New figures from the Ministry of Defence show how the cadet forces across the UK faired in 2019/20.
While they do not include regional breakdowns, the RFCA for Yorkshire and The Humber collates its own regional data provided by individual forces in the region. These show that numbers of cadets in local community units grew significantly (seven per cent) in 2019/20 in contrast to a slight dip across the UK as a whole.
Cadet adult volunteers
To help mentor these cadets, numbers of cadet adult volunteers at local units in the region also increased – by ten per cent – in contrast to an increase of two per cent nationally.
When it came to Combined Cadet Force (CCF), the region saw cadet numbers increase 20 per cent and CCF cadet force adult volunteer numbers increased by more than 30 per cent in the same timeframe.
However, the proportion of female cadets in Yorkshire and the Humber appeared to lag slightly behind the national numbers, with 33 per cent of cadets in the region being female compared to 34 per cent nationally.
The data is instructive
Chief Executive of the RFCA Yorkshire and the Humber Jason Wright said:
“The newly released MOD figures provide an essential indication of the health of the cadet movement across the UK and helps us identify how each of the individual forces is fairing at a national level. The data is instructive and helps us benchmark the health of the cadets in Yorkshire with the national overview.”
| UK | Yorks | |
| Numbers of cadets (Community Cadets) | -0.4% | 7% |
| Number of cadets (Combined Cadet Force) | 5.4% | 20% |
| Number of cadet force adult volunteers (Community Cadets) | 2.3% | 9.5% |
| Number of cadet force adult volunteers (Combined Cadet Force) | -0.9% | 32% |
| Proportion of female cadets (Community Cadets) | 34% | 33% |
| Proportion of female cadets (Combined Cadet Force) | 35.5% | – |