Whilst most of the units of the first three New Armies of Kitchener's Army were being raised by normal (if hugely expanded) army recruitment and induction methods, in many areas local organisations and people took steps to form 'their own' battalions. These were often known as Pals or Chums battalions, simply because this style of recruiting encouraged men to join up with their friends from work, or their local football club, church, etc. The idea was that men would join up together, train together and go to war together. This would be good for morale and team spirit.

Most of the K4 and the Fifth New Army was made up of Pals battalions. Some units of the first three armies had been brought together in a similar fashion. These locally raised units differed in a material respect from the others, in that they were not initially funded, administered or supplied by the War Office. They obtained accommodation, supplies, etc from the body that raised them, often a town council or local committee, backed by much local fundraising. However, by March 1915, most had been adopted by the War Office and had received 'official' army designations. Some examples of these units:

The notion of friends going to war together had many attractions and benefits. It encouraged mass voluntary enlistement and gave men an immediate pride and esprit de corps. It encouraged much local activity in raising funds and providing billets for early training. But it was fatally flawed, for no one appears to have considered the concentrated effect on a town when its Pals unit went into action and suffered heavy casualties. After the losses on the Somme and particularly once the floodgates of recruitment had been opened by the introduction of conscription in early 1916, all notion of keeping pals together was abandoned. While this might have improved efficiency of processing men to becoming soldiers, it made for a loss of local falvour and added to the dehumanising, anonymous effects of large scale mechanical warfare.