Merging squadrons

The (very) small staff team on my squadron have had some tough discussions recently… I would be interested to hear about people who have had a similar experience.

The problem, in a nutshell, is a chronic shortage of staff. The squadron has been single-manned four times in the last 6 months. If we knew when it would happen, we would stand the squadron down, but the situations aren’t predictable (demanding jobs and care responsibilities).

The good: We have a training programme that we are proud of, run lots of off-squadron activities, and we think that cadet numbers are healthy (20-25) considering our situation. Our facilities are good and we have recently been successful with a large lottery grant which has funded new projects and lots of IT and AT gear.

The bad: We desperately need new staff and have asked for help from our sector commander, but nothing has materialised. We haven’t been successful with staff recruitment but honestly we haven’t tried much. Putting time and energy into recruitment and subsequent training of new staff is risky, compared with the relative certainty of putting time and effort into running training and organising activities for the cadets. (What happened to the recruitment project at HQAC? We desperately need some guidance, support, best practice, etc. in this area.)

The ugly: We expect to lose our Adj within a year (a change in employment means his journey to/from squadron is now extremely undesirable) and our CWO (to the RAF) within a few months. I can already feel myself burning out and I can’t see how the squadron could remain viable (see below) with only an OC and a Cdt Sgt as the highest NCO.

The context: We operate in a particularly deprived area of a large city with 4-6 squadrons, depending on where you draw the line. None of the squadrons seem to be doing particularly well. Another city in the same region has 2-3 squadrons, all relatively strong compared with our city. The next squadron is only 5-10 minutes down the road, in a more salubrious part of town with better transport connections. We collaborate on many activities but their staff are busy as well, and we operate on different parade nights which don’t fit well into their routines.

My thought: I’ve been in the Corps for 6 years and I know that squadrons go through cycles. I said above that I don’t see how the squadron can remain viable with only 2 staff - but it depends how you define ‘viable’. I know the Corps is very good at keeping squadrons running, even if they are scraping along the bottom. I would hate to see that happen to my unit as we are proud of our training programme - I know we offer a much better cadet experience than some other units who are lucky enough to have far larger staff teams. On the one hand, there’s no benefit to the cadets or the Corps in a squadron that’s running on empty. On the other hand, once a unit is closed or merged, it’s very unlikely to re-open, and the local area will lose a community asset that it desperately needs.

I don’t expect anything to happen in the short term, and we’re not going to rush into anything, but we can’t put ourselves into a worse situation by thinking about and planning for the future. I think a business would call it continuity planning.

I would be very interested to hear about other squadrons that reached a “crisis point” and how (or whether) they were able to deal with it. I hope I’ve not come across as a “when I leave the squadron will fold” type - because I know that’s almost always not true and that the Corps will find a way to continue doing what it does. I’m just struggling to see the benefits to the Corps of two nearby units continuing to struggle along, when I can imagine them thriving “better together”.

I would start by asking the civcom to get involved, either by turning up to help or by actively recruiting.

Then I would speak to every parent and make them aware of how dire the situation is, and that some of them need to step up now rather than later.

Not much, but that’s where I’d start. Or I’d ask the other Sqn directly to borrow staff…

Consider changing your parade nights so that you are the same as your neighbours, makes working together easier.

My squadron has the same issue. I am the only uniformed member of staff and will be transferring wing in the new year.

I have taken our issues to the wing commander and kept pestering them to help. Put a letter out to the parents for help in being a CI, we managed to get a couple volunteer to help out, but it still does no help the issue with uniformed staff.

The more you pester wing the more they will take notice. Don’t leave it as they will think you are coping.

Telling Wing will achieve little in the way of support.

If Wing were a little more visible, ie Wing Staff just pitched up to see how things were going, they would be aware. Too many if not all people who go onto Wing see it as a way of getting away from sqns and give them a chance to catch up on Eastenders, Corrie etc. Would it hurt the area WSO to come down once a week to help out? This would mean they could see the problems first hand and then look at formulating a way forward, taking the pressure off the CO.

After all you would hope they are on Wing as they have better developed management skills and see through the muddied waters

Most squadrons suffer in this way and cobble something together. People’s jobs and lives change and sometimes in ways which affects them and what they do/can do.

Sounds like a normal squadron to me!

My thoughts - cadets are easy to come by.

I’d take the hit now and do as much as you can to recruit staff, even if it affects cadet training in the meantime.

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I have lots of thoughts on this matter… I will try and keep it short!

Firstly, I am an advocate of merging Sqns, especially when there located closely. Would Tesco’s (other supermarkets are available) open a store within the same distance we seem it acceptable open sqns? you have one community and too many units cause supply to out weight demand. This leads to one Sqn always struggling and it will always continue in this cyclical manner until the area they are located grows.

On the staff situation, In my view, Wing Staff should step in and support a unit in this situation. It has been done many times in the wing I work in.

On the staff recruitment, again in my view, easiest way to recruit is through PR. If you increase you media presence in the local community people then see you. Not by asking people to join but by just by telling people what good ‘stuff’ you do. That way you build interest and people come to you out of genuine interest and not being press ganged in to it.

Might want to think of another analogy on that one. In three sq miles near me there’s two mega Tesco and four express.

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I would be doing a staff recruitment drive.
Try speaking to local housing associations/ community councils they may have people willing to get involved or if they have a website or Facebook they may advertise the squadron for you too.

This may sound daft but speak to the wing padre he could perhaps use his contacts and advertise for staff in the local churches

Is that it? I think we’re single manned 4 times a month at the moment!

We lodge an ‘advert’ with a council volunteering coordination group and been to their open days, the response in 4 years NIL. The main reason we get is the process to get involved. Most people accept the DBS as a given and would expect a quick chat, not an application form, several interviews and a probation period.
We’ve approached community forums given the people there will know more local people than we do who may be interested, plus posters in libraries and other free community noticeboards. We’ve had a few come and speak to us and never come back. Again it’s the additional process, which has been described as a job application. One person said it was daft that we have to wait so long for a DBS clearance, which I think many of us see as too long.

You’re an idiot (or maybe those people are).

Yes the DBS check takes too long to come back. The rest of the process is standard best practice for organisations working with vulnerable groups. I guarantee it makes sure that the people that get through the door are the right people. Doesn’t mean a few wrong ones don’t slip through though.

We turn people away at interview filter for good reasons. We turn people away for not getting referees, and we turn people away for having something suspect on their DBS check.

It’s much easier that way round than funding out you need to suspend someone and call the police for a safeguarding issue, trust me.

Every other thing I’ve volunteered for has been a turn up and get involved from day one, even the one I have a DBS for I started before the clearance came through.

People have no qualms about DBS (although our paperchase is so 19th century) as it’s now become a box tick for volunteering with kids and others. It’s the rest of the process.

For years starting as a CI was a quick chat with the CO, get some forms, wait 3 months and away you go, in all of those years we never experienced any of the problems people seem to run, have run into (or think they’ll) run into in more recent times. As I recall all of the issues around media reported safeguarding problems appear in people who have been fully cleared, which raises its own questions. Which is the same for every single case you read. You may catch the odd one or two who are probably caught in the multitude of things that can get you pinged on a DBS, the vast majority of which are not ‘kiddy’ related. One of our PCSOs gave me a poster which is quite frightening in terms of the range of things that you can get refused on.

We all struggle to recruit staff and even get a sniff of interest. I can’t think of anything else to do locally and given the national campaigns have been expensive (for the ATC) failures, that produce few if any people. So something needs to change in how we are perceived and or the actual process involved. I am fully aware of the lack of people who volunteer generally. I have met people who have filled out several sets of forms as they have been “lost”, but have persevered or waited weeks for Wing Staff to do an interview. I met one lady who was on her 5th set of forms as the others had been lost, gone missing etc. Their patience is admirable.

The references for the basic clearance is a nonsense, get a couple of mates who’ve known you for a couple of years to say what good chap/chappess you are, no professionals, employers or similar for other things where you need references.

I don’t understand why people make the process out to be big deal, turn up, have a chat with the OC, take some forms away. Bring them back and have another chat just as a “how are things going”. Send the DBS off and write to the referees, once that’s done come back have an “interview” with the WSO, job done.

It’s hardly a taxing process and I’ve never known it to drive anyone away as most people live in the 21st century and understand that we have to be careful these days.

Could it be the way that it’s presented that causes people to be scared off? Being told what a burden it is and how things used to be easier in the old days wouldn’t exactly inspire me to join an organisation.

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You don’t say years ago you didn’t have to do this, they pick this up from other people.

The situation you describe is without doubt the one that every single sqn finds itself in more often than they would like to admit. Some of the we have lot of staff, brilliant training programme etc on here will read this and immediately identify with it, whether they’d admit it, is another thing.

Running single manned been there and IMO standing down isn’t an option as it would be a sure fire way to signal the end of the sqn. Ask yourself the question, would you take your son or daughter to somewhere to find it’s not open or even if you used social media and they knew, once or twice might be seen as acceptable but as soon as it’s happened more than twice the alarm bells would start ringing.

Does the Corps care, no, not one little bit and it is a problem with wider ‘care’ role they should have. It comes about as Wing Staff get excited about the sqns that tick the do well boxes, while ignoring the ones that don’t, as it will mean they’d have to do something. I found this and led me to take action. I’ve seen sqn cdr changes where sqns have been having a difficult time on the new blood/broom principle and nothing has changed, except a little while later the CO.

Merging sqns, sharing staff or whatever would have to be managed properly (you’d have to do this yourself) to avoid anyone feeling they have lost something. Merging sqns would need a lot of work given the squadron fund situations and equipment holding. If this came to pass would you have just one HQ? Would cadets just move to the ‘new’ sqn? How would that affect cadets travelling? What is transport like? Can cadets walk or cycle it? The notion of “super” squadrons was mooted a few years back and but no factors as mentioned were considered. The thinking was that staff and cadets would just move.

I joined the squadron I did, although there was one about the same distance the other way, because it was easier to walk to and was in the direction my dad drove to work.

The ‘the squadron will fold if I leave’ isn’t a truth, but losing any member of staff is a loss, especially if they have qualifications.

Training programmes aren’t anything to get overly excited about, they are a fluid thing and at best are only a guide and need staff on the parade nights to make them work properly. They look good for visiting officers, who are essentially stupid and don’t see beyond the end of their noses. I see a training programme on the wall as little more than decoration. You can make it as varied, attractive (to anyone looking at it) as you like, but without staff to run things it’s a waste of ink and paper. We’ve got one that is done on a rolling 3 month basis with each month in more detail and annual one which has all the normal things we do. But the monthly ones very rarely go as written and bits roll over as staff don’t attend for any of the reasons we are all subject to.

I wouldn’t lose hope and get down hearted the cyclical nature of squadrons is what happens. The crucial thing is getting people in as staff and as we all know that is never easy and then comes the other side keeping them for more than a couple of years, even harder. HQAC have been extremely, extremely poor at it and wasted money on advertising campaigns, as they have no idea as to who or why people volunteer. One of their campaigns a few years was apparently targeted at ‘professionals’ and emergency services, who are among the most pressured jobs going. Which shows what a bunch of idiots we have at HQAC.

You are right to think through some options but if you presented it to Wing as continuity or contingency planning would not be understood. The one thing that all my years in the Corps has taught me, while at sqns you are constantly told to plan ahead, the organisation above squadrons doesn’t do it very well. Especially contingency or continuity.

I remember the ‘super squadron’ idea and from what the OP describes it seems to fit the idea they seemed to have at the time.

I don’t think that joining squadrons in this way will see them thrive in this or any sort of solution. Those that live further away even if is another 10 minutes down the road, would be likely to become less and less involved. Ask yourself would you as a teenager do it as what is a 10 minute bus ride for instance, can add an hour in walking and waiting to each journey. Fine in the summer, but in the winter not so.

If as suggested it is in a deprived area, couldn’t getting local councillors involved with a press release giving it all the positive for young people and will be lost unless some people get involved to support training, be an idea? If you’ve had some former cadets get something positive from the Corps and get good jobs etc could they not be used to give a local spin.

It might be better to downgrade to DFs which then gives the option of re-forming later as a squadron. This would provide a wider staff base to draw on and takes the pressure off the sqn cdrs. Deciding which sqn leads and which become DFs could be a bit eenie meenie. An issue would be premises as IIRC RFCA don’t fund squadron buildings for DFs.

I’m not sure what would happen in the event of a unit that already has an HQ being downgraded though - is there any precedent that anyone knows of?

I would advertise your vacancies as much as possible . There are a number of places on line and free. I have recently volunteered to become a C.I at my local squadron. I had no idea that they needed staff and if so may have been tempted to step up sooner! Also the recent top age relaxation may provide interested 50 somethings to volunteer, I am one of those!

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