The Ulysses Trust, a charity dedicated to offering adventurous training for reservists and cadets, has set out the benefits of its work the past year.
Since 1992, the trust has supported more than 44,000 cadets and reservists on well over 3,000 expeditions. The charity’s most recent “Impact Report”—its 33rd—detailed some of the 105 expeditions it contributed towards, benefiting 2,156 cadets and reservists.
Compared with 2023, last year’s figures showed a 38 per cent increase in cadet activity and an 18 per cent rise in total participant numbers. Just as importantly, the proportion of expedition members from disadvantaged backgrounds also grew, from 35 per cent of participants to 38.3 per cent.
Moreover, every single person who took part in one reported a positive outcome from their adventurous training, 99 per cent of them saying it also improved their mental wellbeing.
And there was a 14 per cent increase in total funding awarded by the trust, due in part to the higher quality of applications it received, meaning far fewer were rejected than in 2023—only nine compared to 31.
These are some of the headline statistics, but you can read the full Ulysses Trust Impact Report Ed. 33 on the charity’s website.
Writing in his report introduction, Ulysses Trust chair Brig Tim Seal TD DL VR—who also chairs the RFCA—said: “The expeditions we’ve supported this year are as diverse as they are inspiring. From sailing adventures to mountaineering and leadership training, each has left a lasting impact on individuals and units alike. Our Impact Measurement results clearly show the transformative effects of these experiences.”
The report includes case studies and personal anecdotes from just a few of the 2,000-plus participants during the year
We might hear from some of our local reservists around East Anglia in next year’s Impact Report, too, as 158 Regiment RLC joined comrades from 2 Battalion REME, as well as members of the Moroccan Armed Forces and Gendarmerie, to explore the formidable Atlas mountains running across the north-western tip of Africa.
If you can’t wait for next year, a summary of 158 Reg RLC’s journey is already available on the Ulysses Trust website.
