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Last month, our First Sea Lord Cadets were invited to join Admiral Sir Philip Jones KCB ADC at the Ministry of Defence (MoD) HQ in London for the day, getting the opportunity to speak to the Admiral and meet members of the Navy Board, the body responsible for the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy.

Before heading to the MoD main building, cadets were treated to a tour of the historic boardroom in the old admiralty buildings, this is where the most important decisions affecting the Navy have been made since 1725 and contains a number of artefacts including a portrait of Admiral Nelson and an ornate carved fireplace.

Once at main building the group received briefings on naval operations, aviation and life as a weapons engineer before a buffet lunch and photographs with the Navy Board. 

Able Cadet Miles and Cadet first Class Fraser, from Brentwood Sea Cadets, spent their free time last month helping a Royal Navy Veteran in need.

Eighty-six-year-old Ted Hill, a former Royal Navy Stoker had initially contacted the unit to see if they would like some books from his library but after PO (SCC) Hayward met with Ted she realised he was in need of some support. She explained to the cadets about the situation and they immediately asked if they could help him.

Ted will shortly be moving over 100 miles away to a new home, and was in need of assistance to clear his extensive library of naval books, which he no longer wanted to keep. The cadets took it upon themselves to arrange what support they could offer and contacted some nearby charity shops. After selecting some of the books for their unit, Miles and Fraser, each logged over 3000 steps clearing the books, which they delivered to Barnardo’s and St Francis’ Hospice in Harold Hill.

On 14 April, Harlow Sea Cadets joined The Harlow Council Spring Clean Up and did some serious damage as cadets and volunteers managed to collect over 12 bags of rubbish around the city, negotiating some seriously thick hedge to get the job done. 

PPO (SCC) Kelly Aimable from Harlow said: "we chose to do the litter pick up as it is a great way to show the cadets the impact it has when people drop litter on the floor. It also teaches them responsibility for the environment. We feel it is a great cause to support as it is helping towards future generations an we are proud of the cadets that turned up to help and be involved".

BZ Harlow Sea Cadets for your work in improving your local community!

ive-years-ago, ex-Peterhead cadet Megan was the youngest competitor at Sea Cadets' National Combined Regatta where she effortlessly took gold in the Yole category - now she's aiming to win gold for Team GB!

Reflecting on the competition five-years-ago, Northern Area Officer Peter Adams said: "I saw Megan win gold in the Yole category of the National Combined Regatta at the age of 14.  She was the youngest competitor but she seemed to effortlessly cross the finish line and was well ahead of the competition".

Megan's love of rowing was so strong that she ended up leaving Sea Cadets to focus solely on her rowing, going on to be selected for Scotland and, recently, the Great British team.

Megan's mum, Gillian told us: "As her mum, I’m so grateful for the opportunities Sea Cadets provided. The life lessons Megan learned whilst at Sea Cadets have provided a strong platform that enabled her to succeed both in the classroom and on the water." 

Leading Cadet Luke, from Blackburn Unit, found himself meeting his grandad for the first time 4,000 miles from home on Sea Cadets' International Exchange program.

A few of years ago Luke’s mother, Lisa, was contacted by her biological father for the first time through social media site Facebook.

“We had plans to meet as soon as we could, but unfortunately we both had some health issues and long haul flights would prove to be difficult,” said Lisa. “As soon as we found out Luke had been accepted (onto the exchange programme), my Dad and his wife made the decision to visit him while he was on his exchange”.

Luke ended up having the experience of a lifetime when he met his grandad on Darling Harbour. Luke, along with three other cadets were part of the UK Sea Cadets group that travelled to Australia to explore the history and culture of life down-under.

Lisa said: “Luke loves Sea Cadets. His time on the International Exchange programme was so special and without Sea Cadets this would not have been possible”.