Calls are growing for an independent inquiry into an Army training college for teenagers following allegations of rape and sexual abuse against female recruits.
Four young women told the BBC they were sexually assaulted and harassed while attending the Army Foundation College (AFC) at Harrogate in North Yorkshire.
They described a culture of misogyny and sexual violence at the college, which they all attended when they were 17.
Sarah Atherton, former MP for Wrexham, told the BBC that public confidence in the college could “only be restored through an independent inquiry”.
Emma Lewell MP said: “If this was any other school or residential environment for children, it would have been closed down.”
Atherton, who previously served in the Army’s Intelligence Corps, led a 2021 government review into the experiences of women in the armed forces.
The review, which took evidence from over 4,200 women, reported cases of rape, sexual exploitation of under 18s, and women being drugged before being assaulted.
It concluded that women were being “denied justice” by a “woefully inadequate” military complaints process.
Speaking to the BBC on Thursday, Atherton said: “Concerns at AFC Harrogate were raised years ago, and subsequent data and complaints suggest the problems continued without adequate action”.
An independent inquiry, she said, was “the best way to establish the facts, restore public confidence and ensure the Army can recruit and retain the talented young people it needs”.
“Parents, staff and recruits deserve clear answers, accountability where necessary, and confidence that every possible lesson has been learned,” she added.
The words Army Foundation College are on a brick wall at the entrance to the campus. Large black gates are open with a red and white barrier slightly beyond. The college’s buildings are behind.
Lewell, who sits on the Defence Committee, said: “I think as a matter of urgency there should be an independent inquiry into the college led by someone with significant safeguarding experience, and they need to be able to speak to the children there.
“There’s been an ongoing culture of what there’s been ongoing complaints for a long time now around sexual assault, bullying, sexual abuse, physical abuse so it’s a matter of urgency.”
The Army said “unacceptable and criminal behaviour has absolutely no place in our Armed Forces” as it called for victims and witnesses of criminal behaviour at the college to come forward.
It said several reforms had been introduced to support victims, including the Defence Serious Crime Command providing specialist support through the justice process – outside of the Army chain of command.
AFC is the largest military training establishment for under-19s in the UK and it receives all the Army’s 16-year-old recruits.
North Yorkshire Police told the BBC in a response to a Freedom of Information Act request it had received 16 reports of sexual offences linked to the college in the year to June, including allegations of exposure, voyeurism and sexual assault.
No information was included on whether the reports had led to prosecutions.
A total of 176 complaints of inappropriate sexual behaviour at the college were made between January 2018 and June 2025, according to Ministry of Defence (MoD) data.
Sima Kotecha, who is wearing a necklace and a white shirt, interviews a woman in a room with colourful curtains at the BBC.
“He stood against the door so I couldn’t get out,” Monica tells Sima Kotecha
The women, whose names have been changed to protect their identities, all attended AFC over the last five years.
One woman, Tilly, told the BBC she was 17 when she was raped at AFC by several fellow soldiers who invited her into their room.
“They started taking my clothes off and then this led to them doing stuff I didn’t consent to.
“And then I was raped… by multiple junior soldiers, same age as me. It went on for hours. I felt like a piece of meat.”
Another woman’s story was shared with the BBC by her mother, who said her daughter Amy was sexually assaulted and subjected to almost daily sexual harassment during her training.
Because the lock to Amy’s room was not working, her mother said “she found herself sleeping across the door to stop male soldiers coming in”.
Another woman, who said she was sexually assaulted and harassed at AFC, described how misogynistic attitudes and behaviour of AFC staff rubbed off on some of the male teenagers.
She recalled one of the instructors saying: “It’s all about the pussy and how much of it you can get.”
The Army told the BBC a visit to AFC by the Children’s Commissioner and safeguarding authorities in January 2026 had recognised “the culture of care and the confidence junior soldiers have in raising concerns”.
It added that the college’s “robust discipline system” has been graded “outstanding” by the schools’ inspectorate, Ofsted, which visits the college every three years.
An MoD report last year found that 67% of women in the armed forces had experienced at least one sexualised behaviour in the previous 12 months, compared to 34% of men.
Last year, an ex-army sergeant major was jailed for six months for sexually assaulting a 19-year-old soldier, who later took her own life.
Warrant Officer Michael Webber, 43, pinned down Royal Artillery Gunner Jaysley Beck and tried to kiss her in July 2021. She was found dead five months later in her barracks at Larkhill, Wiltshire.
The inquest into her death ruled the sexual assault and the Army’s failure to take appropriate action “more than minimally” contributed to her taking her life.
Jaysley’s mother, Leighann McCready, told BBC Breakfast Jaysley was 19 when she reported what happened to her chain of command, but she was “disbelieved” and branded “a female trouble maker”.
“This is the problem that soldiers are facing – what they are going to be branded afterwards,” her mother said.
“If a junior solider can follow their policies and procedures then those above should do exactly the same. Had they had done, I believe our daughter would have still been alive”, she added.
AFC remains committed to creating a professional, supportive, and safe environment for all recruits, the Army said.
It added: “Any suggestion otherwise contradicts the values of respect and inclusivity that we stand for.”
