I am currently trying to persuade my school to start a RAF CCF at my school but I am not sure how to go about it, I wrote a letter about it for when I had to do suggestions. My school has nothing resembling a school council so I cannot take that route. I’m currently a royal marines cadet and intend to stay as one but I would also like to join a ccf for the flying opportunities as the scc aviation courses are hard to get onto and their are no atc squadrons nearby. How else could I try and persuade my school to found a ccf?
Not sure if the “expansion initiative” would fit your circumstances:
Details & general information here:
Don’t forget that without the required number of staff volunteers, nothing can happen.
Oh, “their are no ATC sqns” - should be “there.” Attention to detail required for all prospective bootnecks! 
[quote=“RMC.108” post=23819]I am currently trying to persuade my school to start a RAF CCF at my school but I am not sure how to go about it, I wrote a letter about it for when I had to do suggestions. My school has nothing resembling a school council so I cannot take that route. I’m currently a royal marines cadet and intend to stay as one but I would also like to join a ccf for the flying opportunities as the scc aviation courses are hard to get onto and their are no atc squadrons nearby. How else could I try and persuade my school to found a ccf?[/quote]To be clear, does your school currently have no CCF at all, or a CCF but no RAF section?
My school has no CCF at all, and getting a RAF section would be best. My school has a around 5-7 former service personnel and empty classrooms that back onto a paved area that is almost identical to a parade square so facilities and space wouldn’t be a problem
It’s a pretty big undertaking to start a CCF unit and (unless I’m mistaken) they would have to start with an Army section and then apply for CCF (RAF) after that.
This is not to say that it can’t happen, but that it’s not going to be something which happens within a couple of months.
To be honest though, my gut feeling is that one student saying “Can we have a CCF?” isn’t likely to convince them to go through the rigours and red tape of starting one. They’ll need to be convinced of a number of genuine benefits to the school to make all the extra work involved worthwhile.
We’ve been notified that a local school, under CEP, is about to set up its first CCF det; a SCC det.
[quote=“MikeJenvey” post=23820]Not sure if the “expansion initiative” would fit your circumstances:
Details & general information here:
Don’t forget that without the required number of staff volunteers, nothing can happen.
Oh, “their are no ATC sqns” - should be “there.” Attention to detail required for all prospective bootnecks! ;-)[/quote]
Muscles
Are
Required,
Intelligence
Not
Essential
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Interesting…
The CEP is still going ahead but rather than fund it through cutting pay for CFAV’s, the funds - as we’ve been told - will come from ‘somewhere else’. Where that ‘somewhere else’ is, one can only guess…
Of course it is still going ahead, it’s a political desire. Just wait a couple of months.
Persuading your school for a ccf section depends on what type of school I at is is it private or state. Currently there is only one state school cadet section in the country (cough cough, May belong to cough ) set up as an experimental test therefore a ccf section in a state school would be a political situation and the school cannot set one up. From what I know it’s been in debate for the past 5 years so it’s probably unlikely you will get it unless our section steps it’s game up and gets bigger sorry… also there has been various news articles about it some of our SNCO’s and officers from the army section recently went to downing street. Apparently the raf cadets couldn’t attend. 
I may have misunderstood, but you seem to have said that yours is the only state school with a CCF. There are actually quite a few state schools with CCFs! if Wikipedia is correct, there are 60. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_Cadet_Force
From your mention of EALT, I am guessing you are in the EAST Test Region, as is my school. There is certainly more than one state school CCF in that region - indeed one of them has been dominant in the regional Air Squadron Trophy competition for many years (although not the last few).
In reply to the original post, the Cadet Expansion Scheme (CES) was for 100 new contingents nation wide. This has now been achieved and the current government departments are not currently funding extra. That said a day is a long time in politics, so it could all change tomorrow. There is a regional CES officer. If the original poster wants to approach a near by school with a CCF, he could do some research as to how to contact the relevant people reference “setup” and then present it to the Board Of Governors / bursar / Head Of Year / Senior Boy/Girl or the like. This would show this individuals commitment and resourcefulness. Hope that helped. :?
I was told it comes out of ‘pupil premium’ which is supposed to be used to fund, as I was told, opportunities for disadvantaged pupils, ie those getting free meals, fostered etc etc. Not quite sure what this says about the sort of kids they expect to join, but I guarantee they’d struggle to hit the target group.
I was told it comes out of ‘pupil premium’ which is supposed to be used to fund, as I was told, opportunities for disadvantaged pupils, ie those getting free meals, fostered etc etc. Not quite sure what this says about the sort of kids they expect to join, but I guarantee they’d struggle to hit the target group.[/quote]
Are you suggesting that children from disadvantaged backgrounds don’t join the cadet forces? As a Squadron with over 50% of my cadets on benefits I would suggest that you are wrong.
I was told it comes out of ‘pupil premium’ which is supposed to be used to fund, as I was told, opportunities for disadvantaged pupils, ie those getting free meals, fostered etc etc. Not quite sure what this says about the sort of kids they expect to join, but I guarantee they’d struggle to hit the target group.[/quote]
Are you suggesting that children from disadvantaged backgrounds don’t join the cadet forces? As a Squadron with over 50% of my cadets on benefits I would suggest that you are wrong.[/quote]
Indeed. My last squadron was in the third most-deprived community in Wales and at any time, at least 75% of my cadets were in receipt of benefits. Hardly any had the same ‘current’ surname as their mother. My current squadron is very rural with a whole different set of issues and a catchment radius of 25 miles, yet still has roughly 1/3rd of cadets in receipt of benefits.
I think that the suggestion was possibly that most CCF cadets aren’t from a family on benefits…
Just to update this (can’t believe I missed it the first time round) with some facts…
- No reason a CCF has to have an Army section first. Several new ones are RAF only.
- I was told that no independent school can have a new CCF, but one has just opened…
- The OP didn’t state so but we appear to be assuming his/hers is a state school.
- Round one of CEP is over; the aspiration to expand to ‘500 units’ is still there. Pre CEP there were approx 250 CCFs, 90 of which were already in state schools. Post CEP this will be approx 350 (of which 190 state). So there is potentially room for 150 more.
- Funding for CEP round two is dependent on the Comprehensive Spending Review and SDSR. In the current climate, I’d be nervous. However I was told by a VSO off the record that they do expect it to go ahead, so the option should be open in a few months.
To the OP:
You need to get the enthusiasm of your school’s headteacher and governors. They need to contact the local Schools Cadet Expansion Officer which is done via your RFCA. If you are (as I guess) an ATC cadet, ask your sqn staff what your RFCA is. (e.g. mine is South East RFCA). Get your head teacher to get in touch with them and ask for the SCEO. Your headteacher needs to ask for a CCF, not you, so get lobbying! Good luck.
Don’t expect a CCF to be exactly like the ATC, though. Different aims, different emphases, less training time…
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I’m not saying that kids where the family rely on benefits wouldn’t join the cadet forces, but state school CCFs would seemingly be a different proposition. When I’ve spoken to friends who work in schools those youngsters in reciept of FSM, have LD and or behavioural problems (all targets for PP money) and so on, are less likely to attend lunchtime school clubs, let alone an after school club, which is what a state school CCF is likely to be, so the money wouldn’t be reaching its target audience. From what they have said after-school clubs seem to be used as a cheap child minding service for teenagers. For me these CCF units could just be a project for a headmaster/mistress or academy CEO looking to make a name for themselves and CV tick and no eye on the longer term.
Like most posters here I have a large proportiion of cadets where the parents rely on some form of benefit, despite the sqn not being in what would typically be regarded as a ‘deprived’ area. Between 2007 and 2011 a number of large local employers went under or cut jobs and many parents have had to take jobs which mean they are now on much reduced actual incomes, regardless of the general economic position. The number of requests for financial assistance rocketed in the period mentioned which put a massive strain on the general sqn finances. I believe some of this money directed to CEP, should be directed to recognised local youth groups as it would help them provide resources and opportunities rather than having to go cap in hand for grants, do fundraising, rely on donations and so on for every last sous. Not to mention the money spent by staff and helpers.
This thread is old but I’ve just seen my old message and it seems also that I also misunderstood what was said to me back then. Yep there is many state school CCF and we certainly are not the first as I misunderstood way back then. Sorry for my youthful ignorance. Blooming CCF cadets hey…