In October 1988 he moved to Abergavenny which he considered his hometown.

From September 1991 to July 1998 he attended Llanellen Primary School Church of Wales,

after primary school he moved onto King Henry VIII Comprehensive School from September 1998 to July 2003.

Richards’s love of the outdoor was evident in his choice of further education going on to do a BTEC in Outdoor pursuits in Usk College from September 2004 to June 2006.
Richard worked at home on the family farm for one year where he then decided to join the Army.

He started his basic training in Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire on 21/10/2007.
After completing his training, Richard was posted to 2 Platoon in A Company, 2 ROYAL WELSH, in April 2008 where he immediately became part of the team. His enthusiasm for soldiering was clear from the outset and he was quickly identified by his platoon staff as a bright, enthusiastic soldier capable of achieving a great deal. After acquitting himself well during a rigorous but rewarding period of public order training with A Company, Richard specialised as a Warrior Armoured Infantry Fighting Vehicle driver, and it was in this role that he exercised extensively in preparation for his challenging deployment on Op HERRICK. Whilst a confident and skilled Warrior driver, Richard was also fast developing into an excellent sniper and he showed clear leadership potential.

On 13th August 2009 Richard was severely injured by an IED on his way to a forward base. He was flown back to Sellyoak Hospital on 14th/15th August 2009, where he died from his injuries at 2.15 pm 15/8/2009.