Beards

But rejunvenated sectors of industry for beard care and all the other poncy stuff our kids know will be left in the box and become a raffle prize, if they buy it for dad.

It had to happen. :sunglasses:

Even they have guidelines!!

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Don’t worry - I won’t make a habit of it :wink:

In what way?

I think more leniency needs to be given to cadets to permit them a wider range of hair colours and styles. Not “anything goes”, but also not what we have copied verbatim from the RAF’s rules for airmen. We need to accept that they join us for a few hours a week but need to exist within a wider peer group for the rest of the time.

I am happy to accept a more stringent set of grooming standards for CFAVs.

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Fair enough

Seconded - i see the point being made although interested/hesitant on how it could be worded.

“hair should be a natural colour” is fairly well understood.

hair should not be of “wild/elaborate appearance or colour” is subjective…but it has validity given the role they (Cadets) have in the organisation

As far as I am concerned, the hair could be any damned colour or colours they wish so long as it is kept tidy.
Maybe not shaving swastikas into it would be a legitimate restriction.

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I think the hair of all staff and cadets (incl females) should be ‘down to the wood’ :smiling_imp:

The cadets could then dye what’s left of their hair in Flight colours. Blue for A Flt, Red for B Flt and so on. That would do away with this obsession with Flight bands worn on the epaulette…

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I agree with you in principle, however I’ll just give you an example of a cadet at our Sqn.

He wears his hair in a style according to culture (not religion) and it doesn’t cause a problem at Sqn level - in all other respects he is the model cadet, but his appearance at Wing events has raised eyebrows. It’s because of this that I guess one rule fits all is probably better than a subjective decision on a personal level.

I can elaborate on the hairstyle in question if anybody wishes, for clarity/context.

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NO!!! I think we thoroughly kicked the proverbial out of that one!

Back on topic though, we’re in the RAF Air Cadets and play by their rules, we have for the past 77 years so why should it change because of fashion?

Fashion comes and goes but the dress regs remain the dress regs!

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Because the restriction on personal liberties that dress regs represent is becoming less and less attractive to our target demographic?

Personally, I think beards look silly, but I get why people might resent shaving them off for a part time hobby.

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We are doing the fuzzy weirdos a favour, dammit!!!

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“We’ve always done it that way” is about the weakest argument there is.

Is there any way to actually justify having such stringent regulation for our organisation?

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Refer to the first part of my sentence…

Don’t want to follow the rules of the RAF? Join the scouts!

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Well most of us haven’t joined the RAF…
(the recent rebranding exercise is a veneer.)

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That’s not actually a justification though, is it?

Not to mention I can’t see the justification for regular personnel not having beards either.

Indeed, some of us are pointedly less RAF than we were this time last year.

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Have you not always been told that we’re the light blue footprint of the RAF?

Our officers were originally commissioned into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (Training) Branch?

Now we’re the Royal Air Force Air Cadets. Like it or not, that’s the way it is.

Decisions are made far above our pay grade by people who’s job it is, is to make these decisions and see the justification.

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