PTSD Resolution, the charity offering free therapy to veterans, reservists and their families, took on 633 referrals in 2025-26, a rise of 63 per cent on the year before. In the same period it was awarded Veteran Aware accreditation by the Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance (VCHA), an NHS-backed scheme that assesses standards of care for the Armed Forces community.
The charity – founded by retired Colonel Tony Gauvain and therapist Piers Bishop – has been running since 2009. It has now supported close to 5,000 veterans and family members, with treatment delivered free at an average cost of £910 per course. Referrals are accepted from any source, including self-referral, and the charity says it applies no eligibility criteria.
Waiting times have held at an average of 12 days from registration to first session despite the jump in demand. A study by Hall and Greenberg, published in Occupational Medicine (Vol 75, Issue 2, 2025), found 79 per cent of clients showed reliable improvement, 82 per cent completed their full course, and two-thirds of those treated for PTSD specifically made a full clinical recovery. The charity reports that outcomes have held up even as its caseload has shifted toward more complex cases involving multiple sources of trauma across a client’s life. Around 11 per cent of referrals in 2025-26 came via NHS Op Courage and GP services, with the charity picking up the cost of treatment through charitable funding.
CEO Charles Highett put the rise in referrals down to awareness rather than a spike in need: “The growth in referrals to PTSD Resolution does not necessarily indicate greater need, but rather growing awareness of a service that is accessible, trusted and proven to be effective.”
The Veteran Aware accreditation required PTSD Resolution to meet eight national standards on clinical governance, staff training and referral pathways, including routes into and out of Op Courage. It adds to existing recognition from the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Quality Network for Veterans Mental Health Services.
If you need it: PTSD Resolution takes self-referrals directly, no GP or chain of command sign-off required. Details at www.PTSDresolution.org.
