Army cadet chief says kids with ‘integrity and discipline’ boost UK | UK | News

One of Britain’s Army cadet chiefs wants to grow our nation’s youth force to help instill core values ​​such as loyalty, discipline, honesty and moral courage in future generations. Brigadier Gary McDade is helping to expand the current 140,000 Armed Forces cadets with £70m of new funding. June 2025 Strategic Defense Review He suggested that England increase the number of students to 250,000.

Ahead of Armistice Day on Sunday and Tuesday, when thousands of students will parade, he told us how core values ​​are instilled. our students it can help them both in school and in their future careers. There are two types of cadets: the community-based Army Cadet Force (ACF) and the school-based Combined Cadet Force (CCF), which combines Army, Navy, and Air Force cadets.

And speaking to the Express from Headquarters Area Command in Aldershot, Hampshire, Deputy Commanding Cadets said he was inspired by his school’s CCF Troop Commander, Major Wes Thomas, 32 years ago.

Brig McDade, former Chief Instructor at Sandhurst, explained: “I remember when I was a student, my first summer camp in Berlin in 1987.

“As a 14-year-old boy who went behind the Iron Curtain and spent 10 days with the 1st Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment, having this understanding of what life as a soldier could be like and the adventure that came with it was what inspired me to serve.

“I don’t believe Student Power will be inextricably linked to recruitment, but I do think that we will educate and inspire that way with some of the things we do, and potentially some of them may choose to serve.

“But as long as we prepare our students for lifelong success with good values, increased resilience, self-confidence, communication skills and leadership, I am satisfied with whatever path they choose in life.

“A big part of what we do is educate, inspire and instill good values ​​in our students, so this is an incredibly rewarding place to be as I approach the end of my military career.”

The Brigadier told the Express that the “extraordinary human being” Major Thomas at his former school, Whitgift College in Gloucestershire, had inspired him in the same way he hoped his own cadet commanders were now doing.

The father-of-two said: “I didn’t really realize at the time how much he was mentoring me, guiding me, pushing me in the right direction and enabling me to have the right conversations.

“My time with students inspired me and I didn’t go to university, I took a gap year, joined the army at 19 and feel incredibly privileged to have had a real job my whole life.”

Last week we joined young people from across the UK at the annual ‘Army Cadet STEM Camp’ for a week of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths activities in Bovington, Dorset.

Brig McDade added: “I go to a lot of camps and interacting with students really recharges my batteries.

“What do they like to do? Running in the woods, living in a small shelter, cooking rations, stretching and the teamwork that comes with it – and drilling!”

“Those are what make us Army Cadets. But then you layer on other activities like STEM, music, and first aid; these are all skills they can take into their lives wherever they are.”

Explaining the six “core values” he wants to instill in all his young people – ‘courage’, ‘discipline’, ‘respect for others’, ‘integrity’, ‘loyalty’ and ‘selfless commitment’ – he added: “Moral courage to ensure our children do the right thing in a difficult situation.

“Discipline can be as simple as looking smart, but it also relates to making your bed in the morning, helping clear the dinner table, loading the dishwasher, getting to school, getting to school better, and respecting others.

“Also respect for others, honesty, loyalty and selfless commitment. Equipping our young people with these good core values, no matter what path they choose, they can move forward and become successful adults.

“You’ve heard of student expansion, and we’re making sure that we’re responsible enough to ensure that this generation and future young people are moving into adulthood in the next five, 10 years.”

Brig McDade added that although military youth organizations are not a recruiting arm for the Armed Forces, about 25 percent of those who join go on to serve.

Research shows that those who join the cadets before enrolling at King and Country are more likely to serve longer and achieve a higher rank. The UK Armed Forces are currently experiencing a recruitment and retention crisis.

Britain lacks a clear plan to increase the numbers of both cadets and reservists, a recent report by a cross-party group of MPs said.

This follows the launch of a new ’30 by 30′ campaign, which aims to increase student numbers by 30 per cent by 2030.

The Public Accounts Committee warned there was a “shortage of adult volunteers” and chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said the 30 by 30 drive would “stumble” if this was not resolved.

Brig McDade said plans to better target veterans were a “real opportunity” to improve volunteer recruitment.

He emphasized: “It is important that we educate students about those who have gone before us, our ancestors and what it means to ‘Remember’.

“But it is also important that we instill good values, standards and leadership, and the need to do the right thing in a difficult situation. Moral courage.

“By doing what we do, we hope to help the community not only now, but for years to come.”