Graduation parade at Army college overshadowed by serious sexual misconduct allegations
A graduation parade for 700 teenage Army recruits has been overshadowed by serious allegations of sexual misconduct and assault.
The event, known as a passing out parade, marks the moment the recruits are considered fully trained soldiers following months of training at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate.
The BBC has spoken to four women, all of whom previously attended the college as 16 and 17-year-olds, who allege they were victims of sexual assault, including one former recruit who said she was raped by multiple junior soldiers.
In response to the allegations, an Army spokesperson said: "Unacceptable and criminal behaviour has absolutely no place in our Armed Forces."
These latest allegations follow on from previous incidents of serious criminality at the college. In 2023, a member of staff was convicted of raping a colleague and sentenced to seven years in prison. Since 2018, 178 complaints of inappropriate sexual behaviour have been made, 16 of which were submitted in the past year.
Today’s passing out parade, which our reporter attended, took place under the cloud of these new allegations; personnel from the college's leadership team, including commanding officer Lt Col Jules Russell, were unavailable for interviews.
Inspecting officer Major General Owen Bunkle also avoided addressing the claims, or the wider culture of behaviour at the college, in his speech to the recruits.
The Army Foundation College is the British Army's dedicated training establishment for 16- and 17-year-olds who have secured careers in uniform. Recruits spend either six or 12 months at the facility, depending on which roles they will go on to pursue after training.
Female recruits are mixed in with male trainees in dedicated platoons, but do not complete their training in women-only platoons or companies.
Speaking to BFBS Forces News, former soldier Sarah Atherton, who as an MP led an inquiry into the abuse women face in the Army, said these latest allegations were "shocking", but that she was not surprised by them.
"We've got these problems and I hear, probably weekly, of new cases not just in Harrogate but across the military."
Ms Atherton continued: "We identified during my Women in the Armed Forces inquiry back in 2021 problems at Harrogate around harassment, intimidation and sexual misconduct.
"And we concluded then that female junior soldiers were at a far greater risk of sexual assault than their contemporaries, adults in the regular Army."
After today's parade, Junior Soldiers were available for interview but again, were unable to comment on these new allegations.
Junior Soldier Harrison Woods, 17, said that serving at the college was very different from being in school, adding "it's a lot more strict; if you get something wrong, the staff will help you get it right".
Another recruit, Junior Soldier Hayden Marley, 17, said he felt proud to be graduating, but that 11 months at the college felt "like quite a long time".
Former SAS man Phil Campion, who regularly attends the college and is a supporter of the work it does, was happy to comment on the allegations, saying that there will always be people who criticise the Army Foundation College.
"They don't come down here to look at the achievements of the young people; they don't look at the Duke of Edinburgh's awards or the educational things they achieve.
"They don’t look at how well these people actually conduct themselves for a whole year – achieving on behalf of the whole country."
The Army's statement in full said: "Unacceptable and criminal behaviour has absolutely no place in our Armed Forces and these reports are extremely distressing and serious.
"We encourage anyone who has experienced or witnessed unacceptable or criminal behaviour at the Army Foundation College to come forward.
"We know this can be difficult and that's why a number of changes have been made in recent years to support victims, including the right to report crimes directly to civilian emergency services.
"The college welcomes external scrutiny and challenge and in the last year has hosted the safeguarding bodies, Parliamentarians, the Children's Commissioner and the Armed Forces Commissioner, as well as receiving an outstanding report from Ofsted."
:: Additional reporting by Sofie Cacoyannis
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