Barbequing fresh food in the open air at dusk before your own made basher and enjoying the relaxing company of your fellow cadets after overcoming trepidation at new experiences has got to be one of summer’s greatest pleasures.

On 8th July, three cadets from The Quest Academy deployed to Oakhampton Camp with Trinity School cadet force. They experienced life on a real army base and honed their skills at drill.

Their week’s work took the form of experiencing a ‘Wilderness Living’ camp designed to enhance cadet skills and the basic methodology of living in the wild with only the most basic of equipment.

As well as practising drill, field craft and weapons handling, our cadets have learnt knife skills, field craft and survival skills and lessons in the psychology of survival during the evenings in preparation for the course. They experienced the thrill of coasteering around some of the country’s most spectacular cliffs, honed their navigation skills in geocaching and gained a wealth of experience in navigating difficult terrain. Heavy rain over the course of our navigation exercise provided further challenges, which were met with strong discipline and determination.

One of the main objectives of the camp was for participants to attain their L2 Survival Award. Trinity and The Quest students are the first cadets in the country to gain this award, which is the equivalent to the Level 3 award for survival in the Royal Marines. Congratulations to Olivia Bull and Ryan Donnelly on achieving this hard-won qualification. It is a testimony to their courage, resilience, adaptability, intelligence and strong self-discipline.

Lt. Mcleod