For most parents, watching a child set off to chase their dreams is a bittersweet moment – a mix of pride and worry.
For Leighann McCready, that moment came when her youngest daughter, Jaysley Beck, announced she wanted to join the Army.
At just 16, fresh from finishing her GCSEs and too young to even drive or vote, she left their Lake District home for the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
Leighann remembers the pride, the fear, and the lump in her throat when Jaysley, small in frame but strong in spirit, set out on that journey.
What she never imagined was that just three years later, her daughter’s military dream would end in tragedy.
A Young Life Cut Short
In December 2021, only days before Christmas, 19-year-old Jaysley was found dead in her barracks at Larkhill garrison in Wiltshire.
A bright, determined gunner in the Royal Artillery, she had shown no signs of mental health struggles.
Yet, behind the uniform and brave face, she had been carrying unbearable burdens.
A coroner later ruled that systemic failures within the Army left her vulnerable and let down.
For her mother, there’s no doubt: “The Army has cost me the loss of my daughter.
Had the proper procedure been followed, my daughter would still be alive today.”
Betrayed by the System
Jaysley’s decline followed two devastating ordeals. First, she was sexually assaulted by a superior, Battery Sergeant Major Michael Webber, who pinned her down, touched her inappropriately, and tried to kiss her at a social event.
Instead of facing serious consequences, Webber received only a handwritten letter of apology – and was later promoted.
Leighann still keeps that letter, which she found in her daughter’s barracks after her death.
It serves as a cruel reminder of how lightly the Army treated her complaint.
When Jaysley later endured relentless harassment from her line manager, Bombardier Ryan Mason, she no longer trusted the system to protect her.
Mason bombarded her with thousands of inappropriate messages in the months leading to her death.
Although she confided in her family, she refused to escalate the issue, saying she didn’t want to be branded a “female troublemaker” or risk worsening his fragile mental health.
The Final Weeks
By late 2021, the pressure became overwhelming.
On one December trip, Jaysley called her mother in tears, begging her to stay on the phone until she felt safe to leave a hotel.
When Leighann urged her to report it, Jaysley’s answer was chilling: “They did nothing, Mum.”
Just a week later, Jaysley was gone. She had been at a Christmas party, laughing and video calling home, before being discovered dead in her room the following morning.
Justice Delayed
It wasn’t until this year – nearly four years later – that Webber finally admitted the sexual assault.
He will be sentenced next month. For Leighann, the admission is hollow. “We knew he was guilty back in 2021 when we lost our daughter.
Jaysley knew he was guilty, yet no action was taken. Instead, she watched him get promoted.”
As for Mason, he faced no punishment and has since left the Army to become a driving instructor.
A Legacy of Strength
Despite her pain, Leighann has become a powerful voice for other women in the military.
Many have shared their own stories of assault and harassment with her, and she’s determined to fight for change.
She and her family are calling for all Army complaints to be handled by independent investigators, rather than swept under the chain of command.
Her daughter’s strength is what keeps her going. Just two nights before her death, Jaysley sat with a fellow soldier who had attempted to take his own life, comforting him through the night.
“That young man is alive today because of her,” says Leighann proudly.
Fighting for Change
Leighann continues to campaign in her daughter’s memory, recently even completing a skydive to raise money for the Centre for Military Justice, the charity that supported them through the ordeal.
“Something needs to change with immediate effect,” she insists. “Not all soldiers have a strong family like Jaysley.
God forbid what this could do to the next family.”
A Call for Support
Jaysley’s story is one of wasted potential, institutional failure, and a mother’s fight for justice.
But it is also a call to action – a demand for change in how the military protects its own.
For anyone struggling, confidential support is available through Samaritans on 116 123 or at samaritans.org