Merry Christmas

Hope that you all have a lovely holiday season! Maybe a new pair of boots for Christmas?

Here's our detachments 'beautiful' Christmas tree. Yup can you tell we let the basis do it? 

Compliments

People to salute too: 

• Members of the Royal Family

• Governors and Ministers to whom the sovereigns delegates authority

• Formed bodies of troops on the sovereigns business

• All Standards, Guidons and Colours of Regiments (flags) of the Army and the equivalent in the Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force

• All Officers as holders of the sovereign commissions (all commissioned officers) 

Other occasions to salute:

• The National Anthem:

- When on parade or in an organised party, all ranks will stand to attention but only officers and warrant officers will salute. NCOs will only salute if they are in charge of an organised party. 

- When not on parade and in plain clothes all ranks will stand to attention but if in uniform all ranks will salute. 

- When riding a bicycle. The rider of the bicycle will not salute or look to his/her left flank when the bike is moving. When stopped he/she will salute by giving an eyes left/right but remove their hands from the handles bars. 

• Standards, Guidons and Colours

- These are entitled to the highest of compliments.

- Formed bodies on the march will give an eyes right/left. 

-Individuals will halt, face passing standards, guidons or colours and salute or if passing will salute to the left or right.

- The same Compliments will be paused to the other services. 

• When boarding one of Her Majesty's ships. 

- All ranks boarding any of Her Majesty's ships will salute quater deck. 

I know that it can be difficult to remember who and when to salute (I've saluted the wrong ranks and everything before!) so I made this post just as a remind for you all. 

All Fun in the Sun

Now field craft is something that I've always enjoyed however as I've got older I've discovered something not too great. Health and Safety rules suck. I understand they are there for a reason however they really do suck and have so many things. The first the springs to mind is the sunshine. Now I live in Scotland where scorching hot sunshine is extremely rare, so when it does come along I like to make the best of it. However Health and Safety disagree with me, once and exercise it was deemed too hot us to continue working so we were sent to sleep. Yup that's right, just after lunch time we were sent to sleep and weren't allowed to do anything for the rest of the afternoon so that we could cool down. This was not fun actually it was really boring, most of couldn't sleep anyway as we were wide awake and it was too hot. So we ended telling jokes, funny stories and stuff with was really great but I still wish we'd been allowed to actually do some training. 

Country Code

A common lesson for Basic cadets is the Country Code this is a set of rules based on how you should behave when out in the country on exercises or expeditions or if you just out as a civilian. These rules are:

1. Guard against every risk of fire (all fusee should be controlled and someone who knows what they're doing should be there as fires are dangerous and can get out of hand easily).

2. Fasten all gates after you use them (i.e close gates once you've walked through them or leave them open if they were already open as there will be a reason for a farmer maybe keeping livestock in a field if you leave the gate open they'll get out and I can't imagine the farmer would be very pleased)

3. Keep all dogs under control (keep them on leads or by your side don't let them run off as it can scare animals)

4. Avoid damaging fences, hedges and walls (this is fairly obvious don't climb on things, don't do anything that would cause damage as you could be charged for it and you're ruining it for everyone else) 

5. Keep to the paths across farmland ( this is so that you don't damage any crops) 

6. Leave no litter (as it's damaging to the environment and can hurt animals and lead to pollution. It also looks horrible and will ruin other peoples outdoor experience) 

7. Safe guard water supplies (don't pollute water as it's needed, make sure that if you are drinking water from somewhere that's it clean) 

8. Protect wild life, plants and trees (don't break the branches off trees, don't pick wild flowers, as it could kill them and then no one else can share in their beauty. Also animals are protected and you can get into serious trouble for hurting them, it's not a nice thing to do anyway leave animals be) 

9. Go carefully on country roads (these roads are often quite empty but still you need to careful of traffic and things like tractors or supplie lorries. Also if you're driving the roads maybe not be the smoothest and beware of animals crossing) 

10. Respect the life of the countryside (don't be rude to farm workers, don't be too loud asyou'll disturb people and animals) 

That's everything guys remember to be careful when out in the countryside if you have any other questions feel free to ask. 

Remembrance Day

Remembrance day has always been a big thing within cadets and every year standing on parade is one of the most poignant moments of my year. I've been impressed with how cadets react to this day: there is always that cadet that acts out, the cadet that doesn't care, the cadet that likes to make a big out of everything. However not at this time of year, it's like they are suddenly reminded of what soldiers have done and been through, for them, for us.
Whilst it isn't the happiest time of year I think it's always good to take a step back and think.

They shall not grow old as we who are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and the in the morning.
We will always remember them.  

Drill

Drill has evolved over a long period of time and it is now accepted as the foundation of military discipline.

For cadets drill is too produce a cadet who is alert, obedient and to provide a basis of teamwork. 

The aim and purpose of drill is to get from point A to point B in a smart And soldierly manner. 

Happy Halloween!!

Hope you all have a great Halloween and get to stuff your face with chocolate!

Here's a happy Halloween from my detachment! Yup we are so cool. 

More Fieldcraft tips

This is just some packing tips and things that are good to bring when out on exercise:

• Waterproof everything! This may seem obvious but lots of people don't do out of laziness or out of forgetfulness, think about it we are British cadets training in Britain the chances are that it's going to rain. So I suggest bin bags (cheap and cheerful), put each thing in a bag: one for clothes, one for food (made double bag this to over its bursting and going everywhere) etc, then put all the bags into one bag and put that in your bergan.
• Clothes - this something I'm always guilty for over packing but you really don't need that much clothes. I would even suggest not bring your shirt just wear a t-shirt and your combat jacket (unless it is really cold). Also just bring one spare set of kit that way you can work with the dry kit wet kit routine. However do take warm kit, like your issued fleece! The amount of cadets that don't take that thing is mad, it's warm, has huge fluffy pockets (for hiding sweets in) trust me take it you won't regret it.
•  Speaking of sweets! Take sweets and munchies as they will keep you going (a sugar boost), they will cheer up, and can be used to make new friends or cheer up existing ones. 
• Baby wipes. These come in extremely helpful, for cleaning your hands before you eat (or equally useful hand sanitiser).
• Spare K.F.S (knife, fork, spoon) because guaranteed someone will forget or lose theirs and it's good to be prepared and help out others in your section (it'll help bring you all together).
• Socks, socks, socks! Socks get their own bullet point because they are that important. Always bring spare socks, as your feet are the most likely thing to get wet and you have no idea how much it will improve your mood by putting on clean dry socks. Your feet are you mode of transport and they can get damaged very easily so look after them and fieldcraft will be a lot easier for you. Also bring things like foot power or baby power to keep your feet dry.

Tips for surviving Field craft

Field craft especially if it is your first exercise can seem quite daunting and it's easy to get worried about it. However here are a few tips to help make things a little easier.
1. Pack light, will most likely be expected to carry our own stuff so the less stuff you bring the less heavy it will be the easier it'll be on own your back.
2. Get ton know your section. It may seem obvious but you will be living with these people so get to know who is who, who is better at what, who needs with this, by knowing everyone's strengths and weaknesses you'll be able to work out who is best for what job.
3. EAT! Yes I know a lot of you won't like ration pack food but it's all you're going to get so you really should eat it. You'll be running around  a lot, you'll be up early and asleep late so you need your energy. The food you're given is designed to give out energy and yes I know it's not always the best tasting but it's better than fainting and getting taken off the exercise. You can always ask around see what wants to swap meals (someone always does)
4. Be wary of arguments. When out in the field people tend to get snappy and tense so don't take everything people say to heart just remember if you are feeling like crap and not enjoying the chances are that so is someone else. If all start arguing it ruin the whole exercise. Try to be positive and think about how good the fun bits are like section actions rather than how crap stag duty is.
5. Sleep. Whilst staying up all night can be fun at the time, it's not when you have to get the next morning (trust me on this one guys). Go to sleep, sleep is like the food idea you need it especially as you'll be working all day and if you're tired and grumpy it'll ruin your exercise and people will start to get fed up with you.

What a cadet should be

There are many things that a cadet should be, qualities that they should have and standards that they should try to uphold. So I've got the main one for you (I was told these many moons ago but I've tried to stick to them and they've yet to let me down). Hope you find them as helpful as I did.

COURAGE 

• Physical courage is an obvious quality which cadets and adults require.

• Moral courage is something that is built up. The more that you practice the easier it becomes, to have the courage of convictions. Pursue what you know is right however unpopular or unpleasant. 

• You can only lead at our level from the front 

SELF CONFIDENCE 

• The ability to be decisive in action and calm in a situation, with this will come knowledge and experience. 

• You must take every opportunity to practice this and build up your confidence to make decisions when you are the one in command. 

• Try and think ahead, what needs to be done, where are we going, when do we need to be there? 

LEAD BY EXAMPLE 

• Where possible and safe to do so lead by example. 

• Don't ask anyone to do something that you are not willing to do yourself 

PRAISE/BLAME 

• Always give praise where it's due, never blame anyone especially in front of others. 

• If someone needs to be spoken too do in private that way they have a chance to explain theirselves and no one else see it happen. It's more professional that way. 

• Praise helps to make cadets feel good about themselves and it gives them self confidence. 

• Never blame people for their mistakes if can help it, if was an accident then correct them but don't publicly hullimilate them as it may lead to them leaving. 

PASSION AND COMMITMENT

• If you don't have the passion and commitment for what you are doing, then your enthusiasm will start to fade. 

• Relieving the little that you are doing could make a big difference to a cadet. 

HUMANITY AND MAINTENANCE OF MORAL

• Always think of your cadets and how your decisions may affect them 

• Tbeir response will reflect the way that you have been treating them 

• Protect the work, never isolate someone because then teamwork will break down. 

INTEGRITY 

• This includes honestly, unselfishness, a sense if duty, responsibility and loyalty. 

• The moral values required of a leader in a close unit. 

• Groups like the A.C.F may be considerably trickier than cadets have been used to. 

• Your integrity must be unquestionable of you are to help the confidence and gain respect if the cadets. 

INITIATIVE 

• Initiative is largely the ability to stay alert to be on the look for changing circumstances and to lead. 

• By taking the initiative operation the leader forces to conform to movements not vice versa 

• "In the fog of Wad confusion will reign supreme. You will find that you are the only person in the position to make the vital decision". 

• You will need intuitiveness to go or maintain the momentum.    

CONFIRMATION

• While leadership is easy to explain but it is not so easy in practice. Leadership is about behavior first and skill second. Good leaders are followed chiefly because people trust and respect them. 

• Rather than the skills they have, leadership is different to management, which relies more on planning, organisation and communication skills. 

• Leadership relies on management skill too, but more so in qualities, the ability to commicate, knowledge, courage, self confindence, integrity, praise, blame, commitment and humanity. 

• Some people are born natural leaders, whereas some are not, some people don't seek to be a leader and are more content following. It is of course possible to develop the ability to be a leader, if you work for it. 

Nemo Me Impune Lacessit

This is something I know that cadets who aren't from Britain always find interesting and if you are a British cadet who doesn't know this then keep reading. The phrase "Nemo Me Impune Lacessit"is the Latin motto of the order of the Thistle and three Scottish regiments of the British Army. In later versions of The Royal Coat of Arm of the Kingdom of Scotland. It can be found on the Royal Regiment of Scotland cap badge and interestingly around the outside of a pound coin.

It is often translated as "No one provokes me with impunity" or it is also alternatively translated into plain English as "No one can harm me unpunished". It is roughly translated into Scots "Wha daur meddle wi me?" (In Scottish Gaelic "Cha togar m' fhearg gun dìoladh) it is an interesting phrase to say the least. It's is implie that like the thistle anyone trying to cut it (or damage it) will get a handful of painful barbs.

Star of The Order of the Thistle. 

The Royal Regiment of Scotland

Just some general information about the Royal Regiment of Scotland:

• It was formed on the 16th December 2004
• Colonel in Chief is HRH Queen Elizabeth II
• There are 7 battalions with in it
• Their motto is "Nemo Me Impune Lacessit"

My First Annual

Annual camps are a great experience for cadets and they are some of my very best memories. Not going to lie they can be scary especially for a newbie. When I first started cadets in January '09 I was terribly shy, didn't have many friends outside or school. However joining up was a great idea for me as it allowed me to meet new people, and make new friends (who I'm still friends with today all those years later). Now those of you who are good with numbers will work out that by the time my first annual had rolled around I had only been in cadets around 5 months. This wasn't a very long time and I was still finding my feet. So when I said I would go I really don't think I had properly realised what I'd signed up for. 2 weeks away from home (the longest I'd even been away from home) with a group of people I didn't know that well and there would be a good 200 maybe 300 people I wouldn't know at all. Terrifying right? Wrong it really wasn't as awful as I had thought it would be. When I first walked into the room with the girls from my detachment I felt sick and didn't want them to leave me on my own with the other girls. However after talking to them it turns out they weren't as horrid as I had convinced myself. I really hit it off with some of the girls (I won't say there names because that's not fair to them). We are even still friends to this day. After that first horrible 15 minutes everything settled down and we all talked and talked, I remember we talked long into the night and I remember being scared the adults would catch us but I was having too much fun to go to bed. One of my friends actually left camp early which really worried me (she was ok if you're wondering) as I didn't want anything to happen to me when she and some other girls weren't there but I was fine. I was scared but I powered though something you should all try! Even went it's hard because it might just turn out to be the best thing you ever do. Now I can't remember everything activity and task that we did in detail so I just summarise. We did shooting, classroom lessons, went out on fieldcraft, had a day at a theme park and tons of other stuff. When I think back it is all a bit of a blur but I really enjoyable blur I so happy that I went. When I got home it was so late but I stayed up for hours telling my Mum everything, what we did, who I meet, how much I loved. This is a tradition that has been long standing every time I come home.

A.C.F General Knowledge

Joining Up

If are want to join cadets or are trying to recruit new cadets. Then you should know that the minimum age for joining cadets is 12, however if you are in secondary school but not 12 then you might be allowed to come along and take part in lessons but you wouldn't be getting officially trained. This will depend in what the adults at your detachment are like.

Star Levels

• There are 5 star levels in total.
• Basic = blue badge (blank). 
• 1 star = blue badge (with a white 1). 
• 2 star = blue badge (with a white 2 inside). 
• 3 star = red badge (with a white 3).
• 4 star = red badge (with a white 4)
• 5 star/Master cadet = red badge (with a gold "M" and a gold border).
• Anyone passed 2 star/training 3 star is classed as a senior cadet.

Who, What, Why.

Hello! I'm Zoetta and I've been in the A.C.F (Army Cadet Force) for aggggeeeesss so I decided to create this blog as a way of helping other cadets. It will be full of information, tips and trick and anything else that I think needs to be added. So I hope it helps :) .