UK’s First Memorial Dedicated to Veterans Who Died by Suicide Unveiled at National Memorial Arboretum

Elysium Memorial supported by a £5,000 Veterans’ Foundation grant

Families who have lost loved ones to suicide now have a permanent place to remember them, following the unveiling of the UK’s first memorial solely dedicated to veterans and Armed Forces personnel who have died by suicide at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

The Elysium Memorial was officially dedicated on Sunday 13 September at 11am, creating a permanent place of remembrance and reflection for families, friends and comrades. The project was supported by a £5,000 grant from the Veterans’ Foundation.

Sunday’s unveiling brought together bereaved families, veterans and members of the Armed Forces community in a deeply personal act of remembrance. A motorcycle convoy accompanied the founders to the National Memorial Arboretum, where a piper played the Scottish lament, Flowers of the Forest before the ribbon was cut to formally open the memorial. A trumpeter performed The Funeral, composed by Ennio Morricone, before families and guests laid wreaths and flowers in memory of those who died.

The memorial was founded by British Army veteran Edward Mackenzie following the loss of a close friend. During more than 30 years of military service, Mackenzie had witnessed the devastating impact of suicide within the Armed Forces. But seeing hundreds of mourners at his friend’s funeral became a turning point. He began asking: “Something needs to be done. Is there anything to remember these people?”

That question led to the creation of Elysium in 2021 – a place designed not only to remember those who have died, but to recognise the families, friends and comrades who continue to carry their loss.

Construction began in spring 2026, with the design of the memorial created by Edward Mackenzie, Col Millen OBE (Rt’d) and Calvert’s stonemasons. The memorial is built from Yorkshire Witton Fell stone and bronze, with contributions from carpentry and stonemasonry students at Burton & South Derbyshire College.

Unlike most projects supported by the Veterans’ Foundation, Elysium is a memorial. The Foundation made an exception because its purpose goes beyond remembrance: it is also intended to encourage more open conversations about suicide and mental health, challenge stigma and help people feel able to seek support when they need it.

Edward Mackenzie, Founder of the Elysium Memorial Foundation, said: “Being given £5,000 from the Veterans’ Foundation provided crucial support to turn the vision for Elysium into a reality. I hope this memorial allows us to stop hiding from the word ‘suicide’ and start talking about it more openly. If Elysium can help veterans and the wider Armed Forces community talk about suicide and mental health and seek support, then we will have achieved something really important. Most crucially, this is a place to remember the people we have lost. Their lives mattered, and they should never be forgotten.”

Jane Gurney, Chief Executive of the Veterans’ Foundation, said: “This memorial is a landmark step forward, and we are so proud to support it. The mental health of the armed forces community is a key focus for us, and the Elysium Memorial gives our community a dignified place for people to remember those they have lost, while driving the crucial conversations that break the stigma around mental health and suicide.”

The unveiling comes amid particular concern about suicide among younger veterans. Office for National Statistics figures[i] show that male veterans aged 25 to 34 have a suicide rate more than twice that of men of the same age in the general population. The figure underlines the wider challenge the memorial is seeking to confront which is that ensuring suicide is talked about openly and that people feel able to seek support.

At the dedication ceremony, families, veterans and members of the Armed Forces community were invited to lay wreaths and flowers in memory of those who died.

The Elysium Memorial Foundation supports serving personnel, veterans and their families across the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force. Alongside the physical memorial, the Foundation is developing digital remembrance to preserve the stories of those who served and ensure their lives are not forgotten.

Donations supporting the Foundation’s ongoing work can be made at: https://donate.justgiving.com/charity/elysiummemorialfoundation