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06
Aug
Harrogate’s army college rocked by new claims of rape and abuse
Four women have told the BBC they were sexually assaulted and harassed at Army Foundation College Harrogate.
The claims, reported today, are the latest allegations of sexual abuse and bullying at the college, which provides basic training for junior soldiers in the British Army.
According to the BBC investigation, which you can read here, one of the women was raped by other junior soldiers.
It also reported that North Yorkshire Police received 16 reports of sexual offences linked to the college in the year to June and 176 complaints of inappropriate sexual behaviour at the college were made between January 2018 and June 2025, according to Ministry of Defence data.
One woman said she “felt like a piece of meat” when she was raped and although she reported the incident to police, no charges were brought partly because of what the Crown Prosecution Service later described as an "entirely inadequate" police investigation.
South Shields Labour MP Emma Lewell, who sits on the Defence Committee, said serious questions needed to be asked about whether the college should continue operating.
Emma Norton, a solicitor at the Centre for Military Justice, which supports former armed forces personnel, told the BBC:
"We are talking about sustained sexual harassment and extremely serious sexual violence - some of which is being perpetrated against children - so the stakes couldn't actually be higher for the army".
Today's (August 6) BBC investigation comes on a day when 900 junior soldiers will graduate at the college, on Penny Pot Lane.
The army told the BBC the college “remains committed to creating a professional, supportive, and safe environment for all recruits”, and "any suggestion otherwise contradicts the values of respect and inclusivity that we stand for".
The Stray Ferret, which has reported on previous claims of abuse at the college, revealed in April the Ministry of Defence has applied to expand the college.
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