Cadets: North East Hampshire

Work is currently underway to determine how the Strategic Defence Review recommendation to increase cadet numbers by 30% by 2030 will be delivered. As part of this effort we are undertaking a detailed assessment of the key enablers required to support growth.

A new Cadets Action Plan will be launched during National Cadets Week setting out our long-term vision for cadets. This will include modernising the cadet experience, providing an attractive offer to retain and recruit adult volunteers, and ensuring that our cadets and volunteers have the right resources and support.

This includes the offer we can make to attract and retain adult volunteers, the simplification and improvement of existing policy and systems, how we can work more closely with partners, and suitability and resilience of the existing infrastructure and facilities used by cadet units. The success of cadet expansion is intrinsically linked to the recruitment and retention of adult, and we are assessing how best to attract, support, and retain volunteers, recognising their vital contribution to delivering cadet activity.

We also announced the first ever National Cadets Weeks, to take place in October 2026. This will showcase the MOD Cadet Forces and give thousands of young people the opportunity to discover the benefits of the cadet experience.

In parallel, we are assessing where growth should be most effectively targeted. Evidence shows that the cadet experience delivers particularly strong benefits for young people facing economic or other disadvantage. We will also factor in proximity to existing units, and the capacity of current infrastructure. The Strategic Defence Review recognised that additional support and funding would be required to deliver this level of expansion and final decisions on funding allocations are dependent on the outcome of the Defence Investment Plan. Given these factors, it is currently too early to say where expansion will be targeted and how funding will be allocated.