West Lowland
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Welcome
The West Lowland Battalion Army Cadet Force has thirty two detachments throughout Ayrshire, Renfrewshire and Dumfries & Galloway. It is a voluntary youth organisation that derives most of it sponsorship from the Army, and is open to both males & females between 12 & 18 years 9 months.
The Battalion was formed in 1992, when the Dumfries & Galloway ‘half' of the Kings Own Scottish Borderers Battalion ACF amalgamated with the Ayr & Renfrew Battalion ACF. The Battalion continues to grow and is always on the look out for new activities and oversees expeditions for it cadets.
Battalion launch of Cadet150
The Commandant, Colonel Kevin Connor, stated that during 2010, the Cadet150 year, First Aid was to be a priority and the Cadet Force being seen in their local community is paramount.
As in true military fashion, the Nursing Officer, Captain Sam Bunyan answered: “Yes, sir”. But how was she to implement this directive?
To overcome the First Aid training request, she decided to bring in a group of adults from throughout the area to complete the four-day First Aid at Work qualification. Twelve adults have now completed the course and will deliver training up to certificated level for the 800 plus cadets in the battalion area.
Although this will put youngsters out in the community with first aid qualifications, how can we get the Cadet Force seen in the community?
The Army Cadet Force has around 150 qualified instructors in the area. So why not have them pass on their skills to running community classes in basic life support.
Heartstart Ayrshire and Arran was more than willing to train around twenty Army Cadet Force instructors to deliver basic first aid techniques to community groups and schools. With the Army Cadet Force Instructors already competent at teaching, the Heartstart Instructors Course would only take around four hours.
Over the next few months you may see the Army Cadet Force run two-hour basic life support classes in your local community or school. That can only be a good thing for us all.
Brenda Gemmill, the Heartstart Training Officer for Ayrshire & Arran said; “Heartstart is co-ordinated by the British Heart Foundation and is a registered charity. We are lucky in this area as Ayrshire & Arran Health Board contract us to deliver to the public training to do simple skills that saves lives. With the Army Cadet Force Instructors now onboard we hope reach our 50,000 people trained since we first started training in 1996.”
Captain Sam Bunyan the Army Cadet Force Nursing Officer added; “First aid is a basic military skill that all our cadets are taught, the more senior, the higher level of competence required from cadets. With twenty of our instructors now Heartstart instructors, we hope to see the profile of our Army Cadet Force raised during our 150th Anniversary year.”
Find our detachments
Use our map to find your nearest detachment
