Ministers have created the first government forum focused on female veterans, unveiled by Minister for Veterans and People Louise Sandher-Jones MP at the Royal Hospital Chelsea on 19 November 2025. The move sits within the Veterans Strategy published on 10 November 2025, with projects backed by up to £350,000.
According to the Ministry of Defence and the Office for Veterans’ Affairs, the forum will act as a direct channel for women veterans to raise issues spanning housing, health and wellbeing, employment and community support. Its purpose is to ensure lived experience informs central government support.
A new service toolkit will be issued to help charities, the NHS and other providers tailor provision for women veterans. Alongside this, the Office for Veterans’ Affairs has funded photography, short films and a theatre production to strengthen public awareness.
Government estimates suggest around 270,000 women in the UK are veterans, and ministers state women now account for roughly 13% of the veteran community. An oral history project will capture experiences before, during and after service to build public recognition.
The announcement does not set out membership, selection or terms of reference for the forum, but confirms it will route lived experience to ministers. The Veterans Strategy introduces refreshed governance including an inter‑ministerial group and dedicated Cabinet time, and places VALOUR HQ within the Office for Veterans’ Affairs in the Ministry of Defence. Policy Wire analysis: together, this gives the forum a pathway to feed evidence into cross‑government delivery and data work.
For service providers, the immediate task is preparation. Organisations can review policies, audit data collection by sex, and plan staff training so they can adopt the toolkit rapidly once released. Policy Wire analysis: VALOUR‑recognised centres and field officers are designed to share data and practice across networks, so aligning local pathways with those channels will help embed women‑specific insight from the forum.
Funding of up to £350,000 covers the forum and associated projects; no breakdown by activity or delivery body is provided, and no timetable is given for the forum’s first meeting or for publication of the toolkit. The Veterans Strategy commits to new data, evaluation and a progress report after five years, signalling that impact measures should follow.
Louise Sandher-Jones, a former Intelligence Corps officer with deployments in the UK, Germany and Afghanistan, said government must ensure women veterans are heard across healthcare, housing and employment. A former Wren welcomed the move as overdue recognition of women’s service.