Sexism row over Army advising ‘husband needed’ for base visits

ARMY officials have come under fire for “outdated stereotyping” after telling families they must be accompanied by their husbands when visiting the British Army headquarters.

The website of the British Army Land Forces headquarters in Andover, where more than 2,000 military and civilian personnel are housed, had said families were not allowed into most of its office buildings “unless accompanied by their husbands”.

Soldiers and their families hit out at the “outdated” message. Chris Keen, who is married to a female Army employee, was among people who condemned the wording, tweeting: “It’s a good job we’re not posted to British Army HQ Andover anytime soon! Kelly wouldn’t be able to go to work without me lol.”

A female employee commented: “Oh no! I hadn’t realised I should have taken my (civvy) husband with me last time I went to Army HQ. How silly of me. All these rules and regulations are far too much for my little woman’s brain!”

The website stated: “As a general rule families, unless accompanied by their husbands, are not permitted access to any Army HQ Andover office buildings other than the DIO Ops Housing buildings.”

A ban on women serving in close combat units in the British military was lifted in 2016 and since October 2018 women have been able to apply for all British military roles.

Gavin Williamson, who was defence secretary at the time, said that the announcement meant for the first time that the “Armed Forces will be determined by ability alone and not gender”.

Another person tweeted: “I remember being on tour in Iraq and my wife telling me she had received a newsletter from the welfare department. One of the articles was addressed to ‘All Headless Households’. Sometimes the military can be so backwards thinking.”

An Army spokesman said: “We have been made aware of outdated instructions circulating on social media. This is not the kind of language we support as a diverse and inclusive organisation.

“The hosting website has been taken down and all instances have been removed.”

The row comes after officials were forced to remove “ladies” and “gentlemen” signs from lavatories at the Army headquarters that were meant to be gender neutral.

An MOD spokesman said “As a modern and inclusive employer, we provide a range of facilities for our staff and personnel.”

‘Oh no! I hadn’t realised I should have taken my (civvy) husband with me last time I went to Army HQ’