The badge worn by a chaplain in the Air Training Corps signifies an enthusiastic volunteer who spends some of their spare time engaging with and encouraging similarly enthusiastic young people aged between 12 and 17, who have joined this uniformed youth organisation, sponsored by the Royal Air Force. Through local units organised into Wings across the UK under the title RAF Air Cadets, the ATC fosters an interest in air, space and cyber subjects and provides flying and gliding experiences, sports and adventure training.
Each unit of usually between 30 and 50 cadets is established for a chaplain who, typically, is from a local church and offers a minimum of about one evening a month, with opportunities to do more. While a squadron chaplain necessarily has a limited role in the pastoral care of the volunteer staff and cadets, a routine chaplaincy activity is conducting padre’s hour during parade nights, probably every four to six weeks, and preparing cadets for the brief enrolment service. Padre’s hours tend to cover issues of citizenship, mental health, spirituality or morality rather than overtly religious topics.
There are 27 units in the Dorset and Wilts Wing of the Air Training Corps across Wiltshire, Dorset and the Channel Islands. 20 of those units are in the Diocese of Salisbury. Candidates for the chaplaincy in the ATC do not need to be ordained but need to be in good standing with their sending church, that is having a bishop’s licence or commission of some kind (PTO, LLM, LPA or LWL). Up to date information about the ATC can be found at www.raf.mod.uk/aircadets and those interested in exploring the possibilities of this chaplaincy are welcome to contact Dorset and Wilts Wing Chaplain, Reverend Richard Selby-Boothroyd at rsb@priest.com.