The Territorial Army is calling on west Londoners of all backgrounds to join its ranks and experience the rewards of service as a reservist.
On Tuesday the London Scottish Regiment (A Company) will hold the first in a series of open evenings at its Horseferry Road barracks in Victoria.
Soldiers who have recently returned from Afghanistan will give a talk on life in a war zone and field questions from possible new recruits on all aspects of TA life.
Over 120 reservists from the barracks completed a tour of Helmand in December last year, sharing the burden of frontline service with full-time troops.
"The TA is fully integrated into the regular Army and does most of the same things on deployment like patrols. That can be extremely dangerous but the experience brings a lot to people - even if they have no military background before they join," says Company Sergeant Major Alan Nathan.
"It's unbelievable in terms of camaraderie, personal development, the opportunity to travel, get fit, face unique challenges and learn new trades and skills."
Recruits often gain civilian jobs from the skills they pick up in the TA such as HGV licences and there are also annual financial bonuses for signingup, he adds.
New TA members, who are in all but exceptional circumstances are aged 17 to 34, are expected to commit to one night a week to learn skills they will need in the battlefield such as shooting, map reading and first aid. They must also be able to spend one weekend each month on field training across the UK, and two weeks annually for a major training exercise usually abroad.
On joining, recruits will need to have a minimum level of fitness - running 1.5miles in 13 minutes - and be willing to train hard over the year.
And given current British Army activity across the world, they can expect to be asked to deploy to Afghanistan and other hot spots at some point.
"It usually takes between six and eight months before a recruit is trained or 'fit for role' as we call it, but they will not explains the CSM, who has been a TA member since 1989 and is a security consultant in civilian life. Our regiment is required to supply a certain number of men for operation but if it's not the right time for you - because of family, job or personal commitments, that's fine. We'll never, for example, consider university students until they have graduated."
Westminster police will also attend the open evening to promote cadets which give youngsters productive things to do after school and on weekends. The open evening starts at 7pm (Sept 30) at 95 Horseferry Road, SW1 and will last for around two hours.
