Abstract
This article seeks to establish how, and why, older U.K. Armed Forces veterans resident in Scotland identify as veterans. We consider both the profile and the nature of the aged veteran population in Scotland and consider the nature of inclusion and exclusion by both the individual and community elements. Our consideration of the population and nature of the Scottish resident U.K. veteran is drawn from research amongst the older veteran population in Scotland, specifically those 65 years of age and older, as this includes periods of volunteer and required service from the U.K. population. The data is sourced from our 3-year study around the support needs of older veterans who are currently residing in Scotland. Our findings illustrate that individuals come from a variety of diverse geographical origins, and express different experiences in the U.K. Armed Forces; including nature of recruitment, branch of service, length of service, deployment theatres, and differing levels of engagement in active conflicts. Extant research identifies a divide between the official U.K. institutional definitions of a veteran, which is very broad and inclusive, and the interpretation of veteran status by those who have actually been members of the U.K. Armed Forces. The U.K. Government term is extremely inclusive and so much wider than many comparative definitions as it includes anyone who has performed military service for the length of one day and/or drawn one day’s pay as a service member. Therefore, from an institutional perspective there is no perceived barrier to identifying as a U.K. veteran even for those who were negatively dismissed from service or discharged prior to formal completion of service periods. Yet, our current research reinforces previous findings that non-identification among ex-U.K. service personnel as veterans is widespread for a variety of different reasons. It is clear that the Government’s definition of a veteran is much wider and more inclusive than the perceptions of the ex-service community itself, and this appears to be the case among the wider U.K. public as well, for reasons which are wide ranging and sometimes contradictory. We found that awareness amongst the older veteran community on who is a veteran and how the term is defined is still unclear. Older veterans, that is those who meet the Government’s definition, still regularly report uncertainty on whether or not someone who did compulsory National Service can be classed as a veteran or if it is determined by length of service, and such confusion seems widespread. In addition, the exact nature of the veteran population in Scotland is also far from precise. While other countries have a long history of recording service personnel, both during and beyond service, the U.K. has no such measurable data or established clear support mechanisms for veterans, and this may have been a strong, historically contributing factor. This article therefore seeks to establish the reasons for veteran self-identification, or non-identification, but also the nature of the veteran community in Scotland, and the wider reasons why some former service personnel feel unwilling, or unable, to include themselves within that community.
Highlights
A key issue that has often been absent from previous studies has been a focus on self-identification of ex-military personnel as veterans, many more recent articles have emphasised the need for just such action (Finnigan et al, 2018)
While we focus here on the issue of self-identification, or lack thereof, and respect that our results are not generalisable, our information base remains both robust and valid and the findings illustrate the difficulties of identifying, let alone investigating and supporting the older veteran community within Scotland
It is clear that the definition of a veteran, as stated by Her Majesty’s Government, are both broad and inclusive
Summary
A major focus of such is in the areas of subsequent health and mental wellbeing (e.g., Mark et al, 2020) or life after service (Gordon et al, 2020) Such studies remain important as the impact of military service and subsequent discharge upon individuals has been clearly delineated (Fulton et al, 2019; Williamson, 2019). A lack of self-identification as a veteran may seem less of a problem in the U.K. than in other countries, after all, healthcare remains a universal service, available free at the point of entry to all U.K. citizens This invisibility, whether through inability or unwillingness, does have an impact upon access to a wider range of services, many of which are only suitable or required during the latter stages of life. We conclude by outlining some of the reasons why older veterans in Scotland do not self-identify
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