Members of the Livery will remember that we support No.2 Company of the City of London & North East Sector Army Cadets which draws its recruits from the Borough of Tower Hamlets. Like its sister companies, it is made up of several detachments, each with its own regimental affiliation.
Their annual camp – of two weeks duration – is the highlight of their activities and was located this year in Thetford. On the middle Sunday guest representatives of those bodies closely associated with them are traditionally invited to visit and to watch the cadets compete against each other for an array of trophies. The Company was represented on this occasion by the Deputy Master and by the Clerk. We were welcomed by their Commandant, Colonel, Jacqui Fogerty, who has been leading the unit and developing it so well in recent years. Now due to retire we wished her well. Its Honorary Colonel was also present, Dominic Reid, better known to us as the City Pageantmaster. After a talk and progress report from the officers, the first event was the drill competition, which I am pleased to say was won by our sponsored company. We were then shown demonstrations of field craft, weapons training and first aid. The final event was the popular tug of war tournament between all three Companies and was followed by the prizegiving. The Gunmakers’ ShootingTrophy was awarded to Cadet CSM Nenartaviciute on our behalf by the Clerk, John Allen.
The annual camp takes the cadets out into the countryside and for many it is their first experience of being away from their home environment. Both officers and cadets welcome the Visitors Day which provides them with an opportunity to show off and explain some of their activities. Without witnessing such an event and meeting the adult officers and cadets (aged from 12 up to 18) it would be difficult to fully understand the beneficial effects that the cadet movement clearly has on youngsters. In our case, many come from difficult and deprived backgrounds, but I cannot overemphasize how self-assured and self-disciplined they become, how they co-operate, work hard, help one another and want to be a force for good in their communities – as well as clearly enjoy the cadet experience. All the guests were asked to take away this message and to do whatever they can to help and support the cadets and their endeavours.