Page 387 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
then returned to being an RAVC lead as SO1 Vet Cap. The post line-managed the following Desk Officers: SO2 Search, SO2 EOD, SO2 and SO3 Electronic Counter Measures, SO2 Exploit. The appointment had the very important functional responsibility for managing MWD capability development, including the introduction of the very successful UKSF MWD capability, now established with RAVC badged personnel at two separate locations. The office holder was directly involved in numerous programmes which saw massive organisational and capability changes to the Corps, as well as this, the incumbent Lt Col Mark Morrison, secured vast funding which enabled new infrastructure and equipment to be procured for the wider Corps.”
Continuing his recollection of his time in DE&S Medical and General Supplies Delivery Team, Mark Morrison added: “I had the role of SO1 Medical Countermeasures an E1.5 rotational role, that’s RAF/Army/Navy, a post which oversaw the in-service manufacture, storage and distri- bution of some ten in-service medical counter- measures including nerve agent treatments and several vaccines and medical therapies. The advanced development, including developing a manufacturing process, scientific and clinical trials, of five new medical countermeasures. Again Mark Morrison had direct command of four desk Officers and project management, under service level agreement, of the Dstl advanced development team.” A substantial function of this role was to be the UK lead in a number of interna- tional forums that were undertaking collaborative development of countermeasures.
For Major Robert Hart a role with the AMS that came within a long and rewarding career with the Corps, as he shared in his written testimony:
I have spent 13 years of my 33-year RAVC career at wider employment, primarily with the RE and AMS which began as a Cpl when I was attached to the Counter Terrorist Search Wing (CTSW), Lodge Hill in Chatham. The role was initially as an Arms Explosive Search Dog Instructor but with a previous experience of Northern Ireland this soon came to include providing instruction on Search Equipments, Threat Briefs and trends to All Arms and RE Search teams.
Following a further tour of NI as a SNCO, I was assigned to the Army Primary Health Care Services, Implementation Project Team in Camberley where along with five other analysts we oversaw the Joint Systems Approach to Training (JSAT) forerunner to Defence Systems Approach to Training (DSAT),
training analysis, course development and design following the publication of the Creamer Report, which was initiated to examine the options for delivering PHC to the army to appropriate standards and to meet operational requirements.
This led to further staff work including a career employment review of the Healthcare Assistant, where I led the cross-mapping civilian accreditation and best practice to the career employment model, (which would provide the experience and qualification to drive the implementation of the Animal Care Apprentice for the RAVC later in my career) provide training analysis and support to the role-out of BOWMAN across the Medical Services out in 2007.
As the Military Working Dog SME, I also supported the Army Medical Directorate, Training Development Team Analysts and introduced Training Adminis- tration and Financial Management Information System (TAFMIS) from the Training Development side of the system. Following Commission in 2007, a three year initial assignment as SO3 Veterinary Services at the Army Medical Directorate, a role that subsumed; Organisational restructuring supporting the Liability Arbitration for the future 1 MWD Regt, the success of which then led to recruiting, as the RAVC Recruiter of over one hundred and sixty Officers and Soldiers, Equipment tender and financial approval for the Trans- portable Container Dog Accommodation (TCDA) and Tactical Kennel to Full Operating Capability (FOC), Career Employment review and first successful Joint Services Job Evaluation and implementation of the Animal Care Apprenticeship with the successful tender and contract with Wiltshire and Somerset College Partnership training provider.
During my time in Afghanistan, I was approached by Commander 29 EOD&S Gp, recognising a gap in Staff SME support to the deployed MWD Sqns, to commence a new post on my return as the SO3 MWD with the Group, in Aldershot. Focussed on Force Generation (FGen) Prep, with the increasing MWD requirement for Battle Group (BG), Special forces Support Group (SFSG) and REST integration during the PASHTUN series of Exercises, as well as support to the Technical Response Force (TRF) for UK homeland Defence and police Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and high yield Explosives (CBRN(E)) activities.
On recommendation I was selected for attendance on the Intermediate Command and Staff Course (ICSC(L)) at the Defence Academy of the UK, Shrivenham. The course would see me return four years later as an SO2 Directing Staff focussing on the co-ordination and management of the Global Effects on Defence (GEOD) module. As a Where Talent Endures (WTE) post, I was responsible for the instruction and preparation of a junior Major post for sub unit-command and staff
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