| Unit Name: | Greater Manchester Army Cadet Force |
| Dates: | before November 1974–present |
| Country: |  United Kingdom |
| Branch: | |
| Type: | Registered Volunteer Youth Organisation |
| Role: | To provide pre-training and experience of life in the British Army |
| Size: | County |
| Command Structure: | Headquarters North West |
| Garrison: | Manchester |
| Garrison Label: | County HQ |
| Website: | Greater Manchester ACF |
| Identification Symbol Label: | Headquarters North West Badge |
| Identification Symbol 2 Label: | Army Cadet Force Badge |
The Greater Manchester Army Cadet Force (GMACF) is the county cadet force for Greater Manchester, which forms part of the wider Army Cadet Force, a youth organisation in the United Kingdom that offers learning and experiences around a military training theme. It is home to between 1400-1750 cadets and 200-230 adult volunteers in 45-47 detachments.[1] [2]
In 1863, along with the formation of the Volunteer Force, the first government sanctioned cadet groups were allowed to be formed. These groups would mostly be formed in connection with existing volunteer companies and battalions. Following the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 which organised the former Volunteer Force into a coherent organisation, known as the Territorial Force (TF), the cadets were expanded. Each company consisted of no less than 30 cadets, and four of these companies formed a "Cadet Battalion", the predecessors to the modern "Cadet County".[3]
Unlike their modern successors, the first cadet battalions were administered by their local County Territorial Force Associations, and rarely ever came under an "army command". However, following changes to the organisation of the Cadets, in 1923 all cadet forces were taken under complete control of the County Associations.
The first mention of the modern Greater Manchester Army Cadet Force appears in the 19th November 1974 edition of the London Gazette.
The organisation of the Greater Manchester Army Cadet Force is as follows in 2021:[4]
| Detachment | Location | Area | Postcode | Company | Affiliated Regiment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radcliffe ACF | Knowles Street, | Radcliffe | M26 4DR | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Crumpsall ACF | 2A Middleton Road, | Crumpsall | M8 5DS | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Belle Vue ACF | Belle Vue St | Belle Vue | M12 5PW | RA | ||
| Levenshulme ACF | Osbourne Road | Levenshulme | M19 2DT | 3 Somme | LANCS | |
| Rusholme ACF | Norman Road | Rusholme | M14 5LH | 3 Somme | R SIGNALS | |
| Rochdale ACF | Norman Road | Rochdale | OL11 4HS | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Heywood ACF | Bamford Road, | Heywood | OL10 4TF | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Middleton ACF | Ashton Lane | Wince Brook | M24 1BN | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Bury ACF | Castle Street, | Bury | BL9 0LB | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| GMACF Corps of Drums | Castle Street, | Bury | BL9 0LB | All | All | |
| Ramsbottom ACF | Spenleach Lane | Hawkshaw | BL8 4JJ | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Oldham ACF | Rifle Street | OL1 3DN | 2 Kohima | RTR | ||
| Stalybridge ACF | Off 107 Wakefield Rod | Stalybridge | SK15 1AD | 2 Kohima | MERCIAN | |
| Manchester Academy | Moss Lane East | Manchester | M14 4PX | 1 Minden | AGC (SPS) | |
| Hyde ACF | 29 Commercial Street | Hyde | SK14 2JD | 3 Somme | MERCIAN | |
| Royton ACF | Hillside Avenue | Royton | OL2 6RE | 2 Kohima | REME | |
| Stockport ACF | Greek St | Stockport | SK3 8AB | 3 Somme | MERCIAN | |
| Cheadle Hulme ACF | Oak St | Cheadle Hulme | SK8 5DR | 3 Somme | MERCIAN | |
| Bredbury ACF | Goyt Valley Rd | Bredbury | SK6 2JU | 3 Somme | MERCIAN | |
| Reddish ACF | Reddish Rd | Reddish | SK5 7JG | 3 Somme | MERCIAN | |
| Sale ACF | Walton Rd | Sale | M33 4DR | 4 Korea | MERCIAN | |
| Flixton ACF | Pennybridge Ln | Flixton | M41 5DX | 4 Korea | RLC | |
| Streford ACF | Kings Road (207 Field Hospital) | Stretford | M16 7RS | 4 Korea | FUSILIERS | |
| Salford ACF | Haldane Rd | Salford | M50 2TR | 4 Korea | RLC | |
| Clifton ACF | Manchester Rd | Clifton | M27 6TA | 4 Korea | REME | |
| Collyhurst ACF | Manchester Communication Academy | Harpurhey | M40 8NT | 1 Minden | FUSILIERS | |
| Tyldesley ACF | Factory St | Tyldesley | M29 2GQ | 5 Anzio | KRH | |
| Wigan GREN GDS | Canal Street | Wigan | WN6 7NQ | 5 Anzio | GREN GDS | |
| Wigan QOY | Canal Street | Wigan | WN6 7NQ | 5 Anzio | QOY | |
| Hindley ACF | Lord Street | Hindley | WN2 3EW | 5 Anzio | KRH | |
| Leigh ACF | Leigh Rd | Leigh | WN7 1QY | 5 Anzio | KRH | |
| Failsworth ACF | Oldham Rd | Failsworth | M35 0BH | 2 Kohima | RE | |
| Bolton LANCS | Nelson St | Bolton | BL3 2AH | 5 Anzio | LANCS | |
| Bolton RA | Nelson St | Bolton | BL3 2AH | 5 Anzio | RA | |
| Eccles ACF | Hampden Grove | Patricroft | M30 0QU | 4 Korea | RLC | |
| Chadderton ACF | Newman RC College | Oldham | OL9 9QY | 4 Korea | RAMC | |
| GMACF County HQ | Spenleach Lane | Hawkshaw | BL8 4JJ | All | All | |
| Broughton ACF | Gordon St | Broughton | M7 1RZ | GREN GDS |
The Army Cadet Force is a national, voluntary, uniformed youth organisation. It is sponsored by the British Army but not part of it and neither the cadets nor the adult volunteer leaders are subject to military call-up. They offer a broad range of challenging adventurous and educational activities, some of them on a military theme. Their aim is to inspire young people to achieve success in life and develop in them the qualities of a good citizen.
The ACF can be compared to their counterparts in the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (USA), Hong Kong Adventure Corps, and Canadian Army Cadets, amongst others.