Hello Alex,

As you may know, you only need parental consent to join until you're 18 years old.

If you can, it's definitely worth getting your parents on-side before you join. It's worth remembering that there are a lot of misconceptions about life in the Army that your parents may have, and there isn't a lot of awareness of the opportunities available, so if you can do the following you may be able to help them see why you want to join:

• Know what the British Army is and what we do: it's not all combat. Take a look at Forces News (Army | Forces News) to get a flavour of what's been going on recently.
• Make sure you know what you're getting to: For example, if you're interested in Infantry, what type of Infantry? What do they do and how do they do it?
• Know why you want to join: make sure it's a good reason, not just that you saw a video of someone shooting a gun and now you want to try it!
• Think about what you want to do afterwards: This may not be something you've thought about yet, but a career in the Army won't last your whole working life. What do you want to do after you leave the Army and how will the role you want to join help that vision? (You'll gain qualifications while you're in the Army that will help you find a job once you leave).
• Research the benefits and opportunities: There are countless perks to being in the Army like travel and adventurous training. You can find out more here: Pay and benefits | Regular Army

I hope that helps. It can be frustrating, but try to remember that parents being concerned comes from a good place!

12 March, 2025 18:31