Overlooked and Underserved: The MoD’s Failure to Recognise Universal Rehabilitation Needs Among UK Armed Forces Veterans

Each year, thousands of men and women leave the UK Armed Forces and begin the complex journey back into civilian life. While the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has implemented various programmes aimed at supporting injured service personnel, particularly those with physical wounds or PTSD, it continues to fall short in recognising that all veterans, regardless of visible injury or mental health diagnoses, undergo profound transformations that warrant structured rehabilitation. I would argue that the MoD’s current approach is too narrow, failing to appreciate the psychological, emotional, social, and cultural reconditioning required for all former service members to reintegrate effectively. In doing so, the MoD inadvertently neglects a significant portion of the veteran population, leaving them isolated, disoriented, and underserved. Serving in the Armed Forces fundamentally changes a person. From day one, recruits are trained to conform to a strict, hierarchical system. Their identity is reshaped by discipline, camaraderie, collective responsibility, and high-stakes decision-making. The longer one serves, the more deeply ingrained these attributes become. Upon discharge, veterans often find that civilian life no longer fits the worldview they have adopted in service. Compounding this, the civilian world itself may have changed during a veteran's time away. Former friends and loved ones have moved on, social norms have evolved, and institutions (such as the job market) now expect a very different set of skills and behaviours. In essence, the transition is not simply a return, it is a radical re-entry into a society that may feel foreign. This cultural and identity dissonance is experienced by virtually all who have served, not just those who have suffered physical or psychological trauma. Yet, the MoD’s framework continues to treat only the physically or mentally "wounded" as in need of adjustment support. The MoD's rehabilitation services have historically prioritised those with visible injuries or diagnosed mental health conditions, especially PTSD. This emphasis stems from a post-Afghanistan and Iraq era narrative in which public awareness was raised about the severe consequences of combat exposure. While this was a necessary and commendable shift, it also created a binary system of support: those who are visibly or diagnostically "injured" receive rehabilitation and resources, while those who are not are often presumed to be fine. This binary fails to recognise "sub-clinical" suffering, emotional numbness, identity loss, difficulty adapting to unstructured environments, lack of purpose, that may not meet diagnostic criteria but significantly impair a veteran’s quality of life. It also ignores the systemic effects of military conditioning: the need to suppress emotion, hyper-vigilance, dependency on routine, and black-and-white thinking. These traits, adaptive in a military context, often hinder successful reintegration in the civilian sphere. Military life instils a profound sense of identity rooted in purpose, community, and routine. Discharge from service often results in what psychologists call identity dislocation—the loss of a previously stable sense of self. Many veterans find that they no longer know who they are outside of uniform. The military was not just a job; it was a life. And when that life ends, the absence can be both psychologically destabilising and existentially painful. This identity crisis does not manifest as a mental illness per se, but it can lead to depression, substance abuse, domestic issues, and in some tragic cases, suicide. Yet because it does not present as a diagnosable condition, the MoD’s traditional rehabilitation pathways offer little support. The lack of recognition for these “invisible wounds” for example, but not exclusively, Military Sexual Trauma suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of the veteran experience.One of the most challenging aspects of reintegration is finding meaningful civilian employment. Veterans often face difficulties translating military skills into civilian qualifications. Employers may not understand the value of military leadership, resilience, or problem-solving under pressure. This disconnect contributes to higher-than-average unemployment and underemployment rates among veterans, particularly within the first five years of discharge. While some MoD programmes such as the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) offer support, many veterans report that such services are generic, underfunded, or poorly tailored to the diversity of military backgrounds. Moreover, these programmes often assume a level of civilian “readiness” that simply does not exist in many transitioning personnel. True rehabilitation must include vocational reorientation, life skills training and wellness practices, identity reconstruction, and long-term mentoring, not just CV writing workshops. Another critical yet overlooked aspect of rehabilitation is the strain on personal relationships. Returning veterans often feel emotionally distant from family and friends. They may struggle to express vulnerability, relate to everyday concerns, or cope with the perceived triviality of civilian life. This emotional gap can erode marriages, fracture parental bonds, and deepen isolation. Unfortunately, the MoD does not systematically offer family-centred reintegration programmes. Spouses and children, though deeply affected, are rarely included in the transition process. This omission neglects a vital support network and places an unfair burden on families to manage the consequences of service without adequate tools or guidance. Rehabilitation also requires cultural translation. Military culture emphasises obedience, sacrifice, and group identity, while civilian society increasingly values individualism, emotional transparency, and ambiguity. Veterans may find civilian institutions to be inefficient, disloyal, or morally ambiguous, traits that clash with the clear mission-oriented ethos of the military. This culture shock is rarely acknowledged in MoD programming. By not preparing service members for this divergence, the MoD essentially sets them adrift in a foreign land without a map. The result is frustration, disillusionment, and alienation, which can contribute to homelessness, incarceration, or chronic underachievement. Current MoD approaches largely follow a “fix the broken” model, whereby resources are allocated to those who show visible signs of damage, however this model fails to see the bigger picture. Rehabilitation should not only be reactive but also preventative and universal. Every veteran has undergone a significant transformation, and every veteran deserves the opportunity to rebuild a fulfilling civilian identity. A more humane and effective model would treat rehabilitation as a normal and necessary phase of the military lifecycle, just like basic training or deployment preparation. Doing so would destigmatise the need for support, promote early intervention, and better prepare service personnel for life after service. Other nations offer instructive models. In the United States, the Department of Veterans Affairs provides a wide range of post-service resources, from vocational rehabilitation to educational funding, social reintegration programmes, and peer support networks, while not without its flaws, the U.S. system acknowledges that all veterans face challenges. In Scandinavia, particularly Norway and Denmark, a more holistic and family-inclusive model of veteran care has emerged, which supports the idea that transition is a systemic, rather than individual, process. These models show that it is possible to design policy frameworks that view rehabilitation as an integral part of service, not an exception granted to the injured. The failure of the MoD to recognise the universal rehabilitation needs of all veterans is not just a bureaucratic oversight, it is a moral failing. Focusing narrowly on those with physical wounds or diagnosed PTSD, the MoD disregards the broader and deeply personal consequences of military service as every person who has worn the uniform has sacrificed, changed, and adapted in profound ways. We must also prepare them for what comes after. If the UK truly values its Armed Forces, then it must commit to a new model of veteran care, one that sees rehabilitation not as a privilege for the wounded, but as a right for all. Only then can we begin to honour the full measure of their service.

Tony Wright CEO Forward Assist