To think compulsory national service for young people could be helpful for many?

[Jane379]

The recent thread on benefits generational cycle got me thinking...could compulsory national service period help some young people, including ones like these?

Or would it make things worse?

By the way to those citing that people would claim various conditions to get out of it - well you can enlist with asd and adhd, not a bar to serving your country per se (there are some restrictions) my dd had adhd and is currently serving, many colleagues have asd even if not diagnosed

What would be helpful is more home economic lessons in school mandatory for everyone, basics like cooking, banking running a household, life skills in general as a lot of kids leave school not knowing how this works.

What would be most helpful would be if parents actually did their job and patented. These are not skills for school.

18 years olds absolutely do this, when working for the local councils. Our high school also does a walk each term, that takes hundreds of kids down roads with no pavement. Organisations like scouts and guides do litter picks all the time. The panic you seem to think would happen just …doesn’t.

What do we do if they don't go? Lock them up in prison? That would be more expensive than benefits. Setting up a programme like national service would cost a fortune itself. If this is to target NEETs a good percentage wouldn't go, if they can't/won't do a few hours in college why on earth would they do national service?
I think it's a slippery slope when we enforce people into doing public services. I love the idea of people seeking work doing voluntary work in theory. In practice, I could see it either failing and costing the government a lot of money to manage, or being successful and reducing the number of public sector jobs available, thus shrinking a job market that is already too small.

I don’t think it should be compulsary but defo an option. A lot of teens I know have no direction or support. Both mine would probably thrive

I can see no downside to training disaffected youth to kill foreigners.

I think everyone should be forced to do a national service but it’s working in hospitality for a year so people learn how to act when they’re a customer. Could get behind that, so many insane rude people.

Always interests me when people think so little of the military they think anyone can do it, including the least skilled/educated/motivated, and that the military should be perfectly happy to train someone for two years then see them go just as they were potentially about to become useful.

I'm a bit worried that the internet generation who has access to videos on how to do just about anything can't manage to Google a recipe to be honest.

School isn't a step-by-step how-to guide, and it baffles me how many people think it should be. School gives you the tools to work out how to do life basics yourself. In this day and age, your parents not teaching you really isn't an excuse for the average neurotypical child.

What is worrying is that kids, with far more access to information and how to guides that the pre-internet generations ever had seem to be so lacking in the ability to look it up. Neither school nor parents can teach you everything you need to know, and they never have. I look up stuff all the time.

All they have to be able to do is read. Not even that, now, they could just watch a video. At the touch of a button, they can find financial advice, recipe ideas, washing machine manuals, DIH tips...

Why aren't they using this amazing resource they can all access from the device in their pocket? They haven't even got to go to the library and get a book out, now. I taught myself DIY out of the Reader's Digest book of how to do absolutely everything. A video that I could pause would have been brilliant.

Today's kids have all this information. Really basic guides in easy access formats, from finance to home maintenance, yet still they can't figure it out.

Off you trot to join the reserves then!

You already have that.

Armed forces to launch ‘Gap Year’ scheme for young people to bolster skills and leadership - GOV.UK

And now you'd have all those insane rude people serving your meal at the pub. Brilliant idea.

It’s fine to say you’re happy to do something you’ll never have to though isn’t it?

Which other countries:

Sweden
Norway
Denmark
Finland

All have a better education system and standard of living

I think it’s a good idea but the national service shouldn’t necessarily be military in nature. That should be an option, but there should also be other options, such as care work, (God knows that sector needs the staff and it teaches people alot about life), or environmental projects. Areas where we need workers and where young people can learn something and feel what’s it’s like to give something back.
I totally get people not wanting their plans disrupted etc etc but that’s kind of the point. If everyone is doing it and plans to do it from the get go then hopefully we have generations of kids that know what it is to have to put other people/things before themselves sometimes. Plus it’s potentially a great societal leveller. If everyone is doing it and the opportunities are limited to say three areas of service then you have kids from every socio economic group mixing and doing the same things in a way that we just don’t get anywhere now.
Im as far left as they come but I think this is the best idea the conservatives ever came up with -it just needed expansion on the original idea of sending them all to the army.

They have it in my country (Finland) though its only compulsory for males, women can volunteer (and an increasing number do each year) but I expect it'll change to compulsory for all at some point in the future, already planning on making call up day compulsory to give all young women more information and opportunity to sign up.

Its generally considered a positive thing here and no party would ever consider trying to get rid of it. There's a civilian option for those who don't want to do anything military related. My brother did this (after first trying the military option and realising its not for him) and had a really interesting time working in a research lab so that he stayed longer to carry on his work.

However according to my cousin you can get out of it easily by telling the doctor at the medical that you smoke weed.

Its not just the youth either, people who have done their service are liable to be called up at any time for refresher training. My partner hasn't though so he's looking into voluntarily doing some refresher training. Voluntary training courses are very popular and many are open to those who never did military service too.

And yet many militaries use conscripts so I guess they don't view it so negatively.

Surely the costs and benefits need to be weighed against each other and to understand what these are, more information is needed than ‘national service’. What do people have in mind when they say ‘national service? How much do they think it will cost to run? Who do they think will run it? What evidence is there that the scheme will deliver the intended outcomes?

The country is in a dire economic position and it’s highly unlikely that in the near future we will have all medical provision free at the point of use or universal pension entitlement. All of the political parties are aware that drastic steps like this are needed, but none are willing to be open about it because the electorate don’t want to hear it [caveat - perhaps some of the newer political parties don’t understand this].

Any discussion about national service needs to be considered not only in terms of the evidence base for delivering on intended outcomes but within the wider state on the nation and what needs to be prioritised.

My son has ASD with complex needs and is at university. He struggles with much of life skills and will struggle to work. However the thought of him around the house not achieving feels me with dread. So I have arranged for him with his PA to volunteer at a local attraction. I am also getting a litter pack so he and his PA can do some litter picking at our local park. Sadly he can’t do these activities alone a yet as he has high anxieties going out. He might struggle with the litter picking due to sensitivities/ motor issues. My son spent 1.5 hours last night eagerly learning about his volunteer opportunity and necessary facts. He is so much happier hence achieving and moving forward. I think that volunteering should be hugely encouraged as part of a citizenship type of badge. It so helps low morale, self confidence etc. My son has every reason to skulk at home but this would amplify his needs eg he would get even more anxious/ sensitive. Clearly we have to be cautious as he can’t have adverse events that send him into shut down. But consistent little pushes has to improve things. Also it gives us something to aim for eg maybe one day he might journey to his volunteer job alone as opposed to only being able to travel an exceptionally limited way alone. Everything I do is to try to broaden his limited World and even if he can’t work when he graduates he has to have a ‘job’ that gives him self worth and recognition. I don’t want my son on the rubbish heap of life. It’s heart breaking.

I think it depends on how it is resourced and organised and incentivised. My DC’s state schools are part of a cadet scheme that is voluntary and very popular. Also, D of E is very enjoyable and well organised ( though we have to pay for these).

I think starting a National scheme up from scratch would be difficult and it is hard to see it being successful, though, because of the resource issue.

I hadn’t known about that, it looks excellent

Only if absolutely everyone is doing the exact same thing.

When Sunak floated this idea I knew that his daughters were going to be ending up in a very different place to my daughters. His would be volunteering at The Globe Theatre and mine would be at the charity shop on the high street. One of them would get a great experience that would help them in their future endeavours and the other would not.

I think it might be a useful option for those who haven't got any plans and who drop out of education and training at 16 or 18. That way they will learn stuff, get away from home, become more independent and also, I assume, some of them would find a career. I'd also be supportive of a community-based alternative, where people could clean up parks and public spaces, learn gardening and maintenance skills, repair walls and paths, that kind of thing. Basically prevent young people going straight onto benefits - insist that they do something useful for the country and learn some skills that make them employable.

But I wouldn't be supportive of it being rolled out for everyone. Those who have plans and want to continue their education/training should be allowed to do so.

This. Plus it won't be the children of the well off who do it. Simon is going to Cambridge and Gemma is helping orphans in Africa so they can't possibly do this!
Simon Reeves in Scandinavia shows Finland where NS is compulsory but they are on the Russian border. We can't afford it and it would be a vote loser. But all those who think it's a good idea can do it and so can their children.

David Cameron's national citizens service attempted this

however instead of using oooh I don't know all the existing charities that organise volunteers but giving them proper money so they could do it at scale, he created a whole new organisation staffed by people he knew that cost millions and delivered very little