Wasn't the whole pause thing caused by the inability to maintain modern glass gliders ? My guess is even the RAF could maintain a simple metal and fabric glider like a 2-33......
Nothing is airworthy without the correct paperwork, so it doesn't matter what the ATC flew, they would still be in the current pickle.
It is first and foremost an organization to empower youth. It inculcates the core values that form the heart of a civilized society; honesty, courage, team work, personal responsibility, respect for others, and a desire to strive to be a better person.
That might be the intent, but reading the air cadet's online forum gives the impression a lot of them are far from empowered, instead they are concerned about who to salute and when, exactly how to wear badges, and power squabbles.
Learning to play an instrument and joining an ensemble can do everything you reckon the ATC (and presumably other similar organisations) aim to achieve, indeed you need more people working together to form a wind band, not just the half dozen or fewer required to run an airfield. However since the ATC stop gliding for most at the equivalent of being able to play a basic scale it would be a grossly dispiriting exercise.