Away from the Westminster circuit, RFCA for Wales drew a full house of 150 to HMS Cambria in Cardiff Bay for its annual briefing on Thursday 16 October 2025. The update, published by RFCA for Wales on GOV.UK on 23 October, set out where defence reform is heading as the Strategic Defence Review 2025 moves into view, with a keynote from Major General (Retd) Stephen Potter on the MOD’s Defence Reform programme.

Speakers listed by RFCA for Wales included Major General (Retd) Stephen Potter QVRM TD VR; Wing Commander Lee Matthews, Officer Commanding 614 (County of Glamorgan) Squadron RAuxAF; Colonel Melanie Prangnell MBE; Cadet Regimental Sergeant Major Zuzanna Radkowska; Able Seaman Jaroslav Klusevich; and Scott Milne, Vice President and General Manager at General Dynamics Land Systems–UK. Television presenter Sian Lloyd compered.

There was also recognition for the Ulysses Trust’s best university expedition of 2024, after a self‑sustained canoe trip by university reservists from Wales, Birmingham and Bristol to remote Sweden.

RFCA for Wales chairman Brigadier Russ Wardle OBE DL and Chief Executive Colonel Dominic Morgan OBE offered a year‑in‑review, detailing outputs across its pillars of Cadets, Reserves, Estates and Engagement.

For Northern employers with reservists on their books, the takeaways are practical: set clear release policies, plan around training nights and camps, and make sure there’s a decent welcome back after time away. That’s how you keep people serving and teams running without fuss.

Cadets featured strongly in Cardiff, which will resonate with parents and volunteers across our patch. Local units thrive when estates are maintained, minibuses are on the road and teenagers feel they’re learning real skills. None of that requires fanfare; it rewards steady funding and reliable leadership.

The employer voice from General Dynamics Land Systems–UK chimed with what many northern manufacturers and public bodies tell us: reserve service and production schedules can be balanced when firms plan early, speak plainly with staff and treat training as part of workforce development.

These sessions might be held in Wales, but the themes land here too. Defence reform shapes drill nights in Barrow and Barnsley, influences how councils prioritise estate upkeep, and signals whether SMEs feel confident to sign the Armed Forces Covenant and follow through.

The Strategic Defence Review 2025 and the MOD’s Defence Reform programme will run through the year ahead, with annual scrutiny of reserve forces continuing. We’ll track how that translates into training time, kit, and places to meet across the North - and we’ll keep the focus away from London when the story starts elsewhere.