Deepcut Army Barracks: Timeline of events

Privates Sean Benton, Cheryl James, Geoff Gray and James Collinson all died of gunshot wounds over a seven year period. Credit: PA

Deepcut Army barracks in Surrey has been at the centre of controversy since the deaths of four young soldiers at the base between 1995 and 2002 amid accusations of bullying and harassment.

A County Durham family whose son was found with fatal gunshot wounds are among those waiting to hear the findings of an inquest.

Here are some of the key events in Deepcut's history:

- April 5 1993 - The Royal Barracks, Deepcut, an Army base since around 1900, becomes the home of the newly-formed Royal Logistic Corps, offering training for young soldiers.

- June 9 1995 - Private Sean Benton, 20, from Hastings, East Sussex, is found dead at the Princess Royal Barracks, Deepcut.

- July 6 1995 - The inquest into Pte Benton's death records a verdict ofsuicide.

- November 27 1995 - 18-year-old Pte Cheryl James, of Llangollen, Clwyd, is found dead at Deepcut.

- December 21 1995 - The inquest into Pte James's death records an openverdict.

- September 17 2001 - Pte Geoff Gray, 17, from Seaham, County Durham, is found dead with two gunshot wounds to his head while on guard duty.

- March 19 2002 - The inquest into Pte Gray's death records an open verdict.

- March 23 2002 - Pte James Collinson, 17, from Perth, is found dead with a single gunshot wound while on guard duty at the barracks.

- April 30 2002 - Surrey Police opens a joint investigation into the deaths ofPte Gray and Pte Collinson. The force later confirms they are also reviewing the deaths of Pte James and Pte Benton.

- June 10 2002 - The families of the four soldiers launch a call for a publicinquiry into their deaths.

- October 3 2002 - The body of James Collinson is exhumed from a grave in Scotland. A forensic pathologist carries out a second post-mortem examination to try to establish how he died.

- September 19 2003 - Surrey Police concludes there are no grounds forprosecutions over the deaths of the four young soldiers at Deepcut.

- May 24 2004 - The Government rejects calls for a public inquiry into thesoldiers' deaths but announces an "independent" inspection regime into armed forces training.

- October 29 2004 - New allegations of gang rape, systematic bullying andsexual harassment at Deepcut are disclosed in a leaked police report - 173separate allegations in total.

- October 30 2004 - The Government announces a new review of allegations of abuse and bullying at Deepcut but stops short of the full public inquiry demanded by families and MPs. Nicholas Blake QC is later chosen to lead the review.

- March 10 2006 - The inquest jury looking into the death of Pte Collinsonreturns an open verdict.

- March 29 2006 - The Blake Review criticises Army training, citing "harassment, discrimination and oppressive behaviour", but concludes that the deaths were probably self-inflicted.

- May 14 2009 - The Government again rejects calls for a public inquiry intowhy the four soldiers died after the publication of Army Board of Inquiryreports into the deaths of Pte Gray and Pte Collinson.

- March 11 2011 - A review by Devon and Cornwall Police found Surrey Police failed to fully investigate a potential suspect known as the "unknown white male" in the death of Pte James.

- March 25 2014 - The Attorney General grants Pte James' family consent to apply to the High Court for a new inquest into her death.

- July 18 2014 - High Court judges order a fresh inquest into the death of Pte James.

- September 10 2015 - A pre-inquest review hears the body of Pte James was exhumed and reburied the previous month and bullet fragments from the body were undergoing further testing.

- December 14 2015 - The MoD fails to submit crucial documents by an agreed deadline. Pte James' father, Des, accuses the MoD of acting in an"extraordinarily arrogant" way.

- January 11 2016 - Alison Foster QC, representing Pte James's family, tells a pre-inquest hearing they have material suggesting the soldier "may have been sexually coerced or raped the night before, or before the time of her death", and a direct allegation Pte James may have been ordered to sleep with a person by someone superior in rank to her.

- February 1 - Coroner Brian Barker QC rules that the inquest will not consider whether Deepcut barracks had a "culture of sexual abuse", saying it was outside hearing's scope to examine whether there was "sexually inappropriate treatment of female recruits within the chain of command".

- February 8 - The inquest hears that new scientific evidence suggests PteJames may not have killed herself. Ms Foster says there is "distinguishedpathological evidence" showing the injury may not have been self-inflicted.

- February 9 - Brigadier John Donnelly, director of personal services for theArmy, apologises to Pte James' family for the situation at Deepcut, which herecognised as having failed new soldiers stationed there.

- March 16 - Former Surrey Police inspector Michael Day apologises to PteJames' family about the limited police investigation into her death.