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Below are two reports from this year's TWGGS CCF Annual Camp, written by two cadets in years 9 and 11. It was held on the Isle of Wight at Jersey Camp from 30th June - 7th July

This year's annual camp saw the year 11s with a lot more responsibility than we were used to in everyday CCF. After a long coach journey and a ferry from Portsmouth to The Isle of Wight we were split into 8 army sections and 1 navy section. As year 11s we were put as ICs and 2ICs of the sections and also of billets, this meant that we would be looking after the year 9s and 10s for the week as well as leading them in our lessons and activities. For me I felt like it was a chance to get to know people in lower years as well as to practise my leadership skills and improve upon them. 

On the first day I had the treasure hunt around the island and the water activities. The treasure hunt was a fun activity to get to know the people we would be spending a week with and gave us a chance to do some basic navigation and solve some riddles. It was a good activity as it wasn’t based on CCF knowledge and so those newer to CCF could confidently input as well. During the water activities all three sections from the platoon were together and it gave us a chance to interact with each other as well as cheer each other on as we raced over surfboards and giant paddle boards. It was super fun and after this we got to chill on and jump off of the paddle boards as we cheered for each other and tried to push everyone into the water! 

The second day was orienteering, being in the same lessons as the lower years gave us as year 11s a chance to refresh our navigation skills and also a chance to practise our teaching skills learnt from the Cadet Forces Instructional Techniques (CFIT) course as we helped the younger cadets to develop their skills. After practising taking bearings and learning how to read maps in the morning we then did the Jersey Camp’s orienteering course in the afternoon. We were split into groups of three and were mixed with people in different years and with different ranks. On the course we had to navigate to different checkpoints which had stamps to prove we had been there. Whilst navigating we also had to radio in at each checkpoint which helped everyone to brush up on their radio procedures in preparation for one of the later stands.

Day three was our first day of fieldcraft on the camp and it was one of the biggest days for me as the IC of my section. We started off the day learning types of patrol which was a good opener as it helped the year 9s with limited fieldcraft knowledge to have an understanding of what was to come in the next few days. Next we had Radio Training which consisted of us learning how to use a cadet radio as well as practising semaphore and morse code. After this we had fire and movement in which we used laser weapons for the first time. As IC I got to call all of the orders for the section and it was a good chance for me to practise as I had rarely been IC before. My section all picked it up quickly and had a great time using the weapons. That afternoon we worked on patrol lanes, obstacle crossings and fire and movement as a section. It was a great opportunity to show off our prior knowledge and also gave us a chance to get to grips with the laser weapons as well as a chance to let off steam shouting to each other in the field as well as enhancing our leadership skills as I led my section to success in the stands. 

On day four we had fieldcraft again, this time we were doing harbours (a secure base in potential hostile territory). It was great to see how things work in the field and get a perspective on camping out tactically in the field. It was also a good opportunity for the younger cadets to have some responsibility within the section as there were lots of positions within the harbour process that they could take up to help set it up effectively. After we did the harbour we learnt about the work routine within it as well as then being taught the role of a sentry by some of our seniors and getting to camouflage a sentry post which was lots of fun as we got to work on it as a team within our sections. The role of a sentry lesson also massively helped us for when we did the Observation Post stand as we had learnt how to effectively camouflage ourselves in the field. That day we also did a reconnaissance patrol in our sections. We all massively enjoyed this as it was the older and younger years first taste of a proper patrol and we each got to discover the roles we played in our section. My section (Godshill) got told our recce patrol was the best Captain Tester had seen in years! We had a great time and learned lots of new information, finishing the day with capture the flag with laser weapons and the seniors. I managed to get the flag the first time but the other team won overall. This allowed us to practise our tactical movements as a section. It was also raining when we played which added to the atmosphere as it made it feel more like we were actually in a battle for the flag.

Our penultimate day consisted of putting all our skills learned during the week and also skills learned on the day to eventually do a section attack and a section defence with the laser weapons. This was great as it showed the section what we had been working towards all week and was also loads of fun. During the section attack I got the opportunity to shout out the orders for my section as well as do the target indication. It was the first time I had done any of this so I was a bit worried but everything went smoothly and I had a good section attack all in all. At the end of it my section all felt as though they were confident in the things they had learnt. As well as this, by the end of the attack they were all loudly repeating orders, showing that they had learnt from the corrections they had been given throughout the week. 

The last day was a long walk along the Tennyson Trail from Carisbrooke to the Needles. We walked with our sections and had to orienteer through coastal paths 22km until we reached our final destination. The walk was definitely well worth it as the views were spectacular and definitely helped to keep the morale of the group up. We took some great photos as a section and definitely became firm friends with each other. My section won the long walk overall taking only 6 hours to complete it. We were all very proud.

Throughout the whole week I was also IC of a billet, this meant that I had to make sure that my billet was appropriately dressed each day and packed the correct things in their day sack. There was also a billet inspection every night which involved us all having to clean the billet and tidy our things away as well as having to learn specific drill for it. The cleaning of the billets helped us to bond together as it meant that we all were working together efficiently. 

Every morning of camp we also practised drill in our sections for an upcoming drill competition later in the week. We had to learn a drill sequence and call it as our section performed it in a drill square. This helped us to gain confidence through calling the drill and also helped us to know how to project our voices as well as practise calling it on the correct feet. My section came fourth overall by one point! 

Overall I think that this years annual camp helped us all to gain the confidence needed to fill our roles in the CCF as well as showed us all the qualities that we can use as future leaders and teachers in our cadet force. We all learnt what it feels like to look after lots of people both in daytime activities and in mornings and evenings as well as knowing how to maintain a balance within our sections and forging strong relationships with other years. 

Corporal Lagden

Annual Camp Review - Cadet Robinson

Throughout Annual camp there were multiple lessons/activities that were taking place, from treasure hunts to section defence. During the week, we had 2 days in civilian clothing and 4 days in our army MTP. The activities were spread out over the day with a variety of branches of CCF, such as fieldcraft and first aid. For my first Annual camp, it was certainly an amazing experience to remember, and I will for a very long time.

One of my favourite exercises was the Section Attacks, where we had to combine all the knowledge of Patrolling, Peeling/Flanking, Fire and movement and regrouping after the attack. I found it enjoyable and exciting, as we had to put together all we had done throughout the week, in an attempt to defeat the Section Defence on the other side. I also enjoyed the use of the lazer guns in replacement of the usual rifles, they were good fun to use and were a great representation of a real cadet issue rifle that we would usually use. They were great fun to run around with and a lot of fun to shoot.

I also enjoyed the lessons, where we learned about different attacks and fieldcraft manoeuvres, such as harbouring and patrolling. They were interesting to learn about, as you could see the way to defend your different sections, as well as learning how to press forward in an attacking way, or retreating in a defensive position. The teaching was great and I learned a lot of new information that I will always be able to use in my future CCF career, no matter the rank.

In camp I also enjoyed the inclusion of the younger years, although we are different ages compared to the rest, no one was treated differently to others, and everyone looked out for one another, creating a good community in the sections and the Billets.

From the perspective of a Year 9, I found the camp fun and enjoyable, as well as an amazing way to get introduced into the start of CCF life, leading into year 10 and the future senior years.

Overall, I found the camp to be an incredible experience, and could find little to say to improve on, as all was very high standards, and what we learnt was always exciting and new territory to adventure deeper into, that always ended in a way of competitive fun within or between two sections. It was an amazing camp and I couldn’t wish for my first one to be better.

Cadet Robinson