K Owen – Deputy Head Student
Cadets is an amazing extra-curricular activity that supports the growth of all those taking part, offering a wide variety of opportunities such as shooting, flying, first aid, overnight camps, formal dinner events and various competitions.
Over the last term, the younger Cadets have settled into their roles and have been learning the basics in preparation for their first set of badge work, completing lessons in first aid, air recognition and the history of the RAF. Their abilities have shone through in these areas as they completed weekly quizzes, competing against each other as well as other squadrons. The younger Cadets have shown incredible determination as they prepare for the upcoming Matrix-Mini-RAST competition, giving them the opportunity to speak to other Cadets from across the Matrix Academy Trust and to show their skills.
They also experienced their first overnight camp, taking part in some ice breakers, learning how use the Trangia’s and taking part in a blindfolded night walk through the woods. This pushed the Cadets out of their comfort zone as they worked cohesively as a team to find their way guided by ropes. Throughout the evening, the Cadets made new friendships, understanding the importance of teamwork, all whilst having lots of fun.
The older Cadets have also been working on their badge work, alongside all of the preparation that went into the Reginal Air Squadron Trophy competition, that took place at RAF Cosford on Sunday 19th November 2023. This tested Cadets in a first aid scenario, shooting, drill, general knowledge and aircraft recognition. As a school we did incredibly well, coming 6th place out of 15 other schools.
Presenting the best of Barr Beacon Cadets; they were a credit to the CCF and did the unit proud.
A Matrix Christmas Dinner night was also held, where Cadets from across the Trust came together to celebrate all of our achievements – it was a wonderfully successful evening! It gave everyone a chance to talk and meet up with new Cadets, allowing networking, along with the exchanging of everyone’s experiences from the past term. We hope to run more experiences like this one in the future.
On the 2nd and 3rd of March, a fieldcraft weekend was hosted at Barr Beacon with Cadets from Etone and Bloxwich joining us. We did a mixture of different activities, including complex first aid scenarios, reconnaissance missions on an enemy base and patrolling scenarios, amid an array of other things. The weekend provided an amazing opportunity for Cadets to bolster their knowledge and work in the field, but it was also another fun weekend.
The last few terms have been incredibly busy for the Cadet Force (with even more opportunities and events being scheduled for the near future) and I would like to say a massive well done to everyone. It has been incredible to watch the growth of the contingent and I cannot wait to see the applications coming through from those students wanting to join us within the upcoming year, and the promotions to those proving their leadership qualities.
Combined Cadet Force | Homepage
