New Fund to Improve Access to Clinical Support for Female Veterans (UK)29th November 2023

The UK government has announced a new £200,000 fund to improve clinical support for women veterans who have suffered sexual trauma in the military.

The funding will support the rollout of dedicated training and guidance for frontline staff to support women veteran survivors across healthcare services, military and civilian charities.

The grant was introduced in response to the findings of three reports commissioned by the Office for Veterans’ Affairs that give recommendations to service providers on how quality of and access to support can be improved.

The recommendations for policymakers, service providers and researchers include:

• staff training which focuses on female veterans’ needs, including mental health and sexual trauma
• increasing partnerships between service and non-military charities to share best practice and provide more appropriate care for female veterans
• improving signposting to support through marketing, newsletters, online directories or peer networks
• gathering gendered data across government and charities to ensure more equitable access to support and better outcomes
• researching the experiences and needs of female veterans to improve access to support, including transitioning from service, personal finance, housing, employment and healthcare

Further information will be made available in due course.