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This year is a special year for Waltham Forest Sea Cadet Unit as we are now celebrating our 70th Year as part of the Sea Cadet Corps. Waltham Forest is an amalgamation of both Walthamstow and Chingford Sea Cadet Units.  We ahve a lot to proud of and continue to be active within the community. We currently have ex cadets serving in the Royal Marines, British Army, NHS, Police and Fire Services proving how worthwhile having a cadet background can be. Unit records show that we have had a total of 7 Commanding Officers and our current compliment is about 60 cadets which breaks down as roughly 40 Sea Cadets, 15 Royal Marines Cadets and 5 Junior Cadets. We are currently a Burgee Award winning unit and have retained this standard over the last two years. This is one of the highest awards a Sea Cadet Unit can achieve. To mark this occasion unit polo T shirts are available at £12 each. Please use the contact Us facility if you would like one.

The unit were fortunate enough to get VIP tickets on Westminster Bridge to watch the Diamond Jubilee river Pageant on the 1st June. As can be seen the weather was foul, but the cadets braved the elements to watch the Royal Family sail past. CPO Burns even suggested that HRH Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip who was. once a serving officer in the Royal Navy waved at her! Pictured are Cadets POC Osborne, OC Zhile, and Cpl Hubert.

Her Majesty's visit to the Borough coincided with our Units President James Shadbolt MBE birthday. Mr Shadbolt has been associated with the unit for a considerable time and has out served some 5 commanding Officers! Mr Shadbolt continues to support the unit, he is our life President and we all wish him the very best.

On 30th March as part of Her Majesty's Diamond Jubilee Tour, the Queen and his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh visited East London and the units cadets had the honour of forming a Royal lining party in front of Waltham Forest town hall. Pictured are all the cadets that took part with the Royal Standard and centered is Police Insp Bovingdon reasponsible for the event.

A CHURCH held a special Remembrance service for one of its parishioners last Sunday (November 20). Ernest Allum, 90, of St Barnabas Road in Woodford Green, was unable to attend the Remembrance service and rededication of the War Memorial at St Barnabas Church on Remembrance Sunday. But Deputy Church Warden, Alan Clark arranged for a special service to be held for Mr Allum and other veterans from the Merchant Navy. Mr Allum, who played a leading in role in having the war memorial restored, placed a wreath at the ceremony which was also attended by members of the Waltham Forest Sea Cadets. He said: “It was very good of the church to do this for me. “I felt greatly humbled by it all. It was a real battle to get the memorial restored and rededicated and to be able to stand there and remember old friends who lost their lives was very special.” - Guardian