Christ’s Hospital Cadet Force Biennial Inspection

One hundred and seventy members of the School’s Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force sections were present at the parade, accompanied by the famous Christ’s Hospital Marching Band. Senior cadets formed a Guard of Honour for Captain Colin Welborn RN, who took the salute.

Before the inspection, Captain Welborn and the Head Master were given a tour of the Contingent’s recently renovated headquarters building. The new facility includes two state of the art classrooms containing modern seating, multimedia facilities and additional storage facilities for teaching resources.

The nearby shooting range is also being adapted for dual use as an archery facility.

The inspection also provided an opportunity for cadets to demonstrate their skills off the parade ground, as Captain Welborn toured a variety of training during the afternoon.

The Royal Navy exhibited their navigation and ship handling skills in the School’s bridge simulator, while also showing off their knowledge of the nautical rules of the road using remote controlled ships in the swimming pool. The Army demonstrated their skills in military tactics with a battle simulation using blank ammunition and pyrotechnics.

The Royal Air Force section completed a challenging orienteering competition in the School’s extensive grounds.

The Contingent Commander, Major Matt Commander, commented: “It is very rewarding to see all of the hard work done by the cadets and staff over the past two years coming together.

“The parade was superb; it was great to see all 170 members of the Contingent on parade backed up by the school band.

“The training put on in the afternoon by the cadets was of equal quality. I was very proud of what they had achieved.”

Copy and picture submitted by Christ’s Hospital