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Infantry Training Centre Catterick
The Training Establishment Experience
Capt D Stewart, Trg Offr 2ITB
In Sept 2015 as I came to the end of my tour as a Platoon Commander at Battalion, I knew almost next to nothing about the Army’s training pipeline, least of all Junior Entry and Initial Trade Training (ITT). Now
5 years and 4 jobs later, I can reflect on how the experience of being immersed in training has tempered my command style and the way I do business. The opportunity arose for a posting to the Army Foundation College in Harrogate (AFC(H))
in late 2015 which I took
willingly, albeit blindly, with a
sense of anticipation much like
that of the first days of arriving
at Battalion in 2013.
It is evident that much of the Field Army are unaware that the AFC represents the most comprehensive soldier Basic Training (BT) establishment
in the world. Through
leadership development,
Duke of Edinburgh’s award
scheme accreditation,
sporting prowess, adventurous training and education - no other military invests the time, energy and breadth of resources into its soldiers as the British Army does through Harrogate. The graduating Junior Soldiers represent the Army’s future leaders, and this is reflected in the statistics with over 60%
of all current WO1s starting their careers
at the AFC, reaping the rewards from
the foundations laid at an early age. The College is also (arguably) the most effective education establishment in the United Kingdom and, as an Ofsted Outstanding institution, it represents the jewel in the crown of the British Army’s training engine.
Arriving from an Infantry Battalion the training delivery was not onerous nor
difficult to grasp, as BT is modelled on the Infantry fundamentals. This immediately gave me an advantage over my peers, most of whom had not experienced years of Pl Comd or indeed Infantry- based training, less their fleeting experiences at RMAS. This is broadly reflective of all the ranks at AFC as only around
20 percent of all the
permanent staff are from the Infantry and as such, I would argue that
Infanteers are at an immediate advantage. Of note, Harrogate has one of the highest percentages of promotion from Cpl to Sgt and from Sgt to CSgt of any unit, a point often overlooked by staff who see a posting to training establishments as a chore rather
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
...no other military invests the time, energy and breadth of resources into its soldiers as the British Army does through Harrogate
than opportunity.
The challenges to temper my command
style toward 16-year-old recruits was initially difficult and very much different to the approach used on trained soldiers. A key quality for success as an instructor at any training establishment would be that of emotional intelligence. In short, the ability
to understand, use, and manage your own emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathise with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict. It was developing these attributes that enabled my team to establish a rapport with the recruits enabling them to thrive and subsequently excel through their training.