British Army recruit numbers drop 38% since 2019

New data from the Ministry of Defence confirms that the British Army is still training far fewer recruits than before the pandemic, with completion rates for Phase 2 training remaining well below pre-2020 levels.

The figures, released in response to a written parliamentary question from Will Stone MP and published on 10 November, show that total intake across all training establishments fell from 8,956 recruits in 2019/20 to 5,560 in 2022/23, a drop of roughly 38 percent.

Over the same period, the proportion of recruits who fail to reach Phase 2 has risen from about one in four to nearly one in three (around 31–32 percent).

The Ministry of Defence said the data reflects the status of recruits as of 1 July 2025 and includes those who may still be completing training. However, the two-year window for the 2022/23 cohort suggests most outcomes are now settled. The figures show that the disruption of 2020–21 has given way to a broader structural decline. Army intake remains roughly 40 percent below its 2019–20 peak, and attrition through training has stabilised near 31 percent, compared with around 25 percent before COVID-19.

The data suggests that the service is training fewer recruits and losing a greater share of them before they complete Phase 2. Junior entry routes, such as the Army Foundation College Harrogate, have proved the most resilient, while Infantry entry at Catterick continues to record the lowest completion rates. Overall, the post-pandemic recovery has not restored the training and recruitment pipeline to its previous strength. The figures point to an enduring shortfall in both recruitment and retention within the Regular Army’s training system.

Wider picture

Across the Armed Forces, recruitment pressures have persisted for several years. Parliamentary data published in November 2024 showed that every service fell short of its recruitment targets between 2019 and 2024, with 2023–24 marking the steepest gap. The Royal Navy achieved around 60 percent of its target, the Army about 63 percent, and the RAF roughly 70 percent. Each branch faced distinct challenges: the Navy cited personnel turnover and retention issues, the Army was still restructuring under the Future Soldier plan, and the RAF struggled with economic factors and reduced applicant pools.

In response, ministers pledged a renewed focus on recruitment and readiness, with reforms to streamline entry processes and modernise force structures. The Ministry of Defence has since said these measures will take time to show results, but the figures underline how deeply recruitment challenges have affected the UK’s military strength over the past half decade.

Ongoing developments

These figures reflect outcomes up to 1 July 2025, covering recruits who began training between 2018/19 and 2022/23. Officials may argue that more recent intakes or reforms could improve future results, but the data currently available stops at that point. In July 2025, Defence Minister Lord Coaker told the House of Lords that recruitment reforms had begun to show results, with “inflow up 19 percent and outflow down 7 percent” year on year. He said application numbers were rising across all services following system changes and faster medical checks.

However, ministers have also acknowledged that recruitment and staffing shortages are affecting a significant share of the Army’s programme portfolio. In October 2025, Defence Minister Luke Pollard said these “resource challenges” were impacting parts of the Army’s modernisation effort, as reported in the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority’s 2024–25 Annual Report.

That report pointed to difficulties recruiting personnel with the necessary project management and technical experience, warning that such gaps continue to affect confidence in programme delivery. Recent data also show that for the 12 months to July 2025, the median time between application and entry for Regular recruits was 249 days.

While the Army is smaller than in previous years as part of the Future Soldier restructuring, that context does not fully explain the depth of the recruitment and training shortfall. The reduction in size was planned, but intake and completion rates have fallen faster than the force’s intended drawdown. The data instead points to an underlying challenge in sustaining a consistent flow of trained personnel rather than a simple reflection of a smaller overall Army. While the training data provides a clear view of outcomes to mid-2025, the full impact of ongoing reforms on recruitment and retention will only become apparent in future reporting periods.