The charity cooperated fully with the BBC Panorama investigation. We are appalled at what happened and unreservedly apologise for any hurt or anger felt. It is not reflective of our organisation today.

We have instituted wholesale, radical change. We have and continue to put in place substantial measures designed to educate and enforce in order to prevent repetition.

Sea Cadets has a zero-tolerance protocol and a specialist team to enforce our policies and provide support. We insist on compulsory training for volunteers, and DBS checks for all working directly with youngsters, supported by a 24/7 incident reporting line (displayed in all units), promotion of the NSPCC Childline number and a whistle blowing policy. We work closely with safeguarding experts to review and deliver training to support volunteers; we are accredited by the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services; and we report regularly to the Charity Commission.

Our culture encourages our employees, volunteers and cadets to speak up, disclose and confront any issues. We encourage anyone who is a victim to report it to the Police and anyone with any concerns can speak to our supporter care team (020 7654 7010).