Photo - Armed Forces Memorial at NMA Alrewas Staffs

I have great pleasure in welcoming you to our website: it is dedicated to the memory of all British Army apprentices.

Our object is to establish a perpetual memorial to our boy soldiers at the National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas, Stafforsdshire.

 The Army Apprentice Scheme, which ran up to 2004 trained more than 70,000 soldier tradesmen for the technical corps of the British Army. Boys aged 14 to 17 were recruited to follow recognised apprenticeships at Army Apprentice Schools/Colleges/Establishments before passing out to serve in the Regular Army. Later as soldiers, NCOs and officers, these men formed a nucleus of military and trade skills of their various corps.

Following the Second World War, army apprentice training was mainly centred on schools established at Chepstow, Arborfield, Harrogate and Carlisle. It is the old boy's associations of these four former establishments who have joined together to plan, design and put into effect the memorial project.

The total cost of the memorial will run into tens of thousands of pounds and this money must be raised mainly from donations. Much of this is expected to come from the generous donations of former apprentices themselves or from their families.

If you can, please help us provide a fitting memorial to recognise the debt that the country owes to the army apprentices.

Thank you.