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Soldiers are trained to endure harsh conditions, a punishing physical schedule, and to stay calm in situations that would cause civilians great stress. So why on leaving the forces do so many end up homeless or in prison, and what help is there for them? Anabel Unity Sale reports.

Serving your country in the armed forces is a tough and dangerous job that most of us would consider daunting. But many people who have served in the armed forces find that life gets even harder on leaving the services.

One in four rough sleepers have an ex-services background, according to the government's rough sleepers unit. Crisis, the single homelessness charity, goes further and estimates that 100,000 former armed forces personnel are living in hostels, on their friends' floors and on the streets. And anecdotal evidence from agencies working with prisoners suggests that a significant percentage of the prison population comes from the services.

For some people leaving the forces, the problems of adjusting to life back on civvy street is the result of the cocooned environment they lived in, and the type of individual attracted to that.

So what sort of support services need to be provided for people leaving the armed forces to smooth their transition into everyday life and keep them off the streets and out of prison?

The answer should hopefully be provided in the action plan being created by the newly formed Veteran's Forum. Its members include the rough sleepers unit, the Ministry of Defence, the army, and various national agencies working with the service communities. The forum has been charged by the government with developing a strategy to makes sure vulnerable people leaving the armed services get the appropriate support required, be it housing, emotional support or social care. The strategy is due to be presented to a "veteran's task force", made up of government ministers, in October 2001.

A spokesman for the rough sleepers unit at the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions, says: "The government is determined to ensure that people leaving the armed service do not end up sleeping rough. We are working with the MoD, the army and the services benevolent sector to ensure that vulnerable people who have served their country are given the right help and support to secure a stable transition into civilian life."

The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association Forces Help (Ssafa Forces Help) is often the first port of call for people from the armed forces, whether they are serving or not, in need of support.

The charity was founded in 1885 by Colonel Sir James Gildea to provide emotional and practical help and support to the serving and ex-serving communities. It helps around 80,000 people a year and says one in four of the UK's population is eligible for its help. Ssafa Forces Help has 7,000 trained volunteers at 99 branches and divisions throughout the UK, with more than 500 volunteers working on forces bases worldwide. It provides welfare services, housing; residential care, specialist family support, and social work services funded by the MoD. It also operates a confidential support line for army personnel.

Cathy Walker, Ssafa Forces Help director of welfare, says: "People join the services for all sorts of reasons and those who join the army often come from dysfunctional families. The army gives them a structure and a routine, sometimes for the first time."

These young adults, she says, are vulnerable and have not yet developed their independent living skills. The short length of the service they sign up for only compounds their vulnerabilities.

"If servicemen are serving for a short period of time like three years, and they don't have any independent living skills, there is a chance they will not learn them," she says. And this lack of ability to do everyday things like enter a tenancy agreement or even manage their budget can push some ex-forces to breaking point. "If people can't cope with paying bills and so on and they freak out when they can't cope, they might end up on the streets or in prison," she explains.

Young recruits coming out of the services are not the only ones facing these problems. Walker says those with long and successful careers are used to being told what to do and can find the transition of having to make decisions for themselves difficult.

But empowering recruits in the decision-making process while still in service will not always help: "People need to be encouraged to make choices but it is difficult to balance the requirements of a lean, mean fighting force with a civilian society that is encouraged to make choices. A battalion in Kosova under attack is not going to be asked if they think they should fight or not."

Walker says the clients Ssafa Forces Help deals with are often those who have slipped through the nets of over-stretched social services departments.

"The key thing we do is extend the hand of friendship because many people we deal with are lonely and the help they get [from social services] is the briefest of help," she says.

Extending this sort of help to serving prisoners with an ex-forces background is something Ssafa Forces Help is keen to do. It is going to explore ways of raising its profile among the prison population in order to reach all its potential clients. "If a prisoner wishes to make contact with us we would be happy to accept that but we do not want the army to tell us who is in prison. People need to be empowered themselves to contact us," she says.

Commodore Toby Elliot, chief executive of the Ex-Services Mental Welfare Society known as Combat Stress, says he would welcome more referrals of ex-forces clients by social services departments.

The charity provides care and support for ex-service personnel with mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder, resulting from traumatic battle and peacekeeping experiences. It has 6,500 men and women on its books, some of whom it has worked with for 60 years, and sees between 500 and 600 new clients every year. Since it was launched in 1919 it has dealt with more than 75,000 veterans.

Combat Stress has three 30-bed treatment centres in Ayrshire, Shropshire and Surrey that take up to 1,500 clients per year. It also has 11 regional welfare officers that visit clients in their own homes to offer support across the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

Elliot is adamant that his organisation's work cannot be done in isolation. "Combat Stress cannot do it all any more than the NHS can or social services can, it is a team effort. We can only become engaged and play a part if there is a referral to us," he says.

This point was hammered home when he spoke to an 82-year-old World War Two veteran who, despite having problems since being medically discharged from the army nearly 60 years ago, had only just approached the charity for help.

Elliot agrees with Walker that these clients can be hard for social services departments to keep an eye on. He says: "People slip through the social services net because a lot of this group are very vulnerable and find it hard to cope with their disorders."

He adds: "People come to our attention who have not been near their GP, the NHS or social services. They are reluctant to go to government bodies that are not linked to the armed forces for help."

The British Legion is perhaps the most well known charity working for service men and women. In 2000 it spent more than £40 million providing welfare services to current and ex-forces personnel. More than £20 million of this was raised through its annual poppy appeal. It has 4,000 branches and clubs and predicts that demand for its support and services will continue to rise for the next 10 to 15 years.

Simon Cracknell, head of the British Legion's resettlement services, is responsible for offering people leaving the forces resettlement support, career advice, and guidance on starting their own small businesses.

The problems for forces personnel often start when they leave because they have been institutionalised. He explains: "They have been there for 20 years and are not experienced in civilian life. They are used to being told where to go and what to do when they get there."

Crisis wants to see more done to help those from the ex-forces who are struggling to cope with civilian life. A Crisis spokesperson says: "We are particularly keen to see a national network of one-stop centres set up to provide whatever help ex-servicemen need, whether it's housing or employment advice, for the rest of their working lives."

She adds that such a network could be set up by the MoD jointly with the Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions.

All agencies involved in assisting this client group will have to wait until the autumn to see what the veteran's forum action plan contains and the government's response to it. As the sector urges, isn't it about time those who served their country get the support services they need?

Further information from: www.ssafa.org.uk www.combatstress.com or www.britishlegion.org.uk