UK Army allows soldiers to grow beards

Soldiers and officers are now allowed to grow beards while serving in the British Army, the BBC reports.

The beards and moustaches must be neat, properly groomed and will be routinely checked, according to the report.

The policy comes into immediate effect as the Army becomes the last of the armed forces to allow its personnel to grow beards, the report states.

The new directive follows years of discussion around the Army’s policy on facial hair, it adds.

The change follows a review into the Army’s policy on the appearance of its personnel which lasted several months, an Army spokesman was cited as telling the BBC.

Army leadership then looked at the findings before deciding to change the policy, according to the report.

“We have listened to our people and acted,” the spokesman was quoted as saying.

There may be specific occasions where the personnel are required to be clean-shaven, the Army was cited as saying, and officers and soldiers will be “directed to shave as and when circumstances dictate”.

It is thought that Army leaders hope the new policy will help attract new recruits, the BBC further reports.

Several foreign armies, such as those of Denmark, Germany, and Belgium, allow troops to grow a beard, the report notes.

Troops of certain faiths, such as Sikhs, Muslims and Rastafarians, were already allowed to grow full beards as long as they did not put their operational effectiveness, health or safety at risk, according to the BBC report.

The BBC, citing a report from the Times, reports that the new policy was announced by Warrant Officer Class 1 Paul Carney, the most senior non-commissioned officer in a four-minute video message to troops.

“Getting to an outcome has taken a bit longer than expected due to the larger number of stakeholders that were involved, including His Majesty the King, our politicians and our allies,” Carney was quoted by The Times, as reported by the BBC.

“CGS [chief of the general staff] has taken account of your views and has decided the appearance policy will change with our officers and soldiers being allowed to grow beards,” he added.

Defence Secretary Grant Shapps was cited as saying in an interview with the newspaper last year that banning beards in the Army was “ridiculous”, and called on the institution to “modernise”.

“How is it we are still struggling with recruitment and then arbitrarily saying you can’t join [if you grow a beard],” he was quoted as saying.

The Royal Air Force has permitted its personnel to sport facial hair since 2019, while the Royal Navy has allowed beards and moustaches for years, according to the BBC report.