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In May, Sea Cadets hosted the first ever official naming event for two RS Zests. Sea Cadets were joined by the BMT Group, who supported Sea Cadets by donating two RS Zests for use at Whale Island Boat Station, one in recognition of the retirement of their former board member, Ian Davies.

Ian Davies was joined by Guy Tomlinson, Group Capability and Strategy Director at BMT, Cdr Chris Roberts, CO at HMS Excellent, local cadets, family, friends and staff members from BMT Group to officially name the RS Zests. As part of the event, all guests had the incredible opportunity to get out on the water with the cadets and sail the dinghies. Both RS Zests will be kept at Whale Island Boat Station and will enable the charity to give opportunities, training and qualifications to more young people in the area.

Congratulations to the four amazing runners who made the most of the May bank holiday weekend and ran Vitality 10k on Monday 27 May for Sea Cadets. The team, who included corporate supporters, a volunteer and an employee all completed their runs with fantastic times and great enthusiasm on a warm day in the capital. 

Six boats have been donated, all of which will be rotated around the country to deliver keelboat training amongst the 15,000 Sea Cadets across the UK. Guests on the day were invited to experience a taste of the programme which the Sea Cadets youth charity will be able to deliver thanks to the generous support of Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.

The training made possible through these RS21 keelboats will focus on the delivery of RYA qualifications and league competitions across at least eight boat stations nationally. These boats are expected to provide a minimum of 12 years of service for the benefit of over 1,000 cadets per year.

Sea Cadets charity Chief Executive, Martin Coles said “we are extremely grateful to Sir Stelios for the fantastic opportunity these keelboats will provide our cadets. Many of our young people come from inner city communities or disadvantaged areas and would never have imagined being able to access sail training in such fantastic vessels, maybe even inspiring a future career in the maritime sector. So for many of our cadets, these keelboats mark the beginning of a life that would not otherwise have been available to them.”

My name is Matthew and I attended Worcester Sea Cadets. I joined when I was 12-years-old and left when I was 16-years-old.

I had a fantastic time there and I am still welcome to go back when I can. It’s feels like a family, everyone is so nice and caring.

Sea Cadets helped me gain confidence and leadership. I did many courses such as Powerboat level 2 which was amazing.

I reached Able Cadet and enjoyed every second, especially the courses! You gain so many friends from around the nation, meet amazing people and see amazing things.

When I finished my GCSEs, I got the right grades to go to Fleetwood Nautical College where I am currently studying a HNC in nautical science as a Deck Officer Cadet. I am sponsored by P and O ferries and am really enjoying it. Sea Cadets has giving me the confidence and discipline to live on my own away from home and follow my dreams.

Although I had to leave at 16 I would have happily stayed until 18 if I could.

Once I qualify as a third officer in the Merchant Navy I will be sure to return.

Many thanks for what you have done for me.

On Saturday the 4th of May cadets helped open the Army Vs Royal Navy game by carrying out the White Ensigned flag onto the pitch. 

Senior Events Officer Seb Britton said “It started raining heavily just before the cadets went out on the pitch but this didn’t dampen their spirits, all the cadets did superbly well and put on a great show in front of 80,000 rugby fans. There’s very little time to practice carrying the White Ensign ahead of the game and once you’re on the pitch you can’t hear anything over the noise of the crowd. It’s a nerve-racking experience, especially when the flag is revealed but the cadets managed to pull it off perfectly!"

One parent commented saying "the cadets did so well and made us very proud". 

The overall score was 27-11 to Army 

Cadets represented from the following units:

Camberley

Chelmsford

Cheshunt

Chichester

Haringey

Hove and Adur

Milton Keynes

Newhaven

Portsmouth

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