LORD LIEUTENANT’S CADET FOR THE COUNTY BOROUGH OF BELFAST

Nathan McCausland has been honoured at a formal ceremony at Hillsborough Castle where he was appointed to serve as Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant’s Cadet for the County Borough of Belfast.

A high-flying member of the Ballygowan Detachment Army Cadet Force, 16-year-old Nathan will be one of eleven Lord Lieutenants’ Cadets taking on a year-long role which is largely ceremonial. He can expect a busy year ahead, attending Mrs Fionnuala Jay-O’Boyle, Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant for the County Borough of Belfast, on major civic occasions.  In recognition of the award, Nathan will wear a special insignia on his uniform throughout his year in office.

Nathan has made steady progress in the Cadet movement since joining in 2015, proving himself to be diligent attender and making what his award Citation describes as an ‘exceptional contribution to his Detachment, Company and Battalion’. 

Nathan demonstrates a willingness not only to learn and develop new skills and abilities for his own benefit, but also to pass on his knowledge as he supports and mentors more junior cadets within the Detachment. He has worked his way through Cadet ranks with ease and enthusiasm and his efforts continued at Annual Camp in 2018 at Strensall, York earned him the 3 Star Best Endeavour award and well-deserved promotion to Cadet Sergeant.  Spurred on by that success, he is now making solid progress towards his Senior Cadet Instructor Cadre and 4 Star Army Proficiency Certificate.

Outside the usual training regime he has demonstrated significant leadership ability in many Military Skills successfully representing Ballygowan Detachment, his Company and Battalion, F Company and 2nd (NI) Bn ACF in high profile competitions, notably the celebrated ‘Mini Micks’ and, most recently, as a member of the winning F Company team at the 2018 Colonels Cup Competition.

Up for every challenge, Nathan recently completed his Cadet Radio User Course and hopes to progress onto a Cadet Signaller Course in the coming year.  He also attends the regular Company Shooting nights and has represented both Company and Battalion in the sport,   He has also shown dedication and  commitment to the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme having successfully completed his Bronze award. He is now about to start his Direct entry Gold award which he hopes to achieve before he leaves the ACF.

The holder of a Black Belt in Martial Arts, Nathan also finds time for voluntarily teaching and mentoring the junior levels in his club, helping them to achieve their belts and progress through the levels of Martial Arts accomplishment.

The Citation concludes, “Cadet Sergeant McCausland has proven himself as an excellent role model within his Detachment and Company.  He constantly attends both his Detachment and Company weekends where, without question, he has demonstrated himself to be a real asset in guiding and mentoring more junior Cadets.  His commitment and dedication are both inspiring and exemplary and those Cadets under his stewardship aspire to follow his example.  Cadet Sergeant McCausland epitomises the very best of what the Army Cadet Force and his Battalion represent.”