Ex-Armed Service Personnel

As we approach the end of the project, we would like to take this opportunity to reflect on all the good work our collective efforts have achieved over the last few years, which includes:

• Implementing an all Wales prisoner pathway, providing a bespoke pathway in each prison to ensure the best level of support for men and women who have served in the Armed Forces and access to national helplines.
• Setting up a network of Champions across Wales from various criminal justice agencies, including the Police and National Probation Service, who maintain an up-to-date directory of local resources for ex-Armed Services Personnel and are a source of advice and support for their colleagues about issues pertinent to ex-Armed Services Personnel
• Delivering awareness raising training and campaigns, including the production of videos highlighting the experiences of ex-Armed Service Personnel in the criminal justice system, and branded materials visible at police custody, courts, probation offices and prisons which alert all to the specific support ex-Armed Service Personnel can access and empowering those who do not wish to publicly disclose
• Commissioning research by Swansea University looking at the barriers to identifying and signposting ex-Armed Service Personnel in the criminal justice system to Specialist Services; and Wrexham Glyndwr University which focused on Ex-Armed Service Personnel, Healthy Relationships and Domestic Abuse, both of which provided recommendations used to steer the work of the project

Although the project has ended ex-Armed Service Personnel remain a priority area of focus, as identified in the Framework to support positive change for those at risk of offending 2018-2023.

On behalf of the Integrated Offender Management (IOM) Cymru partnership, the Senior Responsible Owner will continue to oversee work relating to ex-Armed Service Personnel in Wales. They will continue to respond to the project’s evaluation recommendations, sustain the achievements to date, monitor recording, and maintain relationships to ensure the continuation of joint working practices between the Service Charities and criminal justice partners, and will monitor performance and use the existing SPOCs /champions across HMPPS to ensure the high standard is maintained.

We would like to extend our thanks to the Armed Forces Covenant and HMPPS who continued to fund SToMP throughout the course of the project, and finally a HUGE thank you to all our IOM Cymru partners, specialist ex-Armed Service providers, Welsh Government, the Armed Forces Liaison Officers (AFLOs), the Veteran in Custody Support Officers (ViCSOs), and the Champions in each of the Police forces and probation offices.

Directory of Services

For information on local provision for ex-ASP across Wales, please visit the following links:

https://www.dewis.wales/

https://www.veteransgateway.org.uk/

https://www.cobseo.org.uk/members/directory/

Ex-Armed Service Personnel Service User Videos

These three films were commissioned to feature the ongoing experiences of ex- Armed Service Personnel (ASP) as they make the transition to civilian life and who, for one reason or another, have found themselves involved in the criminal justice system. Through testimonies, the films show how this has impacted upon their lives and how with the right support at the right time, they are managing or have managed to make the required positive changes to allow them to exit the system and to stay crime free.

The films present an inspiring and engaging journey into the lives of people who found themselves involved in the judicial system, and the positive impact SToMP and the professionals they come into contact with, are having in their lives. They are intended to raise awareness of the importance of identifying and signposting ex-ASP, and be an informative guide for professionals.

The Trouble with Transition

Support Networks

A Positive Journey