This year’s CCF Field day was busy as ever with trips to the Isle of Wight, East Sussex and Bramshot. Cadets enjoyed a day of team building and leadership exercises, demonstrating great energy, enthusiasm and discipline.
Navy
The Combined Cadet Force Royal Navy Section had a very productive field day. The non-commissioned officers and other Sixth Form and Fifth Form cadets enjoyed a day of powerboating and yachting in the Solent, including a trip to the Isle of Wight and back, under the able leadership of SLt Saul and SLt Smith. Lt Greenbury took the remaining Upper Fourth cadets on a visit to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, which included tours of the Mary Rose, HMS Warrior, and HMS Alliance (the only surviving British submarine from World War II open to the public, which forms the centrepiece of the RN Submarine Museum).
RAF
A total of 48 RAF cadets and accompanying staff enjoyed the field day activities at Arena Pursuits, East Sussex. We were blessed with warm sunshine and our field day activities involved various command tasks, physical challenges and exciting activities including quad biking, assault course, canal and minefield crossing. It was a great day of team-building activities and I am very pleased with the energy, enthusiasm and discipline shown by our cadets. I would also like to thank my colleagues and the external instructors from Arena Pursuits for their invaluable support in making it a memorable day for our cadets.
Army
The Upper Fourth Training Company was involved in a full programme of drill, command tasks and time spent in the confidence course.
The Leadership Cadre
The Leadership Cadre made excellent use of the day across a wide variety of tasks and challenges, ranging from honing their drill skills, to beginning their BTEC journey with an initial CVQO training session, plus a range of command tasks both practical and paper-based, culminating in small-group presentations to the course on how best to solve a tactical dilemma involving a rocket cone. They also listened to a collection of lecturettes from members of the course, and participated in a workshop on Behaviour Management skills. Overall, a very interesting and productive series of activities gave them the chance to gel further as a group and reflect on their own leadership styles and approaches.
Advanced Infantry Overnight Trip
On Tuesday, 33 cadets from the Fifth Form deployed to Bramshot training area to take part in ‘Exercise Green Warrior’. This Exercise allowed cadets to practice the training that they have been conducting over the past two terms. The cadets were given a military scenario prior to deploying and had to tactically deploy into a safe location in order to set up a base for operations and patrols. After setting up this base location cadets then conducted nighttime reconnaissance patrols of enemy locations (two Sixth Form pupils acted as the enemy force). Having found the enemy locations, we then mounted sections attacks the next morning. Cadets demonstrated a good level of leadership and teamwork throughout the exercise.
