Women in armed forces report ill-fitting kit and lack of female-specific body armour
A report indicates that women in the UK armed forces continue to experience issues with ill-fitting equipment and a lack of female-specific body armour, despite a previous review aimed at addressing these problems.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
A new report has highlighted that women in the UK armed forces are still being issued with ill-fitting equipment, including body armour that does not account for female anatomy, despite a previous review calling for urgent improvements five years ago.
Veteran Flight Sergeant Stacey Denyer, who served in Iraq, told the BBC that the body armour she wore was too big. She described how getting into a prone position would push her helmet over her eyes because the armour rose up, obscuring her vision while trying to shoot. Former infantry reservist Ryan Brown, who served for seven years until 2024, said even the smallest shirt was like a dress on her and that trousers were a mixed fit because her body is not straight. She noted that a three-tier sizing system works in principle but that the challenge is having the sizes available.
In October, the regulator Ofsted said for the fourth consecutive year it found that female and smaller recruits were being issued with clothing or equipment that does not fit them correctly. It stated that in training and combat situations, such ill-fitting kit poses a very serious risk.
The Ministry of Defence said the female scalable body armour provides a range of sizes, improving fit, comfort and mobility while maintaining consistent ballistic protection standards. It added that new ballistic plates will be delivered in 2028, offering a better fit for all service personnel. However, this new system still will not address a key issue for women: breasts.
A factory in Coventry that makes body armour for British and overseas militaries has developed a new design with curved ballistic plates that allow for breast shape. The firm used data from British service women's body shapes and found that a woman wearing a flat plate is less protected than one wearing a curved plate. The UK Ministry of Defence has purchased 2,000 of these curved plates for women in the Ukrainian armed forces, but they are not yet available for British troops. The MOD said it is developing the next generation of body armour that will enable the procurement of curved plates, with delivery understood to begin in 2029.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | BBC One |
|---|---|
| Broadcasters reported ongoing problems with ill-fitting military kit for women, including Ofsted findings, a new curved ballistic plate design (currently only for Ukraine), and MOD plans for future body armour delivery in 2028-2029. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The channel focused on personal testimonies from female veterans and former servicewomen to illustrate the ongoing problem of ill-fitting kit, while also visiting a factory that has developed a solution for Ukraine that is not yet available to British troops. The tone was investigative and sympathetic to the women's experiences, highlighting the gap between MOD promises and actual delivery.
- “If you were to get down into the prone position and the next thing you know your helmet is getting pushed up over your eyes because your body armour's raising up because it doesn't fit you, it's obscuring your vision while you're trying to shoot.”
- “Women are not small men, they're shaped differently, they need to be in especially protective care that is designed and qualified for them.”
- “Even the smallest of shirts was a dress on me.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.