More people joined the Regular Armed Forces than left for the fourth consecutive quarter, giving Defence its longest uninterrupted period of recruitment growth over departures since 2021, the Ministry of Defence has said.
Figures published on 3 September show a net gain of 1,460 personnel in the year to 30 June 2026, with Regular strength increasing across all three Services. Royal Navy and Royal Marines strength rose by 440 over the year, the Army by 170 and the Royal Air Force by 840.
The number of full-time military personnel available to support Defence operations also increased by 1,450 compared with 1 July 2025. Fully trained personnel available for operations rose for a third consecutive quarter, including the first increase in Army trade-trained strength since late 2021, alongside further growth in the Royal Navy and RAF.
The MOD said intake has been rising while the number of personnel leaving has continued to fall since late 2023, producing the year-long period in which recruitment has exceeded departures.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said: “There has never been a better or more important time to join our Armed Forces. Under this government, those serving and joining up now can be certain of increased investment in defence and our people. That means better equipment, better housing and better support for them and their families.
“I am determined that serving our nation gives people the skills and opportunities to thrive during their service and beyond, no matter their background.”
The latest figures follow a series of changes to military pay, accommodation and recruitment policy. According to the MOD, Service personnel have received a cumulative 14.1% pay rise since July 2024, while every full-time member of the Armed Forces is now paid at least the National Living Wage, said the Government.
The government also say in their announcement that they are investing more than £7 billion in military housing during the current Parliament. The MOD said recruitment rules have been changed to remove more than 100 policies which had previously prevented some applicants from joining, including restrictions involving hay fever, eczema, acne and fully healed injuries.
New entry routes have also been introduced for specialist roles, including the Cyber Direct Entry Scheme, intended to bring personnel with high-demand technical skills directly into Defence.
The MOD said rebuilding personnel numbers would take time after recruitment and retention targets were missed for 14 consecutive years, but the latest statistics show Regular strength increasing across each Service at the same time as trained strength continues to rise.
The Armed Forces remain a major provider of apprenticeships and vocational training, with military careers covering engineering, healthcare, cyber, digital and other specialist areas. The Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force have also regularly appeared among the leading employers in The Times Apprenticeship Rankings.
Some good news. I’m surprised given their relative sizes that the RAF’s net numbers rose so much more than the Army. But these trends, although positive, do need to accelerate rapidly. It will take a long time to build a decent sized Army at a rate of an extra 170 a year!
An area that Labour do seem to be doing well in compared to the last shambles. I hold my nose saying that, but fair one.
And they won’t have to train that much either ,now the Army has been told.to stop ‘non-essential ‘ training to cut costs so they can spend more time on sports or in the bar- double bubble!! I am somewhat intruiged as to what actually constitutes non-essential training for the forces, however I’m sure Messrs Burham,Healy and Steeting have all that accurately defined and designated. At a time of perhaps the greatest underlying threat to security of the last decade ir so WHAT could possibly go wrong…
The UK Armed Forces needs to grow to number closer to what we had in the 80’s/90’s (including larger reserve forces) and remove the woke weak liberal idea’s currently within. We need the right people who are committed to defending the UK and our way of life. Sad to say but the UK Military are a shadow of what is needed and they need to step up to the mark. UK Spends more than France yet gets a lot less, so much waste throughout the MOD. MOD needs cleaning up and stop wasting money. Fit for WAR? NO
I notice all the military adverts are now showing all white people again. They pushed the ethnic diversity angle for years and got no take up. Theres a war on the way, lets get all the white council estate lads signed up, nothing ever changes.