Pupils enjoy a day at the barracks during Army education exercise
SOLDIERS FROM across the North gave pupils from two Yorkshire schools the chance to get a taste of life in the Army at one of the region’s barracks.
The activities offered to pupils from Clifton Community School in Rotherham and John Smeaton Academy in Leeds at the “supercamp” at Strensall’s Queen Elizabeth Barracks are part of the military’s engagement with local communities and aim to show the many aspects of how troops operate.
Personnel from a range of military units at the barracks on the outskirts of York, including The Yorkshire Regiment and representatives from the Royal Military Police,
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and
Queen’s Own Yeomanry, were present yesterday to show what they are all about.
Youngsters got the chance to get involved in a number of activities such as first aid, a computer firing range known as the Dismounted
Close Combat Trainer and command tasks which took place throughout the day. Students were overseen by the Army during their stay, but had their teachers close by for guidance and support if required. About 40 teenagers aged between 14 and 18 were issued with Army uniform for the duration of their stay.
It was reported in March this year that the sale of the barracks, along with the city’s Towthorpe Lines facility, was been delayed by the Ministry of Defence – after they were removed from York’s planning blueprint.
They were due to shut in 2021, but the Government said at the time that the disposal of the land had been delayed until 2024.
Natural England has previously raised concerns about the impact that building 550 new homes on the land would have had on a neighbouring wildlife reserve.