With immediate effect all overnight camping and bivvying for fieldcraft exercises is to cease until further notice. Further direction will be issued from HQ AC within the next 36 hours relating to overnight camping for the DofE Award Scheme and adventurous training (including the Ten Tors competition). [/quote]
It has now been nearly 48 hours since this poped into my inbox has anybody heard whether DofE, Adv Trg or 10 tors can go ahead.
Please, no speculation or conjecture. Stick to the facts and what HQAC sent out on Wednesday.
CAC put on facebook earlier that she was heading back to HQAC to deal with things that needed her personal attention, perhaps they were holding fire on a decision until she arrived.
CAMPING is back on - email from ACO COS confirming not too long ago and being distributed as we speak. Our Wing has received the email already. Cmdt ACO is doing a detailed response and notice now ready to send out.
Fieldcraft continues to be on hold, more details after Bank Holiday.
[quote]URGENT SAFETY ANNOUNCEMENT
Message from the Comdt:
With apologies for the delayed confirmation due to essential staffing, I confirm that all non fieldcraft-related overnight camping activity is permitted to go ahead as planned. However, all staffs are to note and implement the following safety directive that underpins this decision: Please see the attached directive.
Sent on Behalf of
Air Cdre McCafferty Comdt AC[/quote]
I don’t think BEL makes you any better at sleeping in a basha overnight…then again I can’t think of many situations that warrant a sudden blanket ban on it like this. You boys (and girls) in blue do strange things sometimes.
CBEL does however teach the supervision of cadets in a camping environment, something which is all too often lacking in staff that run fieldcraft training, especially given that anyone who has completed an AMOI (that contains no supervision skills what so ever!), can supervise groups biviing out on fieldcraft exercises in terrain that would otherwise fall under a WGL or similar.
The ban doesn’t seem to suggest anything about not teaching the use of bashas, so I’d say go ahead on the teaching.
It’s just the actual sleeping that can’t be done. Indeed, you’re probably fine if you want to use them as shelters if cadets are resting up during the day, particularly if it’s raining.