I am looking at producing a ‘glossy’ new recruit joining pack, essentially a brochure (available in print or digital) that gives a new cadet (and their parents/guardians/carers) all of the information they need to make the most out of their initial junior cadet training and overcome some of the FAQs that the Adj and OC receive on a daily basis.
We currently have a multipage Word document but it’s very bland and boring so the intention is to utilise the works graphics team to produce something a bit more exotic.
Before I go about doing so I firstly wanted to check that I’m not re-inventing the wheel and that something of a similar nature does not already exist. If so can you share it?
If not, then I’m also seeking your FAQs so I can ensure the pack covers as many topics as possible (I’m happy to share it once complete).
So far my list is as follows:
Intro
Parade evening details including car parking and any local arrangements
Training and progression
Organisation overview (Sqns, wing and regions)
Costs
External activities
Medical requirements
Discipline
Uniform and Sqn equipment (including ideas or examples of where to purchase shoes and boots)
Sqn staff roles and responsibilities
Civilian committee and welfare funds
Transport (SOVs etc)
Bader (overview)
Cadet Portal
Cadet app (3822 replacement)
Leaving
Key contact details
I welcome any further ideas from everyone here.
Cheers!
What does medical requirements entail?
Something along the lines of…
There are no formal medical requirements for cadet membership, but some activities are of a strenuous nature and a reasonable level of fitness is required for them.
It is of paramount importance that all known medical conditions are declared when joining the Air Cadets and that they are indicated on the Consent to Join form (RAF 3822H). If any conditions materialise after your child has joined, please let us know in writing. These medical conditions should be restated on consent forms for camp/activities. Having a medical condition does not necessarily mean a cadet cannot take part in any given activity but making us aware will mean we can make appropriate risk assessments and take appropriate measures to enable participation.
Additionally for any flying or gliding cadets must complete an aviation medical consent form. Should anything be declared that requires it we will discuss with you arranging for a more in depth medical to be completed by a GP.
Have a look at the junior cadet indication logbook, if you haven’t already.
That covers at least some of the things you’ve mentioned above.
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How does this sit with the modern trend for inclusivity?
Yep. Reasonable adaptions where possible.
I don’t think you know what inclusivity means in that context.
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I think the idea and concept is a good one but my only thought would be to keep it simple. If this is aimed at new recruits waiting to join then you have the danger of information overload.
We run large intakes (up to 30) and have a joining night where a lot of what you have listed is covered by a presentation to new recruit and parents/guardians.
Happy to share that presentation to anyone, just DM me.
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And don’t get your hopes up that this will stop the silly questions from parents and cadets. Most parents will file this document in a “safe place” on day one and never consult it again.
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These really are an excellent idea, especially if prospective cadets get them when they initially enquire about joining. I’ve used one several years ago, we had it done by a proper graphics shop and it had loads of photos and punchy text in it, so I’d say it’s well worth the extra effort (and cost) to produce something professional.
As has been mentioned, don’t overdo the written content, otherwise it might not get read. The idea is a balance; give potential cadets and their parents a brief outline of what we do and what’s expected of them and enhance their interest and expectation.
Is this something that Graphics at Cranwell could do for us? A generic template to which we add local information and they print out?
I have made the slides available to anyone that is interested just DM me for the link. Few points as the slides are tuned to what we do.
We really push cadet independence and the slides reflect this. Essentially all questions go to the recruit flight commander and their cadet helpers. Cadet helpers are those that we think could benefit from low level command experience and are potential JNCO’s. We guide these cadets and give them feedback at the end.
Parents that come to staff asking questions are asked to get their young person to ask their flight NCO. We are of the opinion that recruit training is as much about training the parents as the cadets. Being a large Squadron we have to operate this way. Obviously we filter the question as some are allowed!
Take the numbers of cadets and staff in the UK with a pinch of salt, we have no idea what the official numbers are so guessed :-).
The recruit intake evening is on a non parade night and is in two parts. The first part is for all and then the recruits go off with the SWO to try some drill whilst we talk to parents.
You need to have access to RAFAC systems to download.