WHAT SEA CADETS DOES

Sea Cadets is a structured youth development charity working with c.14,000 young people and 9,000 volunteers at any one time. Sea Cadets usually meet twice a week for around two to three hours. The charity also offers a range of water and land-based activities and opportunities for young people and volunteers, all underpinned by a nautical ethos and water activities based on the customs and traditions of the Royal Navy.

This includes the opportunity to attend courses, camps, competitions and events, take part in offshore voyages and overseas adventures, chances to work for and gain qualifications and to develop life skills, underpinned by adventure and friendship.

Sea Cadets describes its aims as follows:

‘Through a different kind of adventure, Sea Cadets helps teenagers to develop into resilient, confident young people who can launch well in today’s complex and often overwhelming world. And thrive in it. Whatever they want to do when they leave school.’
 

The experiences the charity offer help young people to become someone who can talk to anyone. Give new things a go, even if it’s a bit scary. Often new ways of thinking and acting come out of the kind of adventures young people have at Sea Cadets, which help equip
them for the world as it is now. Like power-boating, learning how to save a life, sailing a tall-ship, catering for a crew, kayaking and coasteering, even weather forecasting and engineering.

We aim to ensure that as a result of the experiences
they have here, Sea Cadets find it becomes easier to
do better at school, to stand out when it comes to
getting onto a course and finding a job.’
 

In their own words, Sea Cadets aims to:

“Help young people become more confident, setting them up to enjoy life and get through
challenges, feeling confident in new situations, able to ask for help when they need it, and come across well when meeting new people.
 

— To feel more in charge of themselves, feeling clearer about what they want to get from life and being better equipped to make a good impression in interviews.
 

— To, be comfortable speaking to anyone, be a brilliant team player, skilled, someone with
positive habits and thinking.

— To help young people become adaptable, able to listen to instruction and take feedback, and motivated, getting into the habit of working a challenge through and finding the best way”.
 

The charity has over 160 years’ experience of working with young people and acknowledges and sees both the strength and boundaries of what we do – we want young people to have the best of everything before they come to us but we will help them balance, tackle or overcome whatever challenges and troubles they bring with them to Sea Cadets by developing their key skills.