We don't do ourselves any favours as teachers when we start talking about banning the army from visiting schools.

The motion to ban army visits as 'cynical recruitment drives' targetted at poorer kids is ridiculous.

What about the thousands of kids we pack off to work placements every year - grabbing at any firm willing to take them - are they not cynical recruitment drives? Designed to make kids think a life counting paperclips in a call centre or tidying knickers at M&S is theirs if they'll only pass a couple of A-levels and smarten themselves up a bit.

A career in the Forces has a hell of a lot more to offer your average non-academic, working class teen than most of the PR-led dross served up in classroom 'careers guidance' sessions.

— Teacher