Why cadets and reserves matter to the UK: reflections on Tunbridge Wells Sea Cadets’ Freedom of the Borough

When a community grants Freedom of the Borough, it’s recognising more than ceremonial drill and smart uniforms. It’s recognising character, service, and civic leadership.

On Sunday 12 October, as Tunbridge Wells Sea Cadets (TS Brilliant) marked their 90th anniversary with a Freedom Parade through Royal Tunbridge Wells joined by around 250 Sea Cadets, Junior Sea Cadets and Royal Marines Cadets. UDSS Director Vice Admiral Duncan Potts CB attended in his parallel role as National President of the Royal Naval Association. It was a proud day for Kent, for the naval family, and for the UK’s cadet and reserve ecosystem.

Cadets: building citizens, not just sailors

Cadet forces are among the UK’s most effective character and skills programmes. Week in, week out, volunteer instructors help young people develop:

• Confidence and leadership under pressure

• STEM and navigation skills, seamanship and first aid

• Teamwork, service and public duty through visible support to civic events

That is why Freedom of the Borough for TS Brilliant matters: it celebrates 90 years of growing capability and character locally. The cadets’ contribution isn’t symbolic; it’s practical community resilience, from remembrance parades to waterside safety and fundraising.

From cadets to reserves: the UK’s talent pipeline

Not every cadet joins the Armed Forces and that’s fine. But many do transition into the Maritime Reserves or the wider Services, carrying with them habits that employers prize: punctuality, responsibility, and the ability to lead small teams in ambiguous situations. For others, cadets become a route to skilled civilian work in engineering, maritime services, logistics, and public safety.

As Vice Admiral (Ret'd) Duncan Potts often underscores, this is the UK’s living pipeline of talent: cadets → adult volunteers → reserves → (for some) regular service—all anchored in community. It’s a quiet success story that deserves the spotlight TS Brilliant received.

A whole-of-society strength

The UK’s defence and security now rely on a whole-of-society approach: regulars, reserves, veterans, cadets, employers, educators and local authorities working in concert. The parade showed that model in action:

• Local government honouring service and civic contribution

• Cadet adult volunteers training and mentoring the next generation

• Veterans and standard bearers sustaining tradition and values

• Families and schools enabling participation and progression

This is how you build readiness, skills and social mobility at the same time.

What employers and sponsors can do next

Events like this are a celebration—but they’re also a call to action. If you’re an employer, education provider or community sponsor, three practical steps make a real difference:

1. Reserve-friendly policies

   Offer paid training days, predictable rostering, and recognition for reserve service. You will gain motivated staff with tested leadership skills.

2. Cadet-aware hiring and mentoring

   Treat cadet awards and qualifications as evidence of capability, and create mentoring links between your teams and local cadet units.

3. Targeted sponsorship

   Help fund equipment, travel and bursaries for cadets who might otherwise miss out, and support instructor training that multiplies impact.

UDSS: connecting intent to impact

UDSS works across government, industry and the third sector to translate goodwill into practical outcomes, from reserve employer frameworks and cadet engagement plans to skills pathways for service leavers and veterans. With leaders like Duncan Potts on our board, we bring operational credibility, policy insight and a network that spans the naval, joint and civilian domains.

If you’d like to partner with a cadet unit, strengthen reserve employment in your organisation, or design skills bridges from cadets to careers, we’d be pleased to help.

Congratulations to TS Brilliant on 90 years of service and on their Freedom of the Borough. To the cadets, volunteers, veterans and civic leaders who made the day: you’re showing exactly how communities, business and the Services build a safer, more resilient United Kingdom together.

For partnership enquiries or to speak with a UDSS adviser, contact: info@universal-defence.com