Stay with the beat ! Log on to : www.drumbeat.org.uk Issue 138 Tidworth, Netheravon & Bulford Community Newsletter November 2008 Drumbeat Drumbeat Drumbeat online : www.drumbeat.org.uk www.drumbeat.org.uk www.drumbeat.org.uk What’s on at a glance... Sun 9 Nov Remembrance Sunday. Service times inside ... Sun 9 Nov 18:00 An evening of music by candlelight incl Fauré’s Requiem, sung by the choirs at Salisbury Cathedral for Remembrance Sunday. Tues 11 Nov 1 & 12 Brigades Services of Remembrance details inside Tues 11 Nov 19:00 - 21:00 Bluez ‘n’ Zuz Youth Disco at Clarendon Junior School. Wed 12 Nov Army Cross-Country Steeplechase Competition. Tedworth Park. Contact Capt MAA Rick Young on 07717 - 424 006. In aid of the Army Benevolent Fund Tues 18 Nov 11:30 “Are we there yet?” Travels with my frontline family. A talk by Rosie Whitehouse in aid of SSAFA Forces Help. Tedworth House. Call 01980 - 672522 (office hours) Wed 19 Nov 10:00 - 13:00 Mothers’ Market in the AWS Community Hall at the TLC. Clothes, Toys, Gifts & Equipment for Babies, Children & their Mums Wed 19 Nov 10:00 - 15:00 Christmas Fair at Figheldean Village Hall. Entry : £2.50 in aid of Cancer Research UK. Wide variety of stalls, light refreshments Wed 3 Dec 15:00 - 17:00 German-style Christmas Market at Zouch Primary School, Tidworth Fri 5 Dec 16:30 - 22:00 ‘Crafty Thinking’ - Local & fair trade craft fair. St Michael’s Church Hall, Tidworth. Refreshments Sat 6 Dec 10:00 - 16:00 Wylye Road Community Centre 1st Tidworth Scouts Christmas Bazaar in aid of Scout funds. Sat 13 Dec 19:30 Christmas Concert from ‘Ensemble Champagne’ at Shipton Bellinger Village Centre. Tickets : £8 from 01980 - 846341 / 843373 or Parkhouse Stores. 17:00 Gates open 18:00 Results of the Poster & Best Guy Competitions 18:30 Bonfire Lit 19:00 Fireworks begin Tickets : £2 on the night only 21:30 Evening finishes Garrison Radio - Refreshments Fairground Rides Limited Car Parking at Carter Bks Garrison Bonfire Night Wednesday 5 November Carter Barracks Bulford Organised by 22 Engineer Regiment Wiltshire Poppy Appeal is launched with the help of 2 nd Royal Tank Regiment Could this be You ? Using a mobile phone while driving a motor vehicle is dangerous and illegal. The Garrison now operates a zero tolerance policy ‘behind the wire’ and anyone, military or civilian, caught using a mobile phone while driving will have their car pass revoked. You have been warned ! Serving those who Serve See inside ...
Transcript
� Stay with the beat ! Log on to : www.drumbeat.org.uk �
Issue 138 Tidworth, Netheravon & Bulford Community Newsletter November 2008
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What’s on at a glance...
� Sun 9 Nov Remembrance Sunday. Service times inside ...
� Sun 9 Nov 18:00An evening of music by candlelightincl Fauré’s Requiem, sung by thechoirs at Salisbury Cathedral forRemembrance Sunday.
� Tues 11 Nov 19:00 - 21:00Bluez ‘n’ Zuz Youth Disco atClarendon Junior School.
� Wed 12 Nov Army Cross-Country SteeplechaseCompetition. Tedworth Park.Contact Capt MAA Rick Young on07717 - 424 006. In aid of theArmy Benevolent Fund
� Tues 18 Nov 11:30“Are we there yet?” Travels withmy frontline family. A talk by RosieWhitehouse in aid of SSAFAForces Help. Tedworth House.Call 01980 - 672522 (office hours)
� Wed 19 Nov 10:00 - 13:00Mothers’ Market in the AWSCommunity Hall at the TLC.Clothes, Toys, Gifts & Equipmentfor Babies, Children & their Mums
� Wed 19 Nov 10:00 - 15:00Christmas Fair at FigheldeanVillage Hall. Entry : £2.50 in aid ofCancer Research UK. Widevariety of stalls, light refreshments
� Fri 5 Dec 16:30 - 22:00‘Crafty Thinking’ - Local & fair tradecraft fair. St Michael’s Church Hall,Tidworth. Refreshments
� Sat 6 Dec 10:00 - 16:00Wylye Road Community Centre1st Tidworth Scouts ChristmasBazaar in aid of Scout funds.
� Sat 13 Dec 19:30Christmas Concert from ‘EnsembleChampagne’ at Shipton BellingerVillage Centre. Tickets : £8 from01980 - 846341 / 843373 orParkhouse Stores.
17:00 Gates open
18:00 Results of the Poster & BestGuy Competitions
18:30 Bonfire Lit
19:00 Fireworks begin
Tickets : £2 on the night only
21:30 Evening finishes
Garrison Radio - Refreshments
Fairground Rides
Limited Car Parking at Carter Bks
Garrison Bonfire Night
Wednesday 5 November
Carter BarracksBulford
Organised by22 Engineer
Regiment
Wiltshire Poppy Appeal is launched withthe help of 2nd Royal Tank Regiment
Could this be You ?Using a mobile phone
while driving a motor vehicle is dangerous and illegal.
The Garrison now operates a zerotolerance policy ‘behind the wire’and anyone, military or civilian,caught using a mobile phone while driving will have their
car pass revoked.
You have been warned !
Serving those who Serve See inside ...
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The Highland Gunners raisetheir flag in Tidworth
After five years in at HorneBarracks in Larkhill, 19thRegiment Royal Artillery "TheHighland Gunners" have movedto Tidworth. "Horne Barracks is traditionallya Battery location but we've hada whole Regiment here", saidCommanding Officer, Lt ColAndy Lewis after the flaglowering ceremony. "We've hada good time and done somegood things from Larkhill. Wehad highly successfuldeployments to Iraq andAfghanistan last year. Being in
the bosom of the Royal Artillery has been a great honour."To mark their arrival at Tidworth a Regimental Paradeand Flag raising ceremony took place outside the newRegimental HQ building, accompanied by the Pipes andDrums.
During his address, Lt Col Lewis reminded the Regimentto not only make their mark as the "Highland Gunners",but also to build relationships with the regiments livingalongside them. After the ceremony he explained theRegiment had been really boosted by finally arriving intheir new home."With the money that has been invested in new buildingsand refurbishments in Tidworth it brings the Army intothe 21st Century", he said. "The move also unifies us as aClose Support AS90 Regiment within 12 MechanisedBrigade and we're now in an all arms Garrison. It has theright accommodation, technical offices and classrooms forsoldiers. We're excited to be in Tidworth."
Congratulations ...Staff Sergeant AllanRidler from 26 EngineerRegiment in PerhamDown is now the bestcyclist in the Army !He beat 19 other ridersto take the “Open Race”title at the Army cyclingUnion’s annual RoadRace Championshipsheld at Upavon Airfieldlast month. The 15 lap race was forriders with road raceexperience or those who
had completed a 25 mile Time Trial in under 62 minutes.
“Serving Those Who Serve”
The Wiltshire Poppy Appeal was officially launched inTidworth at the end of last month, with the help ofsoldiers from 1 Mechanized Brigade, a Challenger 2Battletank and the Royal British Legion ‘Poppy Man’. “We are keen to let everyone know that the Royal BritishLegion is hereto help serving soldiers as well asveterans”, Monika Geoghegan, County Manager of theRBL told Drumbeat. “For example, when a soldierleaves the Army, we can help with things like housing,re-training, small business loans and advice about debtmanagement. There is a lot of information on our newwebsite, www.civvystreet.org.” The 40 million poppies which are sold in the UK everyyear are made by disabled ex-Servicemen at the poppyfactory in Richmond. The annual poppy appeal is themain fundraising efford of the Royal British Legion andthe Wiltshire team hopes to beat last year’s record ofover £450,000.
“Voices of the Poppies”A new anthology of poems written by serving andformer Servicemen and women, their friends andfamilies, has been published, coinciding with this year’sRemembrance Sunday. Proceeds of sales will go to, “FLOW for All”, the ForcesLiterary Organisation Worldwide, a new charity beingset up to give help to those affected by war. Dame VeraLynn, patron of the new charity, has written anintroduction to the anthology.
A New Gym in Tidworth Deputy GarrisonCommander ColonelRichard Aubrey Fletchercuts the ribbon to officiallyopen “JAGZ”, a newfitness studio located in theAspire Business Centre. The new studio has 10Powerplate machines, themost advanced technologycurrently in use in thefitness industry, which arevery popular for fitnesstraining as well as beingadvantageous in injuryrehabilitation.
A percentage of profits will be going to ‘Help forHeroes’ and there are special rates for Service personneland their dependants, Over 50s, Students and Groups.
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Previously part of 1 Mech Brigade, 1RHA has been re-rolled to 11 Light Brigade. The Taurus Pursuant flashcomes from the 11th Armoured Division that foughtthroughout 1944-45; 11 Brigade is the Army's new Type ABrigade that has been established to train and commandTask Force Helmand in Afghanistan on OperationHERRICK 11 in October next year.For 1RHA, the change to a light role has meant workingwith the 105mm Light Gun and undertaking all thetraining that has come with it, culminating in the Regimentdeploying to Otterburn on Ex First Sabre. This three week exercise was the first time 1RHA haddeployed in the light role and, thanks to typical Otterburnweather, it proved to be very demanding, especially for theObservation Parties who not only had to cope with longtabs over unforgiving terrain but also the technical skillsneeded to call in accurate fire. These skills were not onlyput to the test in the field but also in a DCCT, (an indoorsimulation system), and working with the Special Forces. For the guns and Command Post, live firing dominated thefirst part of the exercise, before deploying tactically aroundthe training area. The Batteries quickly established thelimits of what the light gun and 4x4 vehicles could achieveand, more importantly, how to overcome any problems. In the third week, the Batteries competed in a gun run thattested everyone's robustness and determination, with EBattery coming out top. Finally, all elements of 1RHA came together to provideeffective fire from multiple gun positions. The high ratesof fire tested not only the logistical supply but also theBattery Fitter sections as they maintained the guns. The progress and achievements of the Batteries were alsorecognised by General Sir T Granville-Chapman GBE KCBADC Gen, Honorary Colonel of the Artillery; General BWhite-Spunner CBE, Commander 3 (UK) Division;Brigadier N Ashmore OBE, Commander Royal Artilleryand the Commander of the new Brigade, Brigadier JCowam OBE, who all battled with the weather to visit thegun lines. The exercise was a massive success, enjoyed by all, whichwill be used as a solid stepping stone for future exercisesand Afghanistan. Next for the Regiment is the rotation ofBatteries to Kenya on Op GRAND PRIX, starting withChestnut Troop in November. The New Year will bring theprospect of Pre-deployment training and then ontoHERRICK 11.
1RHA joins new Brigade
Work on Kiwi earns Award
The work of the Bulford Conservation Group has beenawarded a Heritage Sanctuary Award for its contributiontowards the recent clean-up of the Bulford Kiwi. TheSanctuary Awards, which are held annually, recognisegroup and individual efforts that benefit wildlife,archaeology, environmental improvement or communityawareness of conservation, on or within MOD land in theUK or overseas.The Chairman of the Bulford Conservation Group, Lt ColSimon Ledger, accepted the Award from Kevan Jones,Under Secretary of State for Defence, at a ceremony atThe Guards’ Museum in London.Also present at the Award ceremony was RichardOsgood, Head of the Defence Estates HistoricEnvironment Team on Salisbury Plain (left in picture). “I was delighted that the involvement of the BulfordConservation Group in the project was acknowledged asthey are an integral member of the voluntary team”, hetold Drumbeat. “The work on the Kiwi is aboutconservation and commemoration, drawing togethermany different groups to ensure that the endeavours ofthose in the First World War are not forgotten.”The Kiwi was carved by New Zealanders awaitingrepatriation at the end of the First World War.
Over 1000 soldiers from theBrigade attended theCommander’s Cup Athleticsand Tug o’ War competitions atTidworth Oval on 1st October. Brigade Commander, BrigadierJames Bashall, stressed howimportant sportingcompetitions are in militarylife, saying, “The Brigade ethos is to fighthard and maintain moralcohesiveness. Sportscompetitions play animportant part in building thisethos : they develop physical prowess, the will to win andthe ability to overcome temporary hardship”. He addedthat it was also good to have so many of the Brigadetogether in one place for an enjoyable occasion; theCommander’s Cup was not competed for in 2007 as 1 Mechanised Brigade was deployed in Iraq.
1 Mech Brigade Sports Day
Freesat is a new satellite TV service, a ‘not-for-profit’ jointventure between the BBC and ITV, providing subscription-free digital television, radio and interactive channels toeveryone in the UK."Our arrival on Freesat has the potential to increasesignificantly the number of homes where our service canbe heard," says BFBS Radio's Controller, Charles Foster. "Itmeans better connectivity between our Forces servingoverseas, especially in operational areas such as Iraq andAfghanistan, and their families and friends at home."
BFBS Radio is now availableon FREESAT Channel 786
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Windmill Hill Children’s CentreThe Windmill HillChildren’s Centreis now up andrunning in itsbrand newpremises in thegrounds ofClarendon JuniorSchool. Financed by theRural NeedsInitiative, theCentre offersinformal supportto children 0-5 andtheir families, children’s activities, drop-ins andinformation about all local children’s services.Call Carolyn Melvin (pictured here with some of thechildren from the Centre) on 01980 - 843 010 or [email protected]
Tidworth, Netheravon & Bulford GarrisonOut of the Army - or about to leave -
but wish to continue to serve ?Are you under 52 years of age
and have served at least 3 years in theArmed Forces ?
Join theMilitary Provost Guard Service
(MPGS)Soldiering with Stability
An opportunity to stay in uniform and help protect the HomeBase, while at the same time improve the quality of your
family life� The MPGS has a key role to guard our military sites
� No liability for operational deployment� Secure employment with good rates of pay
The Army is currently recruiting for the MPGS foremployment in the Tidworth and Bulford area.
Further details, including conditions of service andapplication procedures, are available on the British Army
website :www.army.mod.uk/provost/guard-service/1242.aspxor call in at your local Army Careers Information Office.
Specify that you wish to serve in the MPGS atTidworth/Bulford
Visit www.mod.uk to find out alternative ways you can
support our sailors, soldiers and airmen
Tidworth’s100th new Building
The newly refurbished Assaye Officers' Mess for 1 RoyalHorse Artillery has become the 100th building to becompleted in Tidworth by Project Allenby/Connaught. The Mess, which includes a lodge and annex, canaccommodate up to 51 officers. The refurbished buildingprovides modern dining and living facilities with en-suiteaccommodation which has been converted from singlerooms with communal facilities. To preserve thearchitectural heritage of the building, the original facadeand entrance have been retained, along with the formalsweeping driveway to the pillared main entrance.
4 Rifles March & Shoot
Sixteen teams, each comprising 15 Riflemen, took part in 4RIFLES’ annual March and Shoot Competition on 16thOctober. The event consisted of a best effort 12km loadedmarch around the Bulford Range Danger Area, directlyfollowed by a team shoot on C Range. Recce platoon, led by Capt Andy Boardman, was the first
to leave at 0645, with otherteams setting off at 25 minintervals. Points wereawarded for finishing themarch before a certain timeas well as knocking downtargets during the shoot. The prize for the fastestmarch went to 9 Platooncommanded by 2Lt Luke
Loxton; the best shooting score to the Mortar Platooncommanded by Cpl Clarke.The good weather and strong sense of achievementhelped sell over 170 burgers to the competitors at thefinish point, which were enjoyed by all - includingBrigadier Bashall CBE, Commander of 1 Mech Bde. The top five teams all fell within 6 points of each other forthe combined march and shoot prize. The overall winningteam was 7 Platoon, commanded by Lt Harry Parker.
stood shield in hand and in formation defending some narrowpasses against a fearsome and rather ferocious enemy.Fortunately, they faced soldiers of their own Battalion and BCompany 2 YORKS rather than the entire Persian horde! Nonetheless, defending the gaps in the terraced scenery ofRype village in Lydd required a strong arm and a degree offearlessness as they were confronted both day and night by adetermined and resourceful enemy.With the end of OP BANNER many of the newer era ofsoldiers within both Battalions have had little or (in most cases)no previous experience with the melée that is the lightbaseline. During the week long confirmatory exercise allbecame particularly familiar with both the sting of a wellthrown beer keg or baton round and the equally painful lick ofthe baseline's baton! Of course though, everyone's favouriteshout throughout the week’s training was "PETROL!" andduring our time in Rype village the exercising troops endureda good few litres of fiery liquid, resulting in a heavy re-supplyof combat trousers and bootlaces!
The training rotationconducted at Lydd startedat the lowest level withthe individual baselineteams undergoing an'inoculation day' wherethey were barraged byboth petrol bombs and allmanner of heavy objectsranging from beer kegs tocinder blocks in order to
prepare them for themayhem of the battleexercises to come. Thissoon moved on toPlatoon then Companylevel battle exercisesculminating in the finalCompany confirmatoryexercise fought at nightthroughout the wholevillage.The final Company battle run for each rotation was anintimidating and testing affair with two Companies combiningto form a very large CIVPOP facing off against the Company inrotation as the security forces. Controlling such a large andchaotic situation also presented its own challenges and at timessafety staff had to step in to prevent our ever resourceful andenthusiastic soldiers from making the riot a little too realisticfor an outnumbered company of troops under training!The end of the week resulted in each Company proudlyshowing off their battle scars and walking wounded, leavingus with stories to be told for a long time to come about howsomeone from the opposing Company 'got someone a treat!'On the training aspect, each Company came away havingbenefited from very realistic training which confirmed theBattlegroup's readiness for operations and 2 Royal Welsh arenow on task as the UK public order Battalion.
Keeping the Peace2 R Welsh Op Helvetic CFX
Tidworth bucks the Trend !We read in the papers that the rest of the country issliding into economic recession, but here inTidworth’s Station Road we have three new shops
open this month!The Kennet EconomicPartnership has beenworking hard toencourage newbusinesses to the area. “Businesses enjoy lowerrents, better facilities anda greater localgovernment supportnetwork than anywhereelse in the region andthat is very attractive tobusiness start-ups”, saidColette Mallon, thePartnership Manager.“The recent arrival ofTesco and majorinvestment in StationRoad has breathed newlife into the area and isattracting shoppers frommiles around”.
In a period of economic uncertainty, Tidworth isbucking the trend and its reputation as a greatplace to live, work and do business is growing.The new shops include :Generation Sports & Cycles, stocking road and
mountain bikes and sports clothes & shoes; The Blue Garlic, a new fusion restaurant withIndian, Goan and seafood influences on the menu;Trotters Equine and Country Store, which will sellpet food and gifts as well as horse products.
Remembrance Sunday9 November 2008
BulfordSt George’s Garrison ChurchAn all denomination Service of Remembrance forall Bulford Units, their families and members of thecivilian community who wish to attend. Please beseated by 10:40 for the Service to start at 10:50TidworthSt Michael’s Garrison ChurchAn all-denomination Service of Remembrance forall Tidworth Units, their families and members ofthe civilian community who wish to attend.Please be seated by 10:45 for the Service to start at10:50. Holy Trinity Church10:30 Service includes Act of RemembranceShipton Bellinger10:50 Act of Remembrance at the War Memorial inthe High Street, followed by a Service in St Peter’sChurchLudgershall10::00 Service in St James’s Church, followed bythe Act of Remembrance at the War Memorial at11:00 Remembrance Day
11 November 200810:30 Service of Remembrance at the TidworthOval for all Units from 1 Mechanized Brigade10:40 12 Brigade Service of Remembrance andDedication of a new Memorial at St George’sGarrison Church in Bulford
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SSS ttt aaa yyy www iii ttt hhh ttt hhh eee bbb eee aaa ttt !!!Deadline for December 2008 issue : 10 November 2008Drumbeat, 10 AEC, Candahar Barracks, Tidworth, SP9 7AY
