FEDERATION RESERVES
THE RAF
by Todd Fellows, RAF FF Evidence Team (Reserves)
It is just over 16 months since it was written into our contract to engage with RAF Reserve personnel and their families, and during that time we have taken the opportunity to meet as many Reserve personnel – both FTRS and PTVR – as possible at their units, often during weekend training sessions. I must say that it has been a real privilege to meet everyone at each RAuxAF squadron visited and we’re grateful for the friendly reception we received everywhere we went.
Our visits have been quite enlightening: From the new fresh-faced, eager recruits on 614 Sqn in Cardiff, to the more experienced and worldly-wise Full Time Reserve Service (FTRS) personnel at RAF Waddington, to 7010 Sqn at RAF Marham. We’ve met families at the 504 Squadron Partners’ Weekend at RAF Wittering and provided a presentation on the role of the RAF FF to a very receptive audience, most of whom had never previously heard of us.
It was also a real eye opener to hear about some of the distances some PTVR personnel are prepared to travel to attend sqn training weekends. We thought Gloucester to Lincolnshire was quite impressive but was easily outdistanced by the gentleman who travels from Malta to
28 Envoy Winter 2015
the UK. However, the gentleman who travelled from the Far East gets the accolade of furthest distance travelled for a training weekend, unless of course anyone can advise us to the contrary!
During this year we conducted a survey of RAF Reserve personnel, both at their units where we used our voting pads in interactive workshops and also through an online survey, accessed by our website. We asked a little over 30 questions ranging from ‘what factor most influenced your decision to join the Reserves’ through to ‘what is your morale like in the RAF Reserves’ and plenty more in between. We received over 300 responses, 12% of the entire Reserve cadre. As well as getting the answers to our questions we received over 40 pages of comments. What really stood out from the responses – both PTVR and FTRS – was the level of commitment and enthusiasm displayed by all. I thank all those who took part in, either the workshops or the survey, for their time and effort. Hard copies of the report have been distributed to every RAuxAF Sqn as well as every station in the RAF. If you have yet to read the report it is still available on our website. We also presented the findings to the RAuxAF Sqn Cdrs Conference and the Reserves policy staff at HQ Air will, we hope,
be providing a “You said, We did” response.
The Families Federation is regularly present at RAF Halton for the graduation ceremonies, which have included at least six members of the RAuxAF alongside their regular colleagues: Further evidence that the ‘Whole Force’ concept within the RAF is gaining in stature.
Next year, we intend to visit as many RAuxAF Squadrons as possible and include FTRS personnel in our visits to RAF MOBs. If you would like a visit, especially on a day when the families gather on the squadron, please give me a call or contact me via our website – we would be more than delighted to meet you. We look forward to working and interacting with as many RAF Reserve personnel as possible over the coming years to hear what you have to say, so that we can provide a voice for the issues and concerns you may have about your life in the RAF and provide feedback to the ‘top of the shop’.
In the meantime, if you experience any issues or have any concerns, please email me at
enquiries@raf-ff.org.uk. And don’t forget our closed Facebook Group for the Reserve community, which you can join via our website –
www.raf-ff.org.uk.
www.raf-ff.org.uk
MoD©
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56