For those advocating that being redundant and then re-employed will be a simple process, just need to go ask the third of the bloke cadets who got scrapped for pretty dodgy reasons (if any). While they weren't on the seniority list, they did have to go through the whole HR gauntlet all over again. Effectively you could be in a similar position they found themselves in years after passing all the hurdles.
If you're a male near the bottom of the list, I'd be cautious of any "offer" like this..