Sorry Perry, misread and misunderstood it!!
I blame age and stupidity and poor eyesight and educashun and that it’s Christmas …
I think that’s a big part of the problem Gunner, writing one isn’t easy, you have to think what you’re writing, who ultimately will read and approve it (CAS probably for military list and the Honours Committee for civil list) and you have to have a good mix of superlatives without being over ‘gushing’. There used to be examples of successful honours and awards citations available on Stations years ago, but I’ve not seen any for ages in the RAF and certainly none in the ACO; I’d be interested to know if anyone has come across some. I made a point of copying them!
The thing is, assuming that the SCC and ACF recruit their adult staff from the same strata of society as we do, why are they more successful than the ATC? The over zealous sifting could well be where the problem lies. Do they have similar handbrakes (Region and HQAC) to us?
If you Google “example citations for honours awards UK” - you will find several good links with some sample descriptive paragraphs.
Such as - NHS:
School Governors:
Note the careful use of superlatives, nouns & adjectives, with relevant details qualified if necessary.
Let me toss this cookie into the pot. How about the number of citations is much lower, because the nominations are quashed at wing level (OC wing and WExO) because they themselves haven’t been nominated for said award after 3 Gadzillion years service.
Discuss. :whistle:
[quote=“Plt Off Prune” post=14523]Let me toss this cookie into the pot. How about the number of citations is much lower, because the nominations are quashed at wing level (OC wing and WExO) because they themselves haven’t been nominated for said award after 3 Gadzillion years service.
Discuss. :whistle:[/quote]
bad man.
I’m just kidding, although i am aware of the comments made by some people who state that “general long service” just isn’t good enough for a BEM/MBE. The person in question has to have excellent in a specific and measurable way over a notable length of time or been involved in particular events or projects which has really shaped the way they/others/we work, and done this outside of their usual remit.
Which kind of grips me a bit, because 20 years service as a lollypop lady not getting run over (which in today’s age is actually quite an achivement), seems to be suitable for a gong.
Someone here needs their mother to show them more love.
Lollypop ladies\gents get nothing after 20 years. For the few that have received BEM’s\MBE’s, I think you’ll find they’ve fulfilled the role for some 40-50 years, in all weathers, with the minimum of sick leave, twice a day (split shifts?) and have protected children and their parents from some of today’s worst road users. Not to mention putting up with dangerous drivers and the associated abuse together with (one incident of which I’ve witnessed) threats of physical violence.
Their contribution to children’s road safety is very much underestimated and if what they do isn’t a major contribution to the local community, then I don’t know what is.
Ahem
Your mum sends her love.
Let’s not forget, free tickets to the nativity play and potentially a spot in the town council’s ‘nuclear bunker’ come the apocalypse.
ps: you can all stay away from my mum, thank you
28 years
26 years
Good for them. Well deserved.
Absolutely! We all know or have heard of people who have been given State honours and everyone says ‘how the hell did they get that?’ But fortunately they are few and in my experience it’s generally a bit of sour grapes from those who thought they should have got something and then complain the most!
Prune, you seem very knowledgeable about honours for lollypop ladies; have you spent the last 24 hours searching the internet for examples or are you the editor of the Observers Book Of Crossing Patrols? 
:sick: [quote=“cygnus maximus” post=14534][quote=“Gunner” post=14533]Good for them. Well deserved.[/quote]
Absolutely! We all know or have heard of people who have been given State honours and everyone says ‘how the hell did they get that?’ But fortunately they are few and in my experience it’s generally a bit of sour grapes from those who thought they should have got something and then complain the most!
Prune, you seem very knowledgeable about honours for lollypop ladies; have you spent the last 24 hours searching the internet for examples or are you the editor of the Observers Book Of Crossing Patrols? :)[/quote]
No. Perhaps you’ve heard of Internet search engines? “Lollipop+mbe+20” returns enough results in 6 seconds to make the point which blows the earlier persons argument out of the water (ie not 40 years, closer to 20, for just doing a part time job). Of course all you good folk doing a full time job AND the ATC are clearly not good enough to be rewarded. Why is that?
this is the point ladies and gents, not lollipop ladies. Please keep up at the back<
Apology accepted.
Sorry Prune - no apology intended therefore no acceptance required. I was merely stating a couple of examples I’ve come across in my own experience but its also good to see that they don’t necessarily have to always do 40-50 years in order to be recognised.
Now stop being such a…prune…and stop devoting your life to trying to prove others wrong. You’ll give yourself a complex.
[quote=“Gunner” post=14539]Sorry Prune - no apology intended therefore no acceptance required. I was merely stating a couple of examples I’ve come across in my own experience but its also good to see that they don’t necessarily have to always do 40-50 years in order to be recognised.
Now stop being such a…prune…and stop devoting your life to trying to prove others wrong. You’ll give yourself a complex.[/quote]
It is quite funny that you can’t take it, when you’re quite direct statement of fact is blown apart and you then pretend to be all nonchalant about it.
instead of being so direct and authoritative you should research your own position from time to time. Perhaps people will listen to you more. You should take the constructive feedback there chap.
Oh and don’t pretend you don’t care about it, because you clearly do. It’s so obvious.
Anyway, back to the subject gentlemen. Has anyone themselves put someone forward for reward? I did a few years back, and some of the feedback on the application was very constructive but the feeling I got was worrying in so much that you needed to have rescued a lorry full of kittens from crashing into a school bus before it would even get a look in.
[quote=“Plt Off Prune” post=14540][quote=“Gunner” post=14539]Sorry Prune - no apology intended therefore no acceptance required. I was merely stating a couple of examples I’ve come across in my own experience but its also good to see that they don’t necessarily have to always do 40-50 years in order to be recognised.
Now stop being such a…prune…and stop devoting your life to trying to prove others wrong. You’ll give yourself a complex.[/quote]
It is quite funny that you can’t take it, when you’re quite direct statement of fact is blown apart and you then pretend to be all nonchalant about it.
instead of being so direct and authoritative you should research your own position from time to time. Perhaps people will listen to you more. You should take the constructive feedback there chap.
Oh and don’t pretend you don’t care about it, because you clearly do. It’s so obvious.[/quote]
Really? You don’t know anything about me so Whatever, Trevor…
[quote=“Plt Off Prune” post=14537] Perhaps you’ve heard of Internet search engines? “Lollipop+mbe+20” returns enough results in 6 seconds to make the point which blows the earlier persons argument out of the water (ie not 40 years, closer to 20, for just doing a part time job). Of course all you good folk doing a full time job AND the ATC are clearly not good enough to be rewarded. Why is that?
this is the point ladies and gents, not lollipop ladies. Please keep up at the back<[/quote]
Sorry Prune, tis the season to be jolly after all, and I’ve never seen the Observers Book of Crossing Patrols anyway.
Regardless of how long these lollipop ladies have done, someone took the time to write them up and that was one of my comments earlier, people seem reluctant to start the process. As has been pointed out, that could be for any number of reasons.
Interestingly, as Prune mentioned it, that very fine Internet Search Engine has revealed these people listed;
MBE, CBE, Knighthood
www.awardsintelligence.co.uk/01444 688740
Expert Queen’s Honours Drafting Service From £2500 plus VAT
How to apply for honours - Free assessment - Subscribe free now
Maybe those Sqn Cdrs who are short of citation writing skills could try them? Or alternatively, you could hire them for a DIY gong, seems like a bargain at £2500!
Anyway, only a few days to go until the twice-yearly teeth gnashing that is the Honours List!
I doubt that would help us as it’s the guide for the civil list. I think the military list requires them in a slightly different format, although I expect there are some principles which would transfer across.
Bah humbug.
Let’s keep on topic and non personal please!