Community Project trains Marines

SOUTH DEVON COLLEGE Construction students have returned to a training complex at the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines at Lympstone near Exmouth to further develop a first rate training facility they renovated a year ago.

The Construction Department at South Devon College has for the past five years been head of the “Projects in the Community” project, in which learners on a variety of courses actively work on local community projects on a voluntary basis.

Last year the College’s construction department was invited into the Commando Training Centre to take a look at part of its training complex in need of significant refurbishment. The building itself was a huge factory unit, containing high block walls designed to simulate rooms to help prepare marines for clearance and evacuation combat drills. There was also a large gantry area overlooking the walls where instructors can view the training sessions from above. They had been using cardboard boxes to imitate furniture and fake walls in order to keep the ‘Modernised Urban Combat Facility’ realistic. This presented difficulties in ensuring each training session was different and recruits wouldn’t get used to their surroundings – an unrealistic assumption that wouldn’t occur in a real combat situation, such as in Afghanistan.

College Construction students spent a week at the Royal Marine base creating heavy duty ‘removable’ wooden walls & stud walling, doors and windows to fit into the combat facility. The idea being that before each training session the entire layout of the centre could be completely changed so that recruits would have to quickly adapt to a different situation each time, thus preparing them more thoroughly for real combat situations.

They were recently invited back for ‘Phase 2’ of the re-development, which has seen further walls, doors, windows and mock furniture created by the students, plus the maintenance of the original walls – which have seen some general wear and tear after a year of use - complete with special wheel brackets underneath for easier transport.

Marine Edward Hill of Assault Engineer (AE) Troop at the Training Centre, spent the most time with the group of Level 2 Site Carpentry students from South Devon College, and was very impressed with their attitude,

“It’s been a good, enjoyable experience,” said Marine Hill, “the guys were extremely professional and worked together well to achieve an impressive outcome. They have coped very well with fabricated work experience that has to be completed to a much higher standard than is required elsewhere. The facility is used regularly and their work has greatly aided the training of the elite fighting force that is the Royal Marines.”

During their time at the Commando Training Centre, the students got the opportunity to work with the Royal Marine Commandos, and were even invited to the camp museum and given a special presentation on ‘Dynamic Methods of Entry’ using the training facility they helped create.

“I’ve really enjoyed the whole experience,” said College student Jamie Mitchell (23, from Torquay), who spent all week at the camp, even on his days off, “We’ve had some great feedback from Marines who genuinely appreciate our work – and I’m very proud to have been a part of something like this.”

“It’s been unique and fantastic on-site work experience for the students, who thoroughly enjoyed it,” said Will Putman, Carpentry & Joinery Work Based Assessor at the College, who accompanied the students, “It’s always a real delight to see your learners put into practice the college work and skills we have taught them in a real working environment. Thanks must go to the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines at Lympstone for the opportunity and their hospitality – it really has had a very positive effect on the group.”

So far the “Projects in the Community” students have undertaken projects at Occombe Farm in Paignton, where they have built a new Education Centre Straw Bale Building; they installed a new boiler room and kitchen at White Rock Primary School; undertook a variety of work at Chelston Cricket Club, Brixham Community Swimming Pool, ABC Boxing in Torquay, Stoke Gabriel Community Hall, and also Douglas House - the Leonard Cheshire Disability Residential Home in Brixham. Last year students spent over 4,000 hours working on local and wider community-based projects.