans are more prone than their civilian counterparts to face challenges such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of their military experiences. The Royal British Legion estimates there are around 6,000 homeless veterans in the UK. A notable number of veterans will turn to drugs and/or alcohol as a means of coping with the trauma or difficulties of reintegrating back into a chaotic society. 

The whole experience of being locked away in prison, isolated from family and friends, and the absence of sufficient support, means many veterans find it hard to reintegrate back into society once they are released. They are often thrust into economic hardship and, just like anybody else, the experience presents a considerable risk to their mental health.

Whilst in prison, veterans simply do not get the help they so desperately need, this is due to the prison system being under-resourced and the poor training of the prison healthcare staff when it comes to veterans' mental health. 

Being a military veteran in the criminal justice system presents intricate challenges that will demand immediate attention from government policymakers, various agencies and military charities, finally enabling me to get back on track to leading a somewhat normal life. 


Veterans support

If you are ex-forces and experiencing homelessness, please see the List in the centre pages of the magazine for information on a range of helpful services, including ones specifically for homeless veterans.

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