Children as young as 15 years, 7 months can apply for the Army. The UK remains the only EU country to recruit 16 year olds into the military and one of very few EU countries to recruit 17 year olds. The UN and the UK Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights have requested that the UK reconsider its policy of recruitment of children into the military, that ethnic minorities and children of low-income families are not targeted, that parents are included in the process from the outset and that the limited discharge rights for child soldiers are reviewed.
Non-officer recruitment draws mostly on young people from 16 years of age living in disadvantaged communities, with many recruits joining as a last resort. Increasingly, very young children are being targeted as the pool of potential recruits get smaller. Research, and general observation, indicates that children are introduced to the potential benefits of a forces career but not to its risks, and that warfare is glamorised and sanitised
Many recruitment tools capitalise on the impressionability of young people by presenting a glamorous view of armed forces life without the risks, legal obligations and ethical issues involved.
These include:
This report published by Child Soldiers International and ForcesWatch outlines the numerous ethical and legal concerns related to rhe recruitment of under-18s, including the disproportionately high level of risk they face and long-term consequences for their employability, as well as detailing how much more it costs than recruiting only adults.
A recent national ICM poll found that 70 per cent of respondents who expressed a view thought the minimum army recruitment age should be at least 18.
Only 18% of all respondents thought that the recruitment age should be as low as 16 years old, as it currently is.
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The minimum recruitment age for the British armed forces – 16 years – is one of the lowest in the world. The Ministry of Defence has traditionally justified recruiting from this age group by asserting that 16 years reflects the minimum statutory school leaving age.
This report concludes that the impact of recruitment below the age of 18 opens up a number of gaps that have long term significance, not only for the armed forces but also for the young people that they recruit. At a time of considerable downsizing of the army in particular, the large gap between the cost of training minors (who cannot be deployed operationally) and adults (who can) is difficult to sustain. But perhaps the most significant cost is in the detrimental impact that the gaps identified have on the future prospects of minors recruited by our armed forces.
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This report, published by the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, "challenges the status quo currently surrounding the situation of young people in the UK armed forces today. It questions the ethics and legality of the restrictions on young recruits’ rights of discharge, their minimum period of service, and their exposure to the risk of hostilities. The report also makes the case for a considered review and debate on the minimum recruitment age. It highlights the evidence that not only is the experience of recruits in the 16 – 18 age bracket adversely affected by their relative lack of maturity, but that their high drop-out rate results in millions of pounds in wasted expenditure."
The minimum age for enlisting in the UK armed forces is 16. The UK is the only country in Europe and the only country on the UN Security Council to recruit 16 year olds into its armed forces and is one of fewer than 20 countries in the world which recruit from the age of 16 years. Those who sign on when 16 or 17 must serve until they are 22.
The recruitment of minors has been criticised by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, Parliament’s own Joint Committee on Human Rights and a number of charities. The Armed Forces Bill is an opportunity to phase out the recruitment of people under 18, while introducing greater protection for 16- and 17-year-old personnel in the meantime.
This briefing outlines the issues and makes the following recommendations:
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Child Soldiers International is campaigning to stop the recruitment of under 18s into the British armed forces.They have published 'Catch 16-22: Recruitment and retention of minors in the British Armed Forces (2011) and Mind the Gap: Education for minors in the British armed forces (2012).
read more >>In their report on Children's Rights, the UK Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights recommended that the 'UK adopt a plan of action for implementing the Optional Protocol, including these recommendations, fully in the UK, together with a clear timetable for doing so.' The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommendations under the Optional Protocol were that the UK 'reconsider its active policy of recruitment of children into the armed forces' and a number of other measures.
read more >>The UK remains the only EU country to recruit 16 year olds into the military and one of very few EU countries to recruit 17 year olds. The UK has signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict yet there is evidence that the UK continues to target children from vulnerable groups and that safeguards to protect under-18s are not effective (see Child Soldiers Global Report 2008: United Kingdom).
The report of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child: Concluding Observations on the UK (October 2008) asks that the UK “reconsider its active policy of recruitment of children into the armed forces and ensure that it does not occur in a manner which specifically targets ethnic minorities and children of low-income families”. It also recommends that the UK government review the limited discharge rights for child soldiers and “that parents are included from the outset and during the entire process of recruitment and enlistment.”
All these recommendations have been supported by the UK Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights in their report on Children's Rights in November 2009.
Before You Sign Up is a vital resource for those with questions about the consequences of enlisting in the military. At Ease is a voluntary organisation providing advice and information to members of the Armed Forces. For more information on these independent sources of advice and for other things to look at, see our before you enlist page.
Employment in the armed forces is unique in placing severe restrictions on rights and freedoms that are available to the rest of the UK population. The armed forces are also the only employers in the UK who legally require their employees to commit themselves for several years, with the risk of a criminal conviction if they try to leave sooner.
This situation is all the more worrying given that the majority of recruits are very young. There is also evidence that many personnel are unclear about the length of their commitment and their rights to leave and that the information they receive can be misleading.
ForcesWatch are campaigning to improve terms of service and increase awareness amongst recruits of what they are signing up for. See more here.
CAMPAIGN UPDATE: On 19 June 2011, the government announced that it would give teenage soldiers the right to leave the armed forces up until age 18 if they are unhappy. With other organisations, ForcesWatch has been campaigning for under-18s to have the right to leave the forces, and we welcome this development - see more. This is a significant improvement on the current situation which gives under 18s the right to leave only between the 2nd and 6th month of service. Additionally, the legislation allows for a possible reduction in the notice period of 12 months for those aged over 18. These changes came into force in July 2011 - read more here. We will continue to monitor whether recruits are made aware of these new rights.
The information below reflects these recent changes.
Evidence suggests that many recruits are unaware of the exact committment that they are signing up to and the procedures for leaving. The recruitment literature does not mention many of the legal obligations and the Notice Paper, which recruits sign on joining the forces, sets out their terms and conditions in language that is often unclear and technical.The right to conscientious objection is not mentioned.
There is particular confusion over discharge as of right for under 18s and the discharge of 'unhappy minors' from the services. New legislation from 2011 allows under 18s to leave the forces as a right if they are unhappy (see more here) but it is not yet known if young people in the armed forces are being informed of this.
Members of the armed forces face considerable restrictions on political freedoms that are taken for granted by most of the population. They are not permitted to join a trade union or a political organisation, to speak to the media or in public without permission or to stand for elected office.
Manual of Service Law (MSL) Version 2.0 January 2011
This manual replaced, with effect from 31 October 2009, the Manual of Naval Law, the Manual of Military Law and the Manual of Air Force Law. It is a guide to the legislation and subordinate legislation which was introduced in the Armed Forces Act 2006.
New legislation (from 22 July 2011) which grants under 18s the right to leave after a 'cooling off' period. Prior to this, discharge of 'unhappy minors' was at the discretion of the commanding officer.
This right is additional to an individual's Discharge As Of Right (DAOR) between the 2nd and 6th month of starting service.
Under 18s in all branches of the forces may now give 3 months' notice to leave (i.e. leave the regular service and join the Reserves) if they give notice in writing to their commanding officer any time before their 18th birthday. By mutual consent the 3 months' notice may be reduced.
The recruit can change their mind about leaving if they do so within the notice period and they can still give notice later on.
Additionally, the legislation also allows adults the possibility of having their 12 month notice period reduced by up to 6 months as long as it is done within one month of notice being given. This is at the discretion of the commanding officer.
read more >>Employment in the armed forces is unique in placing severe restrictions on rights and freedoms that are available to the rest of the UK population. The armed forces are also the only employers in the UK who legally require their employees to commit themselves for several years, with the risk of a criminal conviction if they try to leave sooner.
This situation is all the more worrying given that the majority of recruits are very young. There is also evidence that many personnel are unclear about the length of their commitment and their rights to leave and that the information they receive can be misleading.
This briefing outlines the issues and makes recommendations for improving the terms and conditions of service in the armed forces.
read more >>The Council of Europe Recommendation on Human Rights of Members of the Armed Forces lists rights and freedoms that should be respected and implemented in the Armed Forces, including that, members of the armed forces have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; access to relevant information; the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and to freedom of association with others; and, enjoy the right to vote and to stand for election.
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An independent report highlighting the risks posed to young people through joining the military, how young people from disadvantaged communities are targeted, how information available to potential recruits is often misleading and how the terms of service are complicated, confusing and severely restricting. The research found that a large proportion join for negative reasons, including the lack of civilian career options.
Before You Sign Up is a vital resource for those with questions about the consequences of enlisting in the military. At Ease is a voluntary organisation providing advice and information to members of the Armed Forces. For more information on these independent sources of advice and for other things to look at, see our before you enlist page.
For more on terms of service and the risks involved with being in the armed forces see guidance.
ForcesWatch campaign in Parliament to raise the age of recruitment into the UK armed forces to 18 and to improve terms and conditions for all serving personnel. See here for details.
Significant risks
The majority of recent deaths in Afghanistan have been among the infantry. Younger recruits from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to join the infantry so they face the greatest risk. In addition to the risk of death or serious injury, many suffer post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental problems on return and experience other difficulties once back in civilian life, including harmful drinking and addiction, relationship breakdown, homelessness and a greater risk of suicide.
An inability to leave the forces legally before several years have elapsed almost certainly contributes to the number of personnel going absent without leave (AWOL). In the last 10 years, between 2000 and 3000 serving personnel have gone AWOL each year, mainly from the army.Those going AWOL risk a criminal conviction and punishment by detention.
Some resort to self harm, taking drugs to get caught and suicide attempts in order to find a way out.
The Armed Forces Continuous Attitude Survey reports that only about one third of armed forces personnel felt valued. About one fifth were dissatisfied with their job – that is many thousands of serving personnel who are likely to want to leave if they were able to.
Men who have served in the UK Armed Forces are more likely to commit a violent offence during their lifetime than their civilian counterparts, according to new research by King's Centre for Military Health Research at King's College London.
read more >>Research from Homeless Links's Survey of Needs and Provison suggests that while levels of homelessness among ex-service personnel is not high, it is widespread. Approximately half the day centres in England reported that they work with some ex-service personnel, however second stage accommodation reported much lower rates. This suggests that ex-service personnel do face a high risk of falling into patterns of rough sleeping, albeit for fairly short periods.
Research by the Centre for Housing Policy at York University in 2008 found that an estimated six per cent of London’s non-statutory homeless population had served in the Armed Forces. Although this represented a substantial drop from the proportion (approximately one quarter) reported in the mid-1990s, it showed that a higher proportion of ex-service personnel have alcohol, physical and/or mental health problems compared to the rest of the rough sleeping population.
read more >>These BBC radio programmes explore the effect of killing on people in the military, how many are unable to kill and others live with the effects of having killed for the rest of their lives.
read more >>In 2011, the Howard League for Penal Reform published the final report of the independent inquiry into former armed service personnel in prison.
From the report:
"At the present time the most accurate figure would seem to be the product of a joint quantitative study carried out by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Justice. This asserts that approximately 2,820, or some 3.5 per cent of all those currently in custody in England and Wales, had served in the Forces.
"The study estimated that 77 per cent of ex-servicemen in prison served in the Army, 15 per cent in the Royal Navy and 8 per cent in the Royal Air Force. Furthermore, it estimated that 51 per cent of ex-servicemen in prison are over the age of 45 years and 29 per cent are over the age of 55, which compares to 9 per cent of the general prison population being aged 50 years or over. These statistics suggest that many ex-servicemen in prison have offended a considerable time after their date of discharge.
"Whatever the exact figures for ex-servicemen in prison, it is important to stress that all estimates indicate that ex-servicemen constitute a significant subset."
From the press release:
“While the numbers of ex-servicemen in prison appear stable, evidence from statistical surveys in both England and Wales and the United States show that ex-servicemen are more likely to be serving sentences for violent and sexual offences than the general prison population."
read more >>Research from the UK and US about suicide and self-harm among those in the military and ex-military.
"The risk of suicide in men aged 24 y and younger who had left the Armed Forces was approximately two to three times higher than the risk for the same age groups in the general and serving populations"
"More U.S. military personnel have died by suicide since the war in Afghanistan began than have died fighting there."
read more >>A study published in May 2010 called What are the consequences of deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan on the mental health of the UK armed forces? found that armed forces personnel engaged in combat suffered PTSD at over twice the rate of the general population and that the symptoms may start to present themselves for up to a decade after deployment. The occurrence of other mental disorders, at nearly 20%, is also higher than the general population.
Recent research using MoD information shows that young infantrymen are suffering most in Afghanistan. In 2009 there were 107 deaths, of which 71 (66%) were infantry personnel. The researchers found that the risk faced by the infantry in Afghanistan is more than 12 times that faced by the rest of the armed forces on average. “Infantry recruits tend to be younger and from more disadvantaged backgrounds than those joining most other branches of the armed forces.
Before You Sign Up is a vital resource for those with questions about the consequences of enlisting in the military. At Ease is a voluntary organisation providing advice and information to members of the Armed Forces. For more information on these independent sources of advice and for other things to look at, see our before you enlist page.
For more on terms of service and the risks involved with being in the armed forces see guidance.
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 does not adequately address these concerns during recruitment and for serving personnel.
Active service and exposure to warfare can radically alter a person’s values and beliefs and lead to the development of an objection to further service. Although the armed forces recognise the right of serving personnel to be discharged if they develop a conscientious objection, this right is not set out clearly in legislation, is not mentioned in the terms of service, the process of declaring an objection on moral grounds is very opaque and many, perhaps most, forces personnel are unaware of it.
The system for registering a conscientious objection needs to be far easier to access and the different types of conscientious objection need to be fully recognised.
There is evidence that many more soldiers have objected to recent military activity than officially recorded. Discharges due to conscientious objection are rare with personnel encouraged to suppress their concerns, be discharged on other grounds or find other ways of leaving such as going absent without leave. High profile cases of court martial and detention of those who have refused to obey orders based on moral objections are set to deter others and also hinder understanding of an individual’s right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.
ForcesWatch are campaigning to increase awareness of conscientious objection and make the process of applying for it more transparent. See more here.
Conscientious objector, Michael Lyons has been released (9 Nov 2011). Michael, a medic in the Royal Navy, was sentenced to 7 months detention on 5 July 2011, for 'wilful disobedience' for not taking part in rifle training while his request for discharge as a conscientious objector was proceeding.
Michael joined up at 18 after seeing a TV advert depicting the Navy providing humanitarian aid overseas. At that age he was unaware of the realities of war. His desire to help people and his growing awareness in current affairs, determined his application to become a conscientious objector.
On 13 Oct 2011, an appeal against Michael's detention was held at the High Court (read press release). Although the appeal was unsuccessful, the judges expressed some concerns about the procedure for conscientious objectors. Michael is still awaiting the full written judgement.
ForcesWatch, along with other groups, have provided support for Michael and his family during his case. Michael also received many, many letters and cards, from people who wished to show their support for him during his detention. He has now left the Navy and looks forward to pursuing a career in the medical services.
This archive and educational materials resource has an extensive collection of materials which tell the stories of the men and women conscientious objectors of the 20th century. It documents their experiences, videos their recollections, promotes their ideals and publishes teaching resources.
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The Winter Soldier project, organised by the United States based group, Iraq Veterans Against War, details eyewitness accounts from Iraq and Afghanistan. Much of the testimony focuses on the individual soldier’s experience and how they felt about their participation and actions. Six episodes have been created for web viewing (or can be downloaded), e.g. Broken Soldier which tells the stories of 3 soldiers.
"An armed forces career involves ethical questions associated with the justification of killing, the risk of civilian casualties and the political purposes of military action. In order to make a responsible choice about enlistment, all potential recruits need to have considered these issues before accepting the legal obligations of service, and to continue to do so during their career. In omitting to mention ethical dilemmas, the army recruitment literature and applications process fail to support potential recruits in making an informed decision about enlistment in this respect."
Informed Choice? Armed forces recruitment practice in the United Kingdom
There is concern that some government initiatives, such as Armed Forces Day, seek to manufacture a climate of uncritical national pride in the armed forces in order to garner public support for foreign policy. Unqualified support of the military and foreign policy stigmatises legitimate concerns about how young people are recruited for the armed forces within our communities, and limits debate on alternatives to war. Widespread critical awareness of the risks and legal obligations of an armed forces career is essential if young people are to make an informed, responsible choice about enlistment.
Join us for a discussion on the role of the armed forces in mainstream education. Not only do the armed forces visit thousands of schools each year but the military is becoming more integrated into Britain's education system with 'military ethos' presented as a solution to educational problems,
We invite you to come and discuss the issues and whether it is appropriate for the military to engage with young people in schools and colleges.
Next event: London, Tuesday 7 May 2013, 7pm
Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London Venue details and map here
With Victoria Basham (University of Exeter), Tom Burkard (Centre for Policy Studies), Ben Griffin (ex-SAS and founder of Veterans for Peace) and others.
Chaired by Alex Kelly (The Access Project)
The Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights has published a guide to applicable international standards and jurisprudence relating to conscientious objection to military service.
