Surrey Army Cadet Force Online

One of the interesting aspects of membership of the ACF is that individual and selfless contributions to the organisation are, from time to time, recognised by the award of promotions to senior positions, certificates of meritorious service, long service medals and very occasionally other national honours. This page is dedicated to those members of Surrey ACF whose contributions to the service of youth have merited an award of one sort or another.

:: MBE For Major Chris White

A surprise award in the 2010 New Years Honours List was an MBE for Major Chris White, who retired from Surrey ACF in January 2009.

Major White joined the ACF in 1982 and served throughout with Surrey. During his 27 years of service he held numerous appointments including Detachment Commander, Company Sergeant Major and County Regimental Sergeant Major Instructor. After commissioning he held a number of senior appointments including 2IC 5th Battalion and finally Officer Commanding “E” Company.

Major White has been Detachment Commander at the following Detachments: Guildford, Haslemere, Chobham, Cranleigh, Woking and twice at Farncombe and Merrow.

A much respected father figure in Surrey ACF, this award to Major Chris White will be recognised by all as timely and well deserved .

:: Lord Lieutenant's Awards 2009

The following members of Surrey ACF were presented with awards during 2009;

Cadet Forces Medal

Major J Rayner

RSMI P Butler

Acting Under Officer G Croucher

Lord Lieutenant's Certificate of Meritorious Service

Major T Hayter

Cadet of the Year and Lord Lieutenant's Cadet

Cadet Under Officer Rachel Tresman

At a ceremony held at Farnham TA Centre in November 2009 the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, Mrs Sarah Goad JP, presented the awards to Major Hayter, RSMI Butler and Cadet Under Officer Rachel Tresman.

Major Rayner received his award from Brigadier Ian James OBE at a brief ceremony at Annual Camp.


RSMI Butler with Lord Lieutenant	Major Hayter with Lord Lieutenant	Cadet Under Officer Tresman with Lord Lieutenant	Major Rayner with Brigadier I James

:: New Commandant Appointed

Colonel Kieron Blackburn TD is the new Commandant of Surrey Army Cadet Force, having been appointed to the role in September 2009.

Colonel Blackburn joined the TA in 1980 and was commissioned into the Queens Regiment in 1984. In 1986 he started a two year Short Service Voluntary Commission (SSVC) with 2 QUEENS. On completion of his SSVC and over a period of 10 years he undertook a number of specialist assignments in the Territorial Army.

In 1997 he was appointed OC ‘A’ Coy 2 RGBW. This was followed by tours as 2IC of Bristol UOTC and as one of the TA instructors at the Junior Officers Tactics Course (JOTAC). He was appointed to command Bristol UOTC in April 2007 and completed this appointment in September 2009 when he was appointed Commandant Surrey ACF.

:: Commandant Appoints New RSMI

The County Regimental Sergeant Major Instructor, Paul Butler, was appointed in June 2009.

RSMI Butler Joined Surrey ACF as a cadet in 1993 and served until he was 18 years of age. He enlisted as a Cadet Force Adult Volunteer and completed his ITC at Browndown in 1997 following which he was posted to Yorktown Detachment. In 1999 he transferred to Addlestone Detachment and shortly after was appointed Detachment Commander where in partnership with SI Jo Brocklehurst (the now out-going RSMI) the Detachment was turned into a thriving unit regularly parading over 25 cadets.

Promotion to Colour Sergeant followed in 2000 and in 2002 he was promoted Sergeant Major Instructor and shortly after appointed Company Sergeant Major for "Braganza" Company as well as being Detachment Commander Deepcut Detachment. In 2004 after the county reorganisation, Paul was appointed CSM of "D" Company, remaining as Detachment Commander Deepcut until 2005 when he relinquished command.

In RSMI Butler's own words: I feel that as Adult Instructors we are privileged to be allowed to do the job we do. The personal challenges, rewards and buzz I get from being an instructor in the ACF make me a better person both in and out of our organisation. The ACF is one of the best things that any adult can do for the youth of today.

Outside the ACF I work for one of the world's largest ground handling companies (Servisair) based at London's Heathrow Airport as Operations Manager. I have worked at the airport since leaving school and feel that the ACF has definitely helped me to develop me at work.

Away from the ACF I enjoy spending time with my wife Sarah, whom I met through the ACF and who is a commissioned officer in the ACF.

:: Commandant Awarded OBE In New Years Honours

Colonel Andrew Blowers, Commandant of Surrey ACF, has been awarded the OBE in the 2009 New Years Honours. Colonel Blowers, a former CCF cadet, has been instrumental in organising many national competitions and overseas trips and events and he serves as a member of the National ACF Recruiting Marketing Group and was the Representative Cadet Commandant representing all ACF Commandants at National level. He is also a member of the Independent Advisory Panel for the Army Training Centre in Pirbright and is a member of the Surrey Committee of the Army Benevolent Fund.

:: Lord Lieutenant's Awards 2008

At a ceremony held at Redhill TA Centre in November 2008 the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, Mrs Sarah Goad JP, presented awards as follows:

Clasp to the Cadet Forces Medal

Major C.Jones

Lord Lieutenant's Certificate of Meritorious Service

Captain B.Cooney MBE

ACF Certificates of Good Service

Major C.Jones
Sergeant Major Instructor P.Butler

Cadet of the Year and Lord Lieutenant's Cadet

Cadet Regimental Sergeant Major B.McConnon

Army Cadet Force Master Cadet Certificate

Cadet Sergeant Major R.Tresman
Cadet Colour Sergeant M.Boraman

St John's Ambulance Young First Aider of the Year

Cadet Sergeant Major R.Tresman


Capt B Cooney with Lord Lieutenant	Major C Jones with Lord Lieutenant	SMI P Butler with Lord Lieutenant	Cadet RSM B Mcconnon with Lord Lieutenant	Cadet Sergeant Major R Tresman with Lord Lieutenant	Cadet Colour Sergeant M Boraman with Lord Lieutenant

:: Appointment of Deputy Commandant

The Commandant has announced that a decision of a recent Board for the position of Deputy Commandant of Surrey ACF chaired by the Brigade Commander (and comprising of the Commandant of Kent ACF and the Deputy Secretary (E) of SERFCA) has agreed that we will revert to the situation some years ago where we have two Deputies in the County and Lieutenant Colonels Alan Mulder and David Newman have been appointed to the roles.

The Commandant stated that he was very pleased with this outcome as it allowed Surrey ACF to have some strength in depth and would allow us to concentrate on many of the areas where the county had hitherto been unable to deliver all that we could have done for our Cadets.

Lieutenant Colonel E.A.Mulder

Lt Col Mulder started his ACF career as a cadet with Cheshire ACF in 1960 and later spent 13 years with Cheshire as an officer. This was followed by 10 years service in the Territorial Army with the 2nd Battalion The Wessex Regiment, where he completed his service as a company commander. He rejoined the ACF in Surrey in 1999 and has held various posts including CO 2nd Battalion and has in recent years been a senior staff officer in county headquarters where he has been Band President, Officers Mess PMC, Adjutant, Media Operations Officer including Web Site Manager and responsible for special projects.

In his appointment as Deputy Commandant (Operations) he will be responsible for: Public relations, SACF website, Overseas Expeditions (supervision and assistance to third parties), Music, Adult Recruitment and Retention, Cadet Recruitment Support (e.g. literature, displays, etc), Young Officer Training (in conjunction with Lt Col John Ross) and the Westminster Database.

Lieutenant Colonel D.Newman

Lt Col Newman joined the Army Cadet Force in 1979 in South West London, following which he enlisted in South West London ACF as an Adult Instructor and by 1987 he was commissioned. In 1989, Lieutenant Newman transferred to Surrey ACF and was Detachment Commander of Redhill and later Caterham Detachment. During his service with Surrey ACF he has held numerous posts including Company Commander of Albuhera Company and later Quebec Company of the 1st Battalion and later as Training Officer. By 1999, he was appointed County Training Officer.

In his appointment as Deputy Commandant/Battalion Commander he will be responsible for: Oversight of Cadet and Adult Training, including BTEC (in conjunction with the CTO, ACTO(A) and BTEC officer) and Oversight of Training Support Functions (e.g. Force Caterers).

:: Cadet Forces Medal

SSI John Fryers was presented with his Cadet Forces Medal at Annual Camp in August 2008 by the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, Mrs Sarah Goad JP. SSI Fryers is a member of the Surrey ACF Catering Platoon and at Annual camp was the Officers' Mess Manager. The award of the medal represented 12 years of dedicated service.

:: Lord Lieutenant's Awards 2007

At a ceremony held at Farnham TA Centre on Wednesday 14th November 2007 the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, Mrs Sarah Goad JP, presented a number of awards as follows:

Cadet Forces Medal (illustrated below)

Major D Williams
Captain B Cooney MBE
Captain F Chitty
SMI S Roots
SMI M Bull
SMI C Cooper
SMI R Wilks
SSI M Jones
SSI J Fryers

Clasp to the Cadet Forces Medal

Major T Hayter
SMI J Drapper

Lord Lieutenant's Certificate of Meritorious Service

Major D Williams

Cadet of the Year

Cadet Under Officer S Jump

ACF Certificates of Good Service

SMI D Stacey
SMI S Peel

Also awarded the Cadet Forces Medal earlier in the year:

Captain D Shipton, SMI B Woodley, SMI C Ridgers, SMI S Beatens received their Cadet Forces Medals from Brigadier Mike Wharmby (Secretary General of the Army Cadet Force Association) at a ceremony held at Annual Camp.


SMI Beatens receives Cadet Forces Medal from Brigadier Wharmby	SMI Woodley receives his Cadet Forces Medal	SMI Ridgers receives his Cadet Forces Medal

:: Appointment of New Deputy Commandant

Lieutenant Colonel John Ross TD completed his tenure as Deputy Commandant of Surrey ACF shortly after Annual Camp last year following nearly eight years of service with Surrey. A selection board was held in late January 2007 from which Lieutenant Colonel Nigel Wright TD was selected as the new Deputy Commandant of Surrey ACF.

Lieutenant Colonel Wright has now joined CHQ and will have his first real experience of Surrey ACF at Annual Camp this year although he has had a baptism of fire by agreeing, two weeks ago, to stand in for Captain Rayner at "B" Company during his absence on sick leave.

He joins us from the Territorial Army where he commanded "A" Company, 6/7 (now 3) PWRR in Farnham. He has served in Northern Ireland attached to the Regular Army and brings a wealth of command experience and military contacts.

Lieutenant Colonel Wright lives in Dorking and runs his own successful business refitting office interiors.

Lieutenant Colonel Ross has agreed that, although stepping down from the Deputy Commandant role, he will stay with Surrey ACF for the foreseeable future, allowing greater flexibility within CHQ. He will continue his involvement with the Battlefield Tour programme and, with Lieutenant Colonel Wright, will work on a progressive training programme for young officers and potential officers with a view to ensuring that the shortages that are currently experienced in Surrey ACF are corrected and that Surrey's pass rate at the Cadet Force Commissioning Board is improved.

:: Lord Lieutenant's Awards 2006

Cadet Under Officer Kirsty McDermott was recognised for her achievements in Surrey ACF by being nominated Cadet of the Year and appointed as the Lord Lieutenant's Cadet in a ceremony held at Redhill TAC presided over by Her Majesty's Lord Lieutenant for Surrey, Mrs Sarah Goad JP.

Rewarded with a Lord Lieutenant's Certificate of Meritorious Service for their outstanding contribution to Surrey ACF were RQMS Charlie Cooper of B Company and Captain Jim Newbury, recently retired County Quartermaster.

Other recipients of awards were Cadet RSM Chris Roper, Cadet Colour Sgt Paul Adams and Major Alan Mulder who received ACF Certificates of Good Service.

In addition to a Certificate of Good Service, Major Mulder also received the first clasp to the Cadet Forces Medal which represented the completion of 18 years of ACF service.

:: Major Nigel Nicholson Awarded Second Bar To His Cadet Force Medal

At a brief and informal ceremony recently the Commandant, Col Andrew Blowers, presented Major Nigel Nicholson, Surrey ACF's senior padre, with the second bar to his Cadet Forces Medal. The Commandant drew attention to the fact that this award recognises some 26 years of service with the Army Cadet Force.

Major Nigel Nicholson who, in his 'day job', is "The Reverend Canon Nigel Nicholson" is the Rector of Cranleigh and a Canon of Guildford Cathedral. He is also the Chairman of Trustees for Surrey ACF's 'in-house' charity, SACFA, which supports so many of the activities undertaken by Surrey Cadets.

The Commandant thanked Major Nicholson for his unfailing support over the years which has encompassed a wide range of pastoral activities particularly every year at the two week Surrey ACF Annual Camp to which the Padre invariably takes Bennett his black Labrador who has become a firm favourite with many cadets."

:: Commandant Appoints New RSMI

Following the retirement of RSMI Nigel Jackson, the Commandant has appointed CSM Jo Wavell to be County RSMI with effect from 25 January 2006.

RSMI Wavell is an ex-cadet who enlisted into Cheshire ACF in 1985 at the time that girls were first allowed to join. She completed her four star APC and finished her cadet service as a Colour Sergeant. On her 18th birthday she became an Adult Instructor, completed her ITC at Preston in 1989 and remained as an instructor with Cheshire for two years until she joined the Regular Army in 1991. RSMI Wavell completed her basic training in Guildford (badged as WRAC - Women's Royal Army Corps) and subsequently transferred to the Royal Corps of Transport and trained to be a Tank Transporter Driver - the first woman to do so in the British Army - working with over 200 men! RSMI Wavell stayed in the RCT until 1996 when she was discharged in the rank of Lance Corporal. On leaving the army, she joined Hampshire Constabulary where she worked for five years in uniform covering the Farnborough area. She has held the appointment of Drugs Intelligence Officer for North East Hampshire and has recently been transferred to the CID where she was appointed Detective in December 2005.

RSMI Wavell joined Surrey ACF in 1999 and through her commitment and enthusiasm has rapidly progressed through the ranks for which she recently received a Lord Lieutenant's Certificate of Meritorious Service. Her last appointment was that of CSM of C Company.

Footnote: Following her recent wedding RSMI Jo Wavell will henceforth be known as RSMI Jo Brocklehurst.

:: Lord Lieutenant's Awards 2005

Cadet Regimental-Sergeant-Major Paul Farr, aged 18, was honoured recently by being appointed the Lord Lieutenant's Cadet by the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, Mrs Sarah Goad, at a ceremony at Farnham TA Centre. Cadet RSM Farr, a sales advisor from Woking and who serves at Pirbright Detachment was declared Cadet of the Year for his achievements and dedication to the Army Cadet movement. Cadet RSM Farr has been a member of the ACF for 5 years.

Also awarded Lord Lieutenant's Certificates of Meritorious Service for their contribution to the Army Cadet Force were Sergeant Major Instructor Brian Woodley of Farnham Detachment, Sergeant Major Instructor Jo Wavell of Surrey ACF "C" Company HQ and Civilian Assistant Mick Horan of County Headquarters.

The award of a Lord Lieutenant's Certificate is a prized honour in the ACF. Very few members are nominated and even fewer are selected to receive the award that recognises the recipient's commitment, dedication, achievements and devotion to duty.

:: Cadet150

2010 is the 150th anniversary of the Army Cadets. There will be celebrations all over the country during the year. For more info follow the link