More than 13,000 cadets across the East Midlands are developing skills for life through cadet forces.
\n Minister for Veterans and People visits Army Cadets at Beckingham Training Camp and RAF Air Cadets at RAF Waddington.\u00a0
\n Government has committed \u00a370 million to grow the cadet forces by 30% by 2035, with research linking cadet participation to improved wellbeing, educational\u00a0outcomes\u00a0and social mobility.<\/p>\n
Cadet forces across Lincolnshire are helping young people to develop the skills, confidence and ambition they need for the future, as the Minister for Veterans and People, and former Air Cadet Calvin Bailey MBE\u00a0MP,\u00a0visits Beckingham Training Camp and RAF Waddington ahead of the UK\u2019s first National Cadets Week.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Army Cadets and RAF Air Cadets demonstrated\u00a0activities including drone flying, fieldcraft, marksmanship, first aid and immersive technology, with the Minister meeting cadets and volunteers from across the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The government has committed \u00a370 million to support the sustainable growth of the cadet forces, with an ambition to increase cadet numbers by 30% by 2035.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Independent research from the University of Northampton found that cadet participation is linked to improved wellbeing, educational\u00a0outcomes\u00a0and social mobility, generating an estimated \u00a3120 million in wellbeing value each year, with participants showing stronger confidence, resilience,\u00a0employability\u00a0and leadership skills.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At Beckingham, the Minister joined cadets on the\u00a0range, taking part in shooting activities alongside fieldcraft, first aid and navigation exercises. At RAF Waddington, he was taught to fly a drone circuit and took part in an immersive flight simulation, before\u00a0speaking to\u00a0cadets and adult volunteers about their experiences and plans for National Cadets Week.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The visits\u00a0showcased\u00a0the scale of the cadet movement across the East Midlands, where around 13,000 Army Cadets are supported by adult volunteers, including 714 cadets and 167 volunteers in Lincolnshire Army Cadet Force.<\/p>\n
Calvin Bailey MBE MP, Minister for Veterans and People, said:\u00a0<\/p>\n
As a former Air Cadet, I know first-hand the difference cadets can make to a young person\u2019s life. I learnt to fly a plane before I could drive a\u00a0car, and\u00a0gained the skills and confidence that shaped my future.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Today I\u2019ve met cadets across Lincolnshire developing those same qualities: confidence, resilience, leadership and teamwork. These are skills that will stay with them for life, whatever path they choose.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I want more young people from all backgrounds to have access to the same opportunities and experiences that helped me.<\/p>\n
Cadet forces are one of the strongest links between Defence and local communities, helping bring the Armed Forces closer to schools, employers and families across Lincolnshire and the wider East Midlands.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Around 28,000 adult volunteers give their time to support the cadet forces across the UK, which include more than 137,000 young people.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
At a time when tackling youth disengagement\u00a0remains\u00a0a national challenge, cadets are giving young people in Lincolnshire\u00a0the skills, discipline and confidence needed to succeed on whichever path they choose.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Today\u2019s visits build momentum towards the UK\u2019s first ever National Cadets Week, taking place from 5 to 11 October 2026, when communities across the country will be invited to celebrate the contribution of cadets and their volunteers,\u00a0raise awareness of the opportunities the cadets provides, and encourage more young people and adults to get\u00a0involved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 13,000 cadets across the East Midlands are developing skills for life through cadet forces. Minister for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":56438,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[5,6],"class_list":["post-110847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-uk","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@UnitedKingdom\/117157099139586895","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110847"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110847\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}