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INDEPENDENT RESEARCH

An extensive four year study (2016-2020) by the University of Northampton into UK Cadet Forces highlights the positive impacts on young peoples’ development, adult volunteers and wider society.

The study found that participation in Army Cadets has significant positive impacts on young people, increasing their performance at school and improving their employment and career prospects. The impact is particularly strong for those cadets that endure economic and other disadvantages.

KEY ATTRIBUTES

The study supported our deeply held belief that participation in the Cadet Forces develops several key attributes in young people, including:

The ability to communicate clearly, to diverse audiences, through formal and informal presentations and in discussions and interviews

The ability to lead a group of people to achieve an objective. This key skill includes the ability to plan and to communicate that plan, as well as being able to control, motivate and drive a team to succeed

The resilience to keep going, even when things go wrong or the situation is challenging

The ability to work as a member of a team, sharing views and helping others, while being able to take instructions and orders from the team leader

The ability to use social skills, including different behaviours, to achieve positive outcomes. The understanding that people are not the same, and the ability to accept diversity and work with the different talents that people have

The confidence to utilise key skills in different situations and with different people.

As a result of developing these attributes, young people and society, experience:

Increased social mobility
Improved educational outcomes (as a direct consequence of improved attendance and behaviour)
Improved mental and physical wellbeing
Enhanced employability
Reduced vulnerability/increased resilience (to bullying and to criminal and extremist organisations)
Inclusive community links across ethnic, religious and socio-economic dimensions