Students at an armed forces training academy have been told to use gender-neutral language and drop phrases like chaps, manpower and mankind, it has been reported.

Guidance issued to attendees of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom states phrases like people, folks and friends should be used in order to treat different groups with dignity and respect, according to The Sun.

The two-page guide, which is said to have been pinned up in toilets at the facility in Shrivenham, Oxfordshire, also advises that the phrase unwritten agreement should be used instead of gentleman's agreement and humanity or humankind rather than mankind.

As for the term manpower, the appropriate alternative is human resources, while sportsmanship should be swapped for fairness or good humour, according to the instructions compiled by the academy's Joint Equality, Diversity and Inclusion unit.

Part of the Ministry of Defence, the academy takes students from the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force as well as members of the civil service and government.

An MoD spokesman said it is:

“continuously promoting a modern, inclusive, working environment to ensure individuals are recognised and feel valued".

However, one Army source told the newspaper time would be better spent "on tactics than worrying about the niceties of modern language".

Reports of the guidelines come days after an outcry over reported plans to scrap the Army's "Be the Best" slogan and its historic crest.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williams was forced to intervene and halt the rebranding exercise that was reportedly based on market research that found the slogan was considered "dated, elitist and non-inclusive" by key audiences.

The plans, detailed in an official document leaked to the Mail on Sunday, had been "put on hold", the minister said.