Welcome to
On behalf of the community that makes up the YCF, I would like to welcome you to our website.
The Youth Cadet Force is a youth based organisation that models itself on the traditional cadet forces across the United Kingdom and follows in the footsteps of the success that has supported young people across many generations. The YCF has opted to become an independent cadet force and not to affiliate with other cadet’s forces whom are governed by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) so we are able to adapt and diverse the training we give to the children and young people who join us. We have children starting with us as young as 8 years of age and to be ‘cadet centred’ means that we can adapt our provision to meet the needs and level of the child and not the child meeting the requirements of the organisation.
The Youth Cadet Force was formed at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and was designed to allow young people the opportunity to train, develop and exercise during the strict conditions of lockdown imposed by the UK government. The YCF has developed since then to provide young people with the learning and strategies of military training, mental and physical resilience and the ability to problem solve and work together in various situations.
The Youth Cadet Force is based in Kent and soon to develop further with various provisions of outreach and support. Further units are part of our expansion programme as well as our teams working with other local groups and schools.
As you will see when navigating through our website, the YCF is a very diverse organisation that is able to offer our members a different understanding and perspective of military life but also with an inclusion of the local communities. The staffing model is a combination of ex-military personnel as well as civilian members that offers the best outcomes for our young people.
Thank you for taking the time to look at our website and should you have any further interest or questions then please fill out our contact us form and we will reach out to you.
The ranks held by all adult instructors within the YCF are for the roles of the organisation. The ranks are not to be misunderstood for regular or reserve soldiers in the British Armed Forces today. These ranks represent the constitution of the Youth Cadet Force and the responsibility of the adult instructor. Some instructors are former serving members and their rank mirrors their service level to offer an authentic experience for all cadets. The cadet ranks are to mirror the proficiency level they are working through within the YCF.
The overall role of the YCF is to provide a military style provision of learning & development to the members which follows the traditional cadet model of the MOD cadet forces. Through a hidden curriculum the cadets are taught key discipline skills that are underpinned within the organisation to support our young people in the following areas:
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