Rear-Admiral Sir Robert Woodard OL, great-grandson of Rev Nathaniel Woodard (the founder of Lancing College and of the Woodard Corporation of schools), will attend, with his sons Commander Jolyon Woodard RN OL and Captain Rupert Woodard OL. They will arrive in a Sea King helicopter.
This year, Lancing College celebrates 110 years of its Combined Cadet Force (CCF). 2010 is considered by members of the Cadet Forces as an historic year, as it marks the 150th anniversary of cadet activities in the UK. The Cadet Corps at Lancing was founded in 1900 by the Head Master, Ambrose J Wilson, and CCF at the College is now more popular than ever. There are 150 cadets - with girls making up roughly a third of those who take part.
Pupils at Lancing can choose to take CCF on Wednesday afternoons, as part of their extra curricular activities. These students compete annually at the National Shooting Centre in Bisley, take part in adventurous training camps at Easter and in summer, as well as local exercises in the Ladywell Valley (part of the College grounds). The RAF section also has annual camps at RAF stations, as well as field days where cadets can learn to fly, glide or parachute. The training activities help to develop military knowledge, drill, map and compass skills, fieldcraft, skill at arms, life saving and first aid.
The aim of a CCF training is to help pupils develop powers of leadership, responsibility, self reliance, resourcefulness, endurance and perseverance. This training also helps to build confidence. CCF is not a pre-service organisation, although it encourages those who have an interest in the services to become Officers of the Regular or Reserve Forces.
A number of OLs (Lancing alumni) have gone on to careers in the armed forces. Commodore Richards RN (at Lancing 1972-77) recalls,
“I left Lancing in July 1977 and walked through the gates of the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth in September of the same year. I have been ‘in’ ever since, in jobs ranging from commanding the Destroyer HMS Exeter… [and] designing the Ministry of Defence’s Middle East engagement strategy to teaching at the old Royal Navy Staff College at Greenwich… Did the CCF help me on my way - you bet… The CCF training set the scene well for the military training to follow, offering an early insight into both the discipline and friendship of a service career,”
Celebrations commence at 2pm with a Parade, with the inspecting officer, Major-General David Rutherford-Jones OL, followed by a range of activities throughout the afternoon. A Thanksgiving Service, when a new CCF banner will be presented, will take place at 5pm in the famous Lancing College Chapel. This will be followed by a Reception and Dinner for VIPs. Invitees include OLs with military careers, OLs who participated in CCF at Lancing, and present and previous staff who have commanded CCF at the College.
Interviewees are available before and at the event, when they will include the Woodards and Major-General David Rutherford-Jones.
Thu 25th Feb 2010
