NAVY NEWS, APRIL 2009 15
Gritting in
Rose in bloom
progress
till autumn
ROOKIE sailors will face a
tougher test when they join up to
IF YOU are not one of the eight
give the RN more ‘grit’.
million people who has seen
Senior offi cers and instructors
Henry VIII’s fl agship in the fl esh,
at HMS Raleigh – where all
you’ve got until the middle of
junior ratings receive their basic
September to visit her.
training – are overhauling the
The ship hall which houses
nine-week course to make it more
the Mary Rose in Portsmouth’s
challenging.
historic dockyard will be
It’s the latest change rippling
closed from the autumn as it is
through the Senior Service
transformed into a new £35m
with an increasing emphasis
visitor centre.
not merely on operations – but
The Tudor warship has been on
operations on land.
display to the public since 1983
Aside from 3 Commando
and continues to draw around
Brigade leading the British
300,000 people each year.
presence in Afghanistan currently,
And for the past 26 years,
sailors comprise a sizeable
tourists have only seen the great
proportion of its numbers as
ship through a shroud of mist as
medics, truck drivers, logistics
she’s sprayed with a sort of ‘wood
specialists, intelligence analysts.
polyfi lla’ – polyethylene glycol, a
All this demands what the
wax solution which plugs the gaps
Royal Marines possess in
in the timbers left by centuries
abundance but doesn’t perhaps
under the Solent.
come as naturally to sailors.
Once the spraying is complete
They’re not infantry, after all.
in 2011, the hull can be carefully
The buzzword in RN circles
dried and, circa 2016, visitors
is ‘grit’ – dogged determination,
will be able to inspect the ship
resolve, toughness. And it should
without having to peer through
be instilled into a sailor, says
● Rehabilitation’s what you need... Stonehouse Division sailors undergoing a therapy session in Raleigh’s pool
the windows which currently
Picture: Dave Sherfield, HMS Raleigh
Raleigh’s Commanding Offi cer
separate them from the relic.
Capt Jonathan Woodcock, on the
To that end the existing ship
very fi rst day of their career.
“Trainees come here expecting
to be tested – and they should
be,” he explained.
“There’s an increasing drive
to foster ‘grit’ in sailors – putting It’s not the end of the
hall is being knocked down (as
is an offi ce block opposite HMS
Victory) and replaced with a
£35m hall/museum which will
open in 2012 (namely before the
drying is complete).
them under more pressure,
All that work means the Mary
making things tougher, taking
Rose herself will be off limits to
more risks, as individuals, and as
a team.”
The captain and his team are
adding the fi nishing touches to
their ‘grit’ programme, but in a
nutshell, it’s ‘more and harder’ world as we know it
visitors for about three years,
although the museum next to
Victory Gate which houses many
of the artefacts raised from the
wreck remains open throughout.
Visitors will still be able to see
– more weapons handling,
the ship while the hall is rebuilt
more time in the gym, tougher
around her – CCTV cameras will
swimming tests.
“KEEP smiling and
has spent longer than anyone else RN, about the various jobs and about make the best of a diffi cult –
beam live pictures of Mary Rose
“The important thing is that remember you are
in Stonehouse recovering. He roles, I have had far more exposure and unwanted – situation.”
into the museum.
every single trainee will have
heading for a great life in
didn’t give up and neither did the to senior personnel than I would Their boss agrees. “If these
As for the new ship hall, the
found parts of the nine-week
Raleigh staff. otherwise, and I have learned how guys are still here after all they’ve
Mary Rose Trust is more than
course diffi cult and challenging,”
the Navy, baby.” “The medical and PT staff do
quickly I can make friends,” says been through, then we’re doing
half way towards raising its share
said Capt Woodcock.
Not the words of a song but everything they can to get people
AB(Sea) Frazer Maclennan, who something right,” says WO1 of the £35m outlay. The Heritage
“Take the swimming test for
the last line of a letter by a junior fi t again. In the end, it’s a medical
dislocated his shoulder and spent Royle. Lottery Fund is providing three
example: a couple of lengths of
rating, one ET(WE) Simon Butler, decision. As long as there’s a
eight months getting back to full “They leave Stonehouse better fi fths of the money, with the trust
the pool and treading water for
pinned to the wall in a block at chance of recovery, we keep people
fi tness. prepared mentally and also more expected to fi nd the remaining
fi ve minutes. Rather than just
HMS Raleigh. in,” explains WO1 Joe Royle, in
AB Glen adds: “Stonehouse is determined.” £14m.
lying on their backs, we want
It – and a good dozen others charge of Stonehouse.
trainees to try to stand upright in
on the noticeboard of the mess “Some people choose to leave
the water.”
space – serve as inspiration to – it does get to them. But they’re
There is a fi ne line to tread
comrades unlucky enough to end actually very few.”
here. On the one hand you don’t
up Stonehouse Division. That numbers of convalescents
Harry wants to join the
want to return to the days of the
Stonehouse is home to sailors choosing to return to civilian life
bawling sergeant major... and on
either injured during basic training are low is down to one simple rule:
the other you don’t want to be
or those who fail the mandatory keep ’em busy.
Forces just like his Dad.
fl uffy.
RN fi tness or swimming tests. “It’s important to keep up the
“There is no reason why
The latter are given four weeks sailors’ mental strength – they go
training cannot be tough but at
to make the grade, undergoing through highs and lows. So we
We have been here for Harry
the same time still care for our
intensive training to help them pass fi nd things for them to do.”
people. If we don’t, then we’ll
(although in most cases the issue Some of the tasks can be fairly
and his family since the day
suffer from high leaving rates.
is more mental than physical). mundane – sorting the mail or
We’re not running a boot camp.”
If they’ve still not reached the bedding – some can be daunting
his father joined up; for over
Not too long ago, much of the
standard demanded by the RN such as giving presentations or
attraction of the Senior Service
after that time, they return to civvy staging debates, and others can 100 years we have supported
– as refl ected by some of its
street. be uplifting, such as helping
advertising – was still the chance
Far more common, however, new arrivals coming through the Armed Forces’ families with
to ‘see the world’.
are trainees injured during those Raleigh gates for the fi rst time, or
“We don’t talk about joining
initial nine weeks and who are getting stuck in at Churchtown affordable accommodation
the RN so you can have a good
unable to resume their basic Farm activity centre near St
run ashore any more,” said Capt
training, let alone begin their Austell (a mainstay of Navy News’ and welfare breaks.
Woodcock.
specialist instruction in their charity pages…).
“The message now is: you are
chosen branches. And there can be And there’s a lot of phys.
joining a fi ghting force. More
no thought of that without passing “Our fi tness levels are
We are the Victory Services Club;
and more in training we are
out of Raleigh. constantly improving,” said AB
the all ranks, tri-service, family friendly
demonstrating what seapower
So what shall we do with a Glen. “There’s a good bunch of
is about, showing trainees the
broken sailor? lads in here and the staff keep us
London based club. We are a charity
sort of operations they will be
Well, there’s plenty of bespoke busy – there’s always something to
involved in – and explaining that
physiotherapy, work with the PTIs look forward to.” that offers membership to the military
these operations might not be in
to keep the trainees’ strength up. There can be as few as half a
a ship.”
But it’s the mental battle which dozen sailors convalescing – or as
community for the rest of their lives
That’s something many of
is just as important to win. Sailors many as 25.
and free membership to those who
those entering the Torpoint
come through the gates of the Most are spurred on by notes on
establishment for the fi rst time
Torpoint establishment all set for the wall of their rest area written
currently serve.
accept – and expect.
a life on the Seven Seas. by those who gone through the
While Generations X and Y
A few weeks later they fi nd Stonehouse experience – and have
may be branded as indifferent,
themselves injured, their careers resumed their mainstream RN Rest assured. 020 7616 8322
lazy, inactive and other invectives
on ice and with no target date in careers (see below).
by Fleet Street, motivation is not
their diaries they can underline. While being injured initially
an issue at Raleigh.
“Being sent to Stonehouse is was a body blow, most of those
“Youngsters coming through
seen as a stigma. You don’t want to leaving the division and rejoining
the gates want it hard, they want
end up here,” says AB(CIS(SM)) mainstream training believe
challenges,” said CPO(PT) Sean
Anthony Glen. they’ve become better sailors as a
Childs, one of Raleigh’s senior
There should be no stigma result of the experience.
physical training instructors.
whatsoever attached to the junior “I have learned more about
“That’s the way to succeed,
rating. He broke his ankle and myself, learned more about the
to win.”
Trainees join for the life
and the lifestyle, says Capt
Woodcock – and tell their
instructors their ambition is to
climb as far up the RN ladder as
they can.
“Money is not the issue. I
want to do something extra with
my life – and have a suitable
career,” said budding submariner
AB(CIS) Anthony Glen.
AB(Sea) Frazer Maclennan
who’s just beginning his
seamanship training, added: “I
want to see what I can do. I want
to do something hands on, to
Room rates from £32
have the chance to drive a fast
and discounted parking
boat.”
015_NN_Apr.indd 1 17/3/09 13:14:08
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