Just 2.4% of eligible children in Wales had joined youth cadet groups last year, such as Sea Cadets, Army Cadet Force and the Combined Cadet Force, compared to a UK-wide average of 4.2%.
The research is calling on the Welsh government, councils and other funders to invest in cadet forces due to their role in improving young people’s skills and job prospects.
This extra funding is needed to ensure cadet forces can provide a wider range of vocational qualifications as the current offer it too limited.
“Given the significant benefits that are gained by young people with these qualifications, and the position of the Cadet Forces as part of a Welsh learning ecosystem, there is a case for investment,” states the University of Northampton research, which has been commissioned by The Reserve Forces and Cadets Association for Wales.
It is also calling for better promotion of the benefits to adults who become cadet force volunteers. This is needed both to retain existing volunteers and attract new recruits.
There also needs to be stronger links between the role of cadet forces in supporting young people and tackling social mobility within Welsh government policies around education, child poverty, youth employment and young people’s health and wellbeing.
These benefits “should be clearly explained to policymakers, educational leaders and employers”, says the research.
“The more children that are cadets, the more children that will benefit,” it concludes.
Lead report author Professor Simon Denny said young people who are economically disadvantaged who join cadet forces are able to gain an “edge” in terms of their education and employability.
He added that young people who have been in cadet forces for two or more years “have developed attributes and gained skills, experiences and qualifications that give a clear advantage” over their non-cadet peers in applying for further and higher education, and jobs.
One young person interviewed by researchers said their involvement in cadet forces had “shown me that if I put my head down, I can do whatever I want...it’s changed how I see school”.
