The Process
The RAF Air Cadets is a youth organisation, with members aged between 12 and 20. To join, you must be at least 12 years old and in Year 8 at school.
To register an interest in joining, please complete the RAFAC joining form and one of our staff will get back to you to inform you of when the next open evening is. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
We usually welcome 2-3 intakes of cadets per year, depending on interest. This allows new cadets to have a small group of peers that they join with, which helps cement new friendships and avoids having a 'new kid' being left out. Additionally, the first few weeks contain a lot of important information and the early drill lessons, and having a few groups per year helps keep our workload managable.
The first evening will be an 'open evening', when potential new cadets and their families are able to come to the squadron and find out more about the process, ask questions to staff and existing cadets, and even have a taster session of some of the activities we offer.
After that, cadets will be invited to parade with us. The first few weeks will contain important information about health and safety around squadron, security, and how the squadron and wider organisation operates. However, the lessons will soon become more interesting as the full range of topics and activities become available to them!
There is a small fee of £12 per calendar month, which is payable to the squadron by direct debit, which is waived for the first full month of attendance. This money goes towards insurance, running and upkeep of the squadron premises, and certain administrative costs, as well as towards activities and resources that the squadron uses for training. Many of the activities and events within the RAFAC are free or heavily subsidised, so we feel like this amount is worth it, especially for cadets who make the most of all of the activities the RAFAC has to offer.
Inclusion Policy
The RAFAC is committed to including everyone, regardless of race, religion, or gender identity. We work to ensure that cadets are not treated unfairly, and many of our seemingly rigid regulations, such as uniform regulations, include caveats that cover a wide range of personal and religious requirements.
We can also cater for a wide range of disabilities (physical and otherwise), and make an effort to adjust activities where possible to give everyone an opportunity to join. While to wider organisation has resources available to advise the squadron staff on these matters, experience has shown that the best way forward is to have a conversation with the cadet and/or their parents/guardians to identify any adjustments that can be made. While we will make every attempt to accommodate all cadets in all activities, safety is the primary concern and, where there is no safe way for a cadet to partake in an activity, there may be some activities they are unable to participate in. The squadron building is also not disabled accessible and has no disabled accessible toilet, but both of these issues are being actively investigated and we hope to rectify them in the near future.
"Any direct or indirect discrimination against an existing or potential future member of RAFAC is always unacceptable and may be unlawful. All reports of discrimination will be treated seriously and should it be proven will be treated as a disciplinary matter." - Air Cadet Publication 015 (Inclusion Policy)
