Armed forces community

Information about the armed forces community, including those who have previously served in the armed forces (veterans) and their families, to help support the Armed Forces Covenant.

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UK armed forces veterans, England and Wales: Census 2021

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  • In 2021, 1,853,112 people in England and Wales reported that they had previously served in the UK armed forces (3.8% of usual residents aged 16 years and over).
  • Of the UK armed forces veterans in England and Wales, 76.3% (1.4 million people) previously served in the regular forces, 19.5% (361,000 people) in the reserve forces, and 4.3% (79,000 people) served in both the regular and reserve forces.
  • 37,000 UK armed forces veterans (2.0%) lived in communal establishments and the remainder (slightly over 1.8 million, 98.0%) lived in households.
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Suicides in UK armed forces veterans, England and Wales: 2021

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  • In 2021 in England and Wales, out of 5,175 suicides in those aged 16 years and over, 253 suicides occurred in UK armed forces veterans.
  • Of the 253 UK armed forces veteran suicides occurring in 2021, 93.7% (237) were male and 6.3% (16) were female.
  • Overall, after accounting for age, there was no evidence of a difference in the rate of suicide between male UK armed forces veterans and the male general population.
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