21st October 2025
Sanctuary
Here at Sanctuary, we have a strong commitment to supporting the Armed Forces family.
As a leading national housing provider and an employer of around 14,000 people, we recognise our responsibility to help those who have served.
We do this in a variety of ways – from employing and housing veterans and reservists to working directly with charities, partner organisations and our customers to support their work.
We spoke to our Sanctuary customer Alan Tyla, from West Oxfordshire, to find out more about his work supporting the RAF Cadets.
Although from a civilian background, Alan was a Cadet in his youth and got back involved with the organisation when his son joined at the age of 12.
As a ‘non-uniformed’ civilian instructor with 2120 Witney Squadron, Alan spent six years working with young people and helping them learn essential skills.
“The Cadets can be an important stepping stone towards going further in the military, or to opportunities in the commercial aviation industry,” Alan explained.
“But it’s also a fantastic opportunity to develop life skills and attributes to take out into the professional world. It offers you a chance to do things that most people simply don’t get to do.”
The core values of the Cadets are respect, integrity, service and excellence. For Alan, seeing young people learning and embracing these values was the most rewarding aspect of supporting the Cadets.
“For volunteers, it’s an opportunity to give something back and have an impact on people’s lives,” Alan said.
“For me, it was working with a group of young people and watching them develop over a period of years. To see how they mature and how it benefits their lives.
“The Cadets, like all of the Armed Forces community, are an important part of our society and it’s great to see organisations like Sanctuary showing their support.”
Sanctuary signed the Armed Forces Covenant in 2017 and has been awarded Silver status under the Defence Employers Scheme.
Find out more about our commitment to the Armed Forces Family.
