Army: Recruitment
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many under-18-year-old recruits in Army initial training have (a) requested to leave service, (b) been required to observe a cooling-off period, (c) had their discharge delayed beyond 14 days, and (d) been refused discharge, in each year since 2016.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones
The Ministry of Defence holds data on the number of under-18-year-old recruits in Army initial training who have requested to leave service only from Training Year 2023-24 onwards. Data prior to this period is not available.
(a) Number of under-18 recruits who requested to leave service:
Training Year | Discharge Requests Among Under 18s |
2023-24 | 197 |
2024-25 | 298 |
2025-26 | 308 |
2026-27* | 131 |
*Training Year 2026-27 is ongoing; figures are correct as of 15 May 2026.
Data on the number of recruits required to observe a “cooling-off” period is not held, nor do we hold data on the number of under-18 discharges delayed beyond 14 days. Recruits are formally interviewed to confirm their reasons for requesting discharge and may be encouraged to reflect; however, if a recruit elects to proceed with Discharge As of Right (DAOR), their statutory entitlement is enacted without delay.
There are no recorded instances of under-18 recruits being refused discharge within the DAOR window.
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