The government has announced it will invest £70 million into expanding cadet forces, pledging to increase capacity by 30 per cent by 2030 – with a “balance” between school and community-based units created.
The expansion of the cadets, which have 139,000 young members across all forces, was recommended in the government’s defence review, and comes less than a year after the Department for Education cut its contribution to school-based schemes.
Minister for veterans and people Al Carns told Schools Week today the MoD would “thin out” the bureaucracy for adults wanting to train cadets and give them opportunities for qualifications.
He also suggested cadet training could give young people growing up “with perhaps slightly looser boundaries” better discipline and principles in preparation for adult life.
The MoD did not confirm the number of units planned for schools, but suggested these could be in “disadvantaged areas”. It is not known how much of the funding will be earmarked for schools.
‘A balance between the two’
There are currently more than 500 school-based cadet units, known as combined cadet forces, which have around 51,000 pupil members, according to government statistics. There are also more than 88,000 community cadets.
Reaching the government’s 30 per cent expansion target by 2030 would require roughly an additional 15,300 school-based cadets.
Speaking to Schools Week at the National Air and Space Camp, Carns said he wanted to see expansion at both community and school level, as well as establishing new units in “areas that don’t have the same opportunities for the youth today”.
This would mean picking “more disadvantaged areas to give children greater opportunities”, Carns said.
“So it’s a balance between the two – some will be schools, some will be community based cadet forces,” he added.
To support the ’30 by 30’ campaign, the government will create new joint army and air cadet centres along with the five already built and 12 under construction.
It will also “boost STEM skills” by creating new opportunities with technology, including becoming a “drone pilot”.
Forces could help pupils with ‘looser boundaries’
Carns also said the boost in forces could help children growing up “with perhaps slightly looser boundaries”, which he suggested was partially due to social media.
“A fantastic organisation can give you structure, some principles, some boundaries, some discipline to become a successful contributor to society post your education,” he explained, “I think this is one of the methods that we do to speed it up – so I’d turbocharge the whole thing.”
A University of Northampton and MoD study in April found participation in cadets was associated with improved school attendance, behaviour and attainment.
‘Thinning out’ volunteering process
Carns was also keen to “make the system easier” for adults wanting to volunteer in the Cadets, as they were “the individuals that hold this ship together.”
But last year, the Department for Education scrapped £1.1 million in funding it contributed to a programme aimed at expanding cadet forces in schools, citing “difficult choices” about the financial situation the Labour government had inherited.
Carns said the £70 million boost “far and exceed covers that”, admitting the DfE “has their own budgetary issues”.
For volunteers, Carns said “there’s a lot of bureaucracy in the process so it’s about thinning that out, making it easier for them, and also giving them qualifications as they go through, so when they walk out of there they have qualifications and greater opportunities themselves”.
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