'Being a reservist means you get to see the world'

Laura Holloman admitted to occasional burnout, but said the reserves respect that family comes first

A reservist army regiment in the Midlands is appealing for more people to join.

Troops in the 4 Mercian Regiment, a light infantry company, all have civilian jobs, but train as soldiers on evenings, weekends and for a two-week period each year.

Cpl Jack Harley, an HGV driver from Kidderminster, has served with the regular army in Estonia and Cyprus, and trained Ukrainian troops following the Russian invasion.

He said being a reservist was like "rolling around in the mud, seeing the world, and you get paid for it. What's not to like?"

The regiment has reserve centres in Burton-upon-Trent, Kidderminster, Stoke-on-Trent, Wolverhampton, Worcester, Nottingham and Mansfield, as well as the North West.

More than 100 reservists recently completed a two-week training exercise with the Croatian armed forces.

The aim was designed to build closer ties and improve joint operational capabilities between Nato allies.

Father-of-two Michael Olasifoye said his children loved seeing him in the Army

Reserve army medic Laura Holloman, a postgraduate physiotherapy student living in Worcester, said it was important not to see her role as gender based.

"As long as I can do my job, I'm part of the team and that's all that matters to me."

Trying to juggle civilian and army life could be tiring, she said, but described the exercise in Croatia as a "fantastic opportunity".

"The army reserves have been really good. They respect that your role, your family, your job comes first. You can do as much as you like or as little as you like," she said.

Many 4 Mercian reservists have fought alongside the regular army around the world

Platoon commander Michael Olasifoye, from Nottingham, said joining the reserves had benefited his day job as a software engineer.

"Employers really like this kind of thing, especially the leadership and experience it gives you," he said.

The father-of-two added a myth that reservists "may not take it seriously" was false.

"We are all ready, that's why we're here, we take it very seriously, we could be called at any point to deploy on operations."

Employers are able to access financial assistance for salary and pension costs while reservists are mobilised. Part-time soldiers are also paid for their time and receive pension contributions.