The army cadets are a huge organisation, comprised of 47 thousand cadets across 1700 detachments all over the UK.

But why do so many young people join? That's because when it comes to action, adventure and excitement, there's really nothing that beat the Army Cadets.
Cadets take part in a vast range of fun and interesting activities such as mountain biking, rock climbing, abseiling, archery and the most popular activity, shooting. There are also plenty of opportunities to play your favourite sport with lots of other people the same age as you because the Army Cadets holds competitions for both boys and girls at county level, regional level and even at a national level.

When you join as a cadet there will be plenty of opportunities to make new friends and you will get the chance to go on annual camp where you will meet cadets from other detachments in your county. There are also frequent expeditions where you may get the opportunity to go to different parts of the UK or even other countries. Expeditions can range from a trip to the lakes to a hike through the Himalayas.
When you join the army cadets you will be following a syllabus. The aim of this syllabus is to give you a range of new skills and confidence. Each year it gets progressively harder so you will be challenged, gaining stars as you progress, this goes on until you reach four stars or master cadet. There are roughly 15 skills for you to master.

There is also the opportunity to gain a Duke of Edinburgh award. If you haven't heard of this before, it is one of the world's most popular development programmes for young people. The reason this award fits in so well with the army cadets is because while you're working towards your army cadets certificates, you will simultaneously be working towards your DofE award because many of the requirements are the same such as first aid and shooting. This award is well recognised and can be a great thing to add to a university application or a cv.

One of the biggest reasons for young people joining the cadets is usually shooting or handling weapons. Young cadets will get the opportunity to try shooting as long as they can demonstrate an understanding of how to use a rifle and the safety procedures. Shooting is the main activity which separates the ACF from other organisations.