Severe deficiencies in the accommodation provided to military personnel and their families have been flagged by a new landmark report on Armed Forces Housing.
Chaired by the late Lord Bob Kerslake, former Head of the Civil Service, the Kerslake Commission raised serious concerns over the impact of inadequate housing on military effectiveness and personnel retention.
The report described the current situation as a “tax on the goodwill” of those serving.
Key findings of the report included:
- Service accommodation is plagued by persistent problems – including dampness, mould, gas and electrical faults, and pest infestations – which compromise the health and well-being of service families and severely damage morale, impacting recruitment and retention within the Armed Forces
- The report criticised the Ministry of Defence’s current accommodation investment programme as insufficient, failing to rectify a long-standing legacy of underfunding
- The commission warns that the quality of life offered by current service accommodations may deter skilled personnel from long-term commitments to the Armed Forces
The Kerslake Commission was launched in February 2023 to investigate the condition of accommodation offered to members of the Armed Forces and their families and to make recommendations on how the service could be improved.
It was created in the light of serious concerns expressed over many years by service personnel about some of the provision, and the Ministry of Defence’s own acknowledgement of the difficulties it faces in delivering to the standard expected by all parties.
The report presented evidence that the MOD accommodation has been in effect a “sinking ship” for some time with Parliament warning 10 years ago that continued under-investment would lead to a growing backlog of repairs and higher costs later on.
The commission is now calling for immediate action to improve conditions and ensure that Armed Forces personnel are provided with the standard of living they deserve.
It says an accurate baseline needs to be established to help secure additional funding and provide a clearer idea of precisely what the accommodation investment needs might be long-term.
The complaints system is also in desperate need of reform, with one way forward to include accommodation complaints under the remit of the independent Services Complaints Ombudsman for the Armed Forces and make their recommendations public.
The report said the MOD “will need to win, and keep winning, the case for more long-term investment, and hold the contractors fully to account”.
It also found “there is at last a momentum for change which the MOD must stick with if it is to provide accommodation that its service personnel not only need, but can also be proud of”.
Commissioner and former Head of Joint Forces Command, General Sir Richard Barrons, said: “Decent and affordable accommodation is crucial for the wellbeing of our Armed Forces personnel and is essential for maintaining the operational effectiveness of our national defence.
“Yet for many years the accommodation for many service personnel and their families has been poor and, in many cases, unacceptable.
“Substandard accommodation has effectively become a tax on the goodwill of highly prized people that directly undermines operational effectiveness and retention of our Armed Forces.
“The longstanding neglect of service housing is a disservice to our highly valued service personnel and undermines our military capabilities.”