What is the social impact resulting from the expenditure on cadets? An Interim report - 2017

The financial value of every aspect of social impact delivered by the four MOD-sponsored Cadet Forces is not possible to quantify exactly (future reports will improve the reporting of financial benefit). However, the evidence gathered for this interim report clearly demonstrates that the value of the social impact that Cadet Forces deliver is vastly greater than the annual cost of the Cadet Forces to the Defence budget. These benefits go across Government departments and are clearly relevant to Defence, Education, Social Services, HMRC and the Cabinet Office. Cadet Forces deliver impact that is directly relevant to the Prime Minister’s vision of a “shared society” and clearly contribute to increasing social mobility and decreasing social disadvantage. Specifically, the research to date has identified that: Cadet Forces are effective at supporting children that receive Free School Meals (FSM) to achieve their potential. The potential saving to the UK that the Cadet Forces make by supporting, encouraging and developing current cadets that are FSM children, is greater than twice the amount which MOD spends annually on cadets. A study carried out in Greater Manchester strongly indicates that children that have been excluded from school and who join cadets are statistically significantly more likely to have improved attendance and behaviour on their return to education. The savings to the education budget of these social impacts are potentially huge. The Cadet Forces have a significant impact on making communities more inclusive. It is clear that cadet detachments enable people to overcome disadvantages in a way that schools do not. For most people, Sea, Army and Air Cadets are the visible face of the Armed Forces in the Community. The activities that cadets and Cadet Force Adult Volunteers (CFAVs) carry out as they deliver military values, results in increased recognition and awareness of our Armed Forces and improved respect for veterans. The formal training provided by all Cadet Forces is highly regarded. There is a very strong belief that CVQO courses have great value for CFAVs. They are deemed particularly useful for those adult volunteers with few or no qualifications. The qualifications and awards that adult volunteers have gained are estimated as providing the current adult volunteers with potential lifetime earnings increase of £15.58 million. Many adult volunteers gain significant personal and social benefits from being involved with cadets. The Sea Cadet Corps, the Combined Cadet Force, the Army Cadet Force; and the Air Training Corps. This is based upon an analysis of 338 CFAVs who gained accredited qualifications of NVQ Level 2 or higher. This does not include the other 186,000 qualifications gained since 1965. See Section 4.4 in the Methodology Paper for more information. Serving soldiers that were cadets have: higher self-efficacy; are four times more likely to be a SNCO or officer than non-cadets; and serve at least six years longer on average than non- cadets. Furthermore, 94% of serving soldiers that were cadets said it had ‘positively’ helped their Army career, and 25% of them stated that being a cadet had been “very useful” to their career. Moreover, serving soldiers that were cadets reported that the main personality traits that had been developed by their experiences in the Army Cadet Force (ACF) or Combined Cadet Force (CCF) were leadership and self-discipline.The development of communication, confidence and leadership skills that all four Cadet Forces deliver, are valued by cadets, parents, educational organisations, and employers. This skills development underpins all of the social impact that the Cadet Forces deliver.