An army training regiment (ATR) provides
Basic Phase 1 Training for all elements of the
British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
, except the
infantry
Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
. There are currently four army training regiments.
Regiments and sub-units
*1st Army Training Regiment (1 ATR) located at
Army Training Centre Pirbright (ATC P).
** Jackson Company,
Adjutant General's Corps
The Adjutant General's Corps is a corps in the British Army responsible for many of its general administrative services, named for the Adjutant-General to the Forces (now the Commander Home Command). As of 2002, the AGC had a staff of 7,000 peop ...
** 59 (Asten) Battery,
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
** 96 (Duke of Gloucester) Squadron,
Royal Logistic Corps
The Royal Logistic Corps provides logistic support functions to the British Army. It is the largest Corps in the Army.
History
The Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) was formed on 5 April 1993, by the union of five British Army corps:
* Royal Engine ...
**
Chavasse Company,
Royal Army Medical Service
The Royal Army Medical Service (RAMS) is a specialist corps in the British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigad ...
*2nd Army Training Regiment (2 ATR) located at
Army Training Centre Pirbright (ATC P).
** 1 (Fowler) Signal Squadron,
Royal Corps of Signals
The Royal Corps of Signals (often simply known as the Royal Signals – abbreviated to R SIGNALS) is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield communications an ...
** Caen Squadron,
Royal Armoured Corps
The Royal Armoured Corps is the armoured arm of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 and the Warrior tracked armoured vehicle. It includes most of the Ar ...
** D Company (training
Army Reservists)
** 28 Squadron,
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...
** 108 (Princess Royal's) Squadron, Royal Logistic Corps
*
Army Training Regiment Winchester (ATR W) located at
Sir John Moore Barracks,
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
.
*
Army Training Regiment Grantham (ATR G) located at
Prince William of Gloucester Barracks,
Grantham
Grantham () is a market town and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road. It lies south of Lincoln, England ...
provides training for all Army Reserve recruits.
Under Future Soldier, a new British Army Soldier Academy will be established in Pirbright. The sites at Winchester and Grantham will be closed.
The British Army also used to have army training regiments at;
*
Bassingbourn (closed in 2012),
* Harrogate (renamed the
Army Foundation College
The Army Foundation College (AFC) in Harrogate, England, is the sole initial military training unit for British Army recruits who enlist aged between 16 and 17.5 years.
AFC delivers two 'Phase 1' initial training courses: the 'long course' ...
),
*
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated south-east of the county town of Stafford, north-east of Walsall, north-west of ...
(closed in 2008).
Syllabus
Army training regiments deliver a 14-week training course (which teaches all aspects of the Common Military Syllabus) that is completed by all adult (age 17+) recruits when they join the Regular Army.
Recruits are taught and tested on a variety of military subjects, including;
* Weapon handling, marksmanship principals and live firing with the
L85A3 rifle, and how to strip, clean and maintain it.
* Physical training that involves running, circuit training, battle PT, swimming, loaded marching, assault course, calisthenics and more.
* Battlefield casualty drills including triage and stabilisiation of casualties, treatment of gunshot wounds, catastrophic bleeds, loss of limb, breathing difficulties, bone breaks, burns, shock, evacuation procedures and more.
* Field craft including constructing a shelter and erecting a '
basha', animal traps, cooking, filtering and disinfecting water, personal hygiene
*
Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense
Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense (CBRN defense) or Nuclear, biological, and chemical protection (NBC protection) is a class of protective measures taken in situations where chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclea ...
(CBRN defence) drills, including the rapid donning of CBRN suit and respirator (gas mask), decontaminating themselves and their equipment, administering first aid for poisoning, and testing the environment for agents. A key part of this training involves recruits entering a room filled with
tear gas
Tear gas, also known as a lachrymatory agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the Mace (spray), early commercial self-defense spray, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the ey ...
, removing their respirator, and attempting to shout their name, rank, number, and the regiment/corps they are aspiring to join, before the effects of the tear gas (coughing, sneezing, eyes burning, shortness of breath) become too much to handle.
* Field exercises where recruits are taught vital military knowledge such as patrolling discipline and formations, section/platoon attacks, room clearance drills, ambushes, searching enemy/civilian prisoners and vehicles, the 6 section battle drills; "''Prep for battle, react to enemy fire, locate the enemy, suppress the enemy, attack the enemy, re-group''", how to locate the enemy and accurately communicate the enemy's distance and location/target indication via methods such as direct method, clock ray method, bracketing etc, why things are seen and the "7 S's of camoflauge"; ''Shape, Speed, Skyline, Shadow, Silhouette, Spacing, Shine, Sound,'' defense of
FOBs
A Fractional Orbital Bombardment System (FOBS) is a warhead delivery system that uses a low Earth orbit towards its target destination. Just before reaching the target, it deorbits through a retrograde engine burn.
The Soviet Union first develop ...
and 'harbour areas' and static and dynamic sentry, standing guard or "stag", river and obstacle crossing, hand signals, and radio communication voice procedure.
* Navigation and map reading including navigating at night and in dense forest, using only a map and compass.
* Courage, discipline, respect for others, integrity, loyalty, and selfless commitment (CDRILS) are the Army's Values & Standards and are taught and discussed in presentations and practical scenarios.
* The
Law of Armed Conflict
The law of war is a component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war (''jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of hostilities (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territories, ...
and
Geneva Conventions
upright=1.15, The original document in single pages, 1864
The Geneva Conventions are international humanitarian laws consisting of four treaties and three additional protocols that establish international legal standards for humanitarian t ...
.
* A "Realities of War" trip.
* Bayonet fighting and hand to hand combat.
*
Foot drill
Foot drill is a part of the training regimen of organized military and paramilitary elements worldwide. It is also practiced by other public services such as police forces, fire and ambulance services. "Foot drill" or "Drill" stems from time si ...
and
rifle drill.
* Grenade drills.
See also
*
Army Training Unit
*
Selection and training in the British Army
References
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017
Training regiments of the British Army
Military units and formations established in the 1990s