Extra-curricular

Combined Cadet Force

Combined Cadet Force

CCF Report 2023

It was yet another busy year for Bloomfield CCF. We were saddened to hear of Lt. Greer’s decision to stand down at the end of the last school year. Lt. Greer established CCF in Bloomfield seven years ago as a CEP school. Under her stewardship we broke away from Campbell College and developed a thriving contingent under the cap badge of the Royal Army Medical Corp. The contingent, and all who have experienced CCF in Bloomfield, extend our upmost thanks and appreciation to her, for her unwavering dedication to providing every opportunity to the cadets.

We welcomed 30 new eager cadets to join our first parade night in September, which saw us appoint Bloomfield’s first ever Sergeant Major. CSM Beggs joined us in Year 10 and has been the most dedicated and enthusiastic Cadet during her time. This was a worthy appointment, and her contribution to CCF, especially this year, cannot be understated.

The CCF calendar soon filled up with events and the beginning of the year focused on preparations for these, with several training weekends held at Palace Barracks. October saw our first major competition in the form of the Inter-Cadet Shooting Competition at Ballykinler. The team, consisting of CSM Beggs, Cpl Dowie, Cpl Mackenzie, and LCpl McKay, was outstanding. There was an incredibly high standard of shooting across the weekend, with Bloomfield running close in all competitions; however, the highlight was the Falling Plates Competition, in which we walked home with silver medals. En route to the final, we defeated Lisnagarvey High School, Royal School Armagh, Bangor Grammar and Strathearn, before meeting Campbell College in the final, who unfortunately just pipped us by one plate.

At the end of October, we headed to Magilligan Camp for the 38X Military Skills Competition. A strong team of CSM Beggs, SSgt Johnston, Cpl Dowie, Cpl Mackenzie, Cpl Kerr, Cpl Patterson, Cpl Taylor-Clarke, LCpl Monteith, and LCpl McKay did themselves and the contingent proud. Twelve schools competed, with Bloomfield achieving 1st in STEM, 2nd in the march and shoot, field gun and fieldcraft, 3rd in the Scorpion Shoot and 4th in First Aid. This was an incredible achievement which saw us win silver medals overall. Towards the end of the year, the annual Inter-Cadet Orienteering competition was held. An enthusiastic group signed up and we were delighted to see LCpl Ross achieve 1st place in the Junior Girl category and Cpl Taylor-Clarke 3rd in the Senior Girl category. A well-deserved and commendable result.

A weekend in Palace Barracks at Christmas allowed our cadets to brush up on weapon handling, alongside some Christmas themed first aid and fieldcraft activities. Our new recruits finally got the chance to experience camp with their first weekend at Palace Barracks scheduled for January. Here, they had the opportunity to try a range of fieldcraft activities such as cooking in the field, cam and concealment, command tasks, first aid and air rifle shoots. It was an action-packed weekend, with the amount of sleep being questionable. This was followed by a weekend for our senior cadets. They were able to develop their skill at arms and tactics, with shoots on the DCCT a key focus of the weekend. Summer Camp is sure to be a highlight of the CCF calendar with an enthusiastic group heading to Altcar in Liverpool for a week of fieldcraft, ranges, first aid, STEM and drill.

All these weekends have been running alongside our weekly parade evenings, held every Wednesday. The cadets have had the opportunity to work through the CCF syllabus in order to earn their star badges, with the hope of promotion at the end of the year. They have covered a multitude of topics throughout the year, not limited to drill, CIS, first aid, navigation, command tasks, skill at arms, air rifle shoots, fieldcraft, exercises and tactics

A massive thank you to our senior cadets who contributed such a great deal to the knowledge and understanding of these cadets.

Through CCF, our cadets have had further opportunity to complete other qualifications. This year saw the introduction of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, with 28 of the Contingent signing up to complete their Bronze Award. Working through their differing sections has pushed our cadets beyond their comfort zone and allowed them to engage with the community whilst gaining key life skills. We have also signed up to the CVQO, which has enabled some of our cadets to gain a BTEC Level 2 in Teamwork and Personal Development in the Community. A massive congratulations to CSM Beggs, SSgt Johnston, SSgt Booth, SSgt Foley, Sgt Stockman, Sgt Barry, and Sgt Miles in being our first cohort through. I am sure all those involved in both awards will agree it has been a worthwhile and rewarding opportunity.

None of this could have been achieved without the tireless work of the Bloomfield CFAV. Lt Andersen, 2Lt Mackenzie, SSgt Logan, SI Doole and CV Martin have dedicated themselves to the development of the cadets and have made my job 100 times easier. Their knowledge, preparation and patience has ensured the cadets have left every Wednesday happy, smiling and with new experiences which they would not get anywhere else. It is wonderful to see the confidence of each cadet grow and the friendships which have developed because of CCF, and I know the whole contingent will share in my utmost thanks and appreciation for all they have done this year. As ever, a special thanks to the 38X CTT for their support to the contingent, especially Sgt Moore for his guidance and wisdom. It has been a very busy, but very successful, year for Bloomfield CCF. The contingent will only continue to go from strength to strength and I am excited to see what successes next year will bring.

Lt Murray Contingent Commander

Bloomfield Collegiate

Bloomfield Collegiate School CCF group photo
CCF 2022-3

Nesscliffe Camp

As part of the cadet expansion programme, 6 girls joined 41 Campbell boys on their annual camp at Nesscliffe in Shropshire. Nesscliffe is a central camp run by 11 Signal Brigade CTT with support from the Army Reserve.

Beginning on 1st July with a relaxed day of personal development training, the cadets enjoyed laser tag, climbing and watermanship. They then donned their uniform for a live firing range day, a combat skills day and a day of military skills which included: section battle drills, reaction to contact drills, observation stands and an introduction to the new cadet radio system.

The cadets then visited Campbell College’s CCF sponsor unit: 1 Royal Irish, who have just returned from a deployment in Afghanistan. They put on an interesting programme at Ternhill, where they are based. The programme included: introduction to heavy weapons, vehicles currently used by the Battalion and a display by the Pipes and Drums.

Combined Cadet Force
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