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HEADQUARTERS ARMY RECRUITING AND INITIAL TRAINING COMMAND (HQ ARITC) Maj (MAA) M Horner RAPTC
HQ ARITC provides the two- star command for all recruiting, selection and Basic Training of
soldiers and the recruitment and selection of officers. Since arriving in post this time last year there has been continual change to meet the inflow demands for both the Regulars and Army Reserve.
Significant changes within the group have seen the redesignation of Initial Training Group (ITG) and re-subordination of the School of Infantry (SCHINF) to establish Soldier Academy (Sldr Ac). HQ ITG has now redesignated as HQ Sldr Ac and SCHINF redesignated to HQ Sldr Ac (North), with the Army Foundation College (Harrogate) also being resubordinated to HQ Sldr Ac (N) as part of the change. With the structural changes came the enrichment of the ITG SO3 Trg appointment to an SO2 Physical Development (SO2 PD) within HQ Sldr Ac, welcoming Maj (MAA) Mark Greenwood to the group.
The Physical Employment Standards (PES) assigned to the relevant Career Employment Group (CEG) continue to bring challenges for some candidates attempting the necessary entry standards. Following the Multi-Stage Fitness Test (MSFT) replacing the 2 Km run to mitigate the issues related to Sickle Cell Trait, trials
have now been conducted to review the standards initially set.
Within Basic Training (BT) the 14-week Common Military Syllabus (CMS) 21 has now been replaced by a 13 week CMS (Future Soldier) programme across the Op Gp, compressing timelines to meet the required outputs. With numbers now steadily increasing and training staff having been trawled to support recruitment elsewhere, pressures have only intensified. It has been through the dedication and hard work of the RAPTCIs, SIOs, AAPTIs and Capita PTs throughout the Op Gp that has ensured high output standards have been achieved. From the Assessment Centres through to the training units, all have made sacrifices and gone the extra mile to ensure success and are duly recognised for their efforts.
Having visited the Army Officer Selection Board (AOSB) and various Assessment Centres, Army Training Units and Regiments it really highlighted the breadth of influence our past and present RAPTCIs/AAPTIs are having. Within HQ ARITC Recruiting Group is former WO2 (QMSI) Dave Turton now a Civil Servant and former SSgt now Lt Col Chris Martin AGC(ETS). At the Army Reserve Training Units (ATUs) we are supported
by former WO1 (SMI) Dave Beresford and Gaz Norman and former WO2 (QMSI) Amos Greenfield and Steve McKnight. Within Capita we have former SSgt (SSI) Craig Davies and former WO2 (QMSI) Bob Cardy, all still leading the way and maintaining the standards we all hold dear.
As we look ahead, the next steps will be the introduction of the Armed Forces Recruiting Programme (AFRP), responsible for delivering a single, tri- Service recruiting solution that achieves the right quality and quantity of recruits to match single-Service (Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force) workforce demands. Change is inevitable, and needed, if we are to establish the numbers required to meet the challenges of the future.
Trg Ops Ground familiarisation ‘Stonehenge’ – Maj (MAA) Horner on the left
RAPTC personnel attending the ATR Winchester Boxing – British Army vs German Bundeswehr.