Research Community

James Glen is a serving British Army late-entry officer and former Warrant Officer in the Scots Guards, as well as a second-year PhD student at Edinburgh Napier University (ENU). He is pursuing a Business Management doctoral program within ENU’s Military Research, Education & Public Engagement department, focusing on the career transition of British Army Service Leavers from military life to civilian employment. This research aims to challenge the Armed Forces’ narrow emphasis on immediate employment as the only measure of successful reintegration. The argument for defining transition success encompasses the development of sustainable career trajectories aligned with the service leavers’ identities, values, and long-term goals. This opportunity will blend operational experience with scholarly research on military strategy, public engagement, and the impact of political and international decisions on the Armed Forces, allowing James to contribute innovative insights and leadership to both military and academic communities.

Jemma Lakmaker is a PhD student at Manchester Metropolitan University exploring the experiences of ex-servicemen who became deaf in the First World War and how they were treated upon their return to society. Jemma aims to uncover the experiences of deaf ex-servicemen as a group whose voice is missing from the historical narrative. She is interested in the perceptions of deafness and how this continues to impact the deaf community today. Jemma is proficient in British Sign Language. Jemma is also a trustee for a charity working to ensure disabled people and people from disadvantaged backgrounds are given an equal voice in society and a platform on which to be heard.

Jenny is a Serving Officer in the British Army and has been employed as a mental health nurse working in clinical and management roles within the Ministry of Defence, Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMH). She is currently undertaking a Professional Doctorate in Health through the University of Bath exploring adjustment disorder in the military population. In 2024 Jenny joined the Academic Department of Military Mental Health at King's College London as a senior lecturer. Her research interests include military mental health, adjustment disorder, education and training, and female Veterans.

Jess is a PhD student at Swansea University. Her PhD focuses on understanding the lived experience of Service personnel, Veterans, and affected others coping with harm from gambling. The research aims to explore how external factors to the military may be linked to the veteran gambling population, to help identify how individuals may be at risk before they join the military but also during and after their service due to these external factors. More specifically it aims to understand what influence the family has on gambling behaviours. 

John Goulding is a PhD student at Liverpool John Moores University.  His current ongoing work explores the educational experiences of ex-Service personnel with prior justice system involvement. John’s overall research interests include the use of sports to increase educational attainment and achievement, the effect of government policy on social mobility, Veterans’ health and well-being and the causation of Veteran incarceration in the justice system.

Jon Ablett is a PhD student at the University of Bristol investigating the relationship between Veterans and welfare in the UK, specifically as it relates to homelessness welfare provision and services. Jon’s interests lie in housing theory and policy, especially as it relates to homelessness. He has assisted on research involving homeless Veterans with Dr Edward Kirton-Darling and Professor Helen Carr. This included research on local authorities in London and whether they were offering the correct legal information to homeless Veterans on their websites and within their relevant strategies. This also resulted in a conference in London where the results were disseminated among members from local authorities, the Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committee and other interested parties.