Servicewoman funded to pole dance

The MoD offered to pay for a pole dancing training programme

The Ministry of Defence has paid for a former RAF senior aircraftwoman to become a pole dancer.

Stephanie Hulme, 23, was funded to take up the profession after completing five years' service.

Her training was carried out through an RAF resettlement and training programme which reportedly cost over £2,000 over four weekends.

The move has allowed her to pursue a career as a pole dancer at a club in London.

Training bill

Miss Hulme, who spent time as a senior aircraftwoman at RAF Aldergrove near Belfast, filled in an application form towards the end of her service stating that she wished to take up a course in pole dancing.

She told the Mail on Sunday: "I got the idea after a bit of banter with one of my mates and when I decided to leave I started looking into what it involved.

"Then one of my friends said I should ask the MoD to pay for the training.

"I was very surprised when it was approved - I didn't think it would be."

According to the paper, the bill for her training came to £2,100 and it was met under the RAF's resettlement programme.

Under MoD regulations, servicemen and servicewomen are entitled to retraining through a grant programme after they have completed five years' service.

A spokesman added: "The point of making this grant available is to improve their employment opportunities once they complete their service.

"What they choose to do is a matter for them as long as it is legal."

Miss Hulme now pole dances under the professional name Kitty at a club in Mayfair called For Your Eyes Only.