Welsh government called to act on school military visits
‘Post-Covid, we should be raising our ambition by offering young people skills to aid Wales’
The Peace Pledge Union (PPU) has joined two other NGOs in urging Welsh politicians to commit to taking action on armed forces’ visits in schools, which they claim are a ‘fig leaf’ for military recruitment. The call follows a new report from the three NGOs which says that their evidence contradicts repeated claims by the forces that they do not recruit in schools.
Launching their report ahead of the Senedd elections on 6 May, researchers from Cymdeithas y Cymod, ForcesWatch and the PPU spent two years finding, collecting and analysing data about military visits to schools in Wales. They found that the armed forces are frequently presented in simplistic and misleading ways and that the poorest young people are the most likely to be targeted.
They also criticised the Welsh government for a lack of action following a 2015 inquiry into military visits to schools by the Petitions Committee of the (then) National Assembly for Wales.
Emma Sangster of ForcesWatch said: ‘The Welsh government were told in 2015 to ensure that a diverse range of employers visit schools to inform pupils about career opportunities. They have ignored that recommendation, and as a result the armed forces have been given carte blanche to continue to carry out recruitment activities in schools, contrary to Wales’ children’s rights agenda.’
Symon Hill of the PPU said: ‘Post-Covid, we should be raising our ambition by offering young people skills to aid Wales’ green recovery, rather than pushing them towards dangerous careers which will damage their mental wellbeing.’
The report also concludes that while a relatively small percentage of young people are recruited into the armed forces, many more are ‘recruited’ to pro-military attitudes, often without hearing alternative voices. Other recommendations include the need for guidance to be issued by the Welsh government to headteachers and careers teachers about armed forces in schools.
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