Shaping Futures: A Closer Look at Major Money’s Volunteer Journey

Major Money, Cranleigh School CCF’s Contingent Commander has been an integral part of the CCF for over 21 years. A former CCF cadet himself (hailing from King’s School Rochester) Major Money was also a member of 402 (Gravesend) Air Training Corps during the evenings, before joining the Army Cadet Force (ACF).

“I originally joined as an ACF volunteer during the evenings after work. A former teacher of mine had recently become the headmaster at a local school, which had just established a CCF contingent. The teacher contacted me and my CCF started from there! I am now the Director of Outdoor Education and the CCF Contingent Commander at Cranleigh School in Surrey.

The most rewarding part of volunteering within the CCF is seeing the progression within the cadets themselves – they develop confidence as they take on challenges and experiences that the CCF offers. As the cadets continue through the CCF syllabus, their leadership skills improve and not just within their roles in the contingent – this positive progression can be seen across other areas of school life – whether it’s more confidence and taking leadership on the sports field in within their social circles and boarding houses.

The most challenging (but also a very interesting part) of running a contingent is finding new and innovative ways to take cadets out of their comfort zones and into their learning zones. The skills we teach within the CCF are transferrable skills that cadets can apply to all aspects of life, particularly at school and in further careers. For example, on our recent Adventure Training Camp, the cadets were nervous about crawling through a tight space in a cave and jumping from height on zip wires. Despite the nerves and initial worries, they achieved all of this! Remembering how they overcame this challenge can help when feeling anxious about upcoming exams for example. But as cadets overcome these challenges, we need to find new ways to push them – whether it is speaking in an assembly or taking a leading role in a parade.

Memorable Moments

There have been so many highlights over the years but a few always stand out. We once took our contingent on a 10 day self-reliant expedition across the Pyrenees, which was absolutely incredible. And although the lockdown years meant CCF was on hold for a while, once we were back, our first trip out was to go parachuting together! We were also fortunate enough to have our cadets be selected to join a parliamentary debate, which saw cadets visiting the House of Lords to take part. Personally, the pride I feel watching the cadets come together to take part in our annual Remembrance Parade, where they assist veterans in laying wreaths, marching and playing music together is unparallelled.

I’m extremely lucky that the CCF is part of my career and that the school fully understands and supports the CCF and the value it brings to cadets, volunteers and the wider school community.

If I were to give advice to someone looking to volunteer in the CCF then I would say ‘do it’. You get to see a different side to the children in your charge, and they relish the experiences and opportunities that the cadets provide. I would also say to any prospective volunteers what I tell my contingent – you get out of it what you put in and that effort equals outcome.

Outside of the CCF I like to go skydiving, climbing, scuba diving and walking our new puppy with my family.”

Thank you Major Money! If you would like to find out more about shaping the lives of young people and becoming an adult volunteer, then please click here.