Overview
- Recruitment opens in early 2026 for about 150 paid placements, with ministers expressing an ambition to expand to more than 1,000 participants annually subject to demand.
- Exact salaries have not been announced; some outlets report expectations of pay in line with basic recruit rates of around £26,000.
- Participants will not be deployed on active operations and there is no obligation to remain in service after completing the programme.
- Service designs differ: the Army track includes a 13-week basic training phase within a reported two-year placement, the Royal Navy option is a one-year profession‑agnostic scheme, and the RAF is still scoping its offering.
- The pilot draws on Australia’s long-running ADF gap year model; the government touts skills and civic engagement benefits, while opposition figures argue an initial intake of 150 is too small to affect readiness.