Northern Ireland Schools join the Big Guns

School Principals and teachers from across the province were given a lesson in military ceremony recently as they attended the 21 Gun Royal Salute held at Hillsborough Castle to mark the birthday of His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.

Guests from the field of education gathered to witness the Royal Salute fired by officers and soldiers from 206 (Ulster) Battery, Royal Artillery (Volunteers), more usually based at Territorial Army Units in Coleraine and Newtownards. As the “big guns” were rolled out at Hillsborough almost identical ceremonies were taking place at London, Cardiff and Edinburgh.

The ceremony showcased the high standards of military skills which are a trademark of Northern Ireland’s Reserve Forces, but on this occasion the Province’s Cadet movement was the focus of attention. After the formalities, guests heard more about the Cadets with a presentation from Colonel Paul Shepard OBE, Cadet Commandant for 1^st NI Army Cadet Force, highlighting the many personal attributes gained by members of the Cadet Forces; this was further compounded by individual testimonies from a Senior Cadets from each of the services.

Speaking to teachers and educationalists gathered at Hillsborough Castle, Colonel Norman Walker, Chairman of the Reserve Forces & Cadet Association for Northern Ireland said;

“In Northern Ireland we have 3,600 Cadets who enjoy the camaraderie as well as the adventurous training and development opportunities which have always been at the heart of Cadet life.  We are proud of our reputation for instilling confidence and commitment in young people and of equipping them with many of the skills which will make them good citizens in the future.

There is no doubt that a record of achievement in the Cadets will help to add interest to any CV, but today our Cadets are also earning widely recognised qualifications.  In this year alone 182 Cadets earned BTEC certificates equating to 728 individual GCSE passes!

Given that background it is perhaps no surprise that we already enjoy such strong support from principals and teachers.  Indeed there are many teachers amongst the 500 Adult Volunteers who are the backbone of the Cadet movement in Northern Ireland. 

We are delighted to have the opportunity both to thank the teachers and schools which are already giving us their whole-hearted support and to introduce the benefits of the Cadet movement to others.  Rolling out the Big Guns hopefully made our ‘thank you’ all the more resounding.”