Land-locked Bradford Sea Cadets voted best in the country

Despite the city being more than 70 miles from both the east and west coasts, the junior unit beat 400 others from across the country to win the national Evelyn Cleverly Award, an annual honour given to the junior section deemed ‘best’ by the Captain of the Sea Cadets.

In the last year, Bradford’s 20 juniors have gained 45 qualifications in rowing, sailing, first aid, rigging and cooking, while also achieving 26 awards in the normal junior syllabus. Six cadets achieved more than 20 hours of rowing, eight more than 20 hours of power boating and five more than 40 hours’ sailing.

In a citation, Commander Eric Langley, area officer for the eastern area Sea Cadet Corps said: “The finest traditions of the Sea Cadet Corps are upheld in the Bradford unit and this can be seen in their juniors who inevitably become some of the finest senior cadets that West Yorkshire has to offer.”

The group was awarded its shield during a presentation evening led by the Deputy Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Mike Gibbons.

Handing over the honour, he told them: “You are a credit to the cadets, to the city and to yourselves and your families.”

Four cadets were also awarded an insignia marking their promotion through the cadet ranks, including 15-year-olds Ashleigh Sutcliffe, Ummar Younis and Abbas Younis who have become Leading Cadets and the Lord Mayor’s Cadet, Lorna Zurek, now Petty Officer Cadet.

The presentation evening started the celebrations to mark the unit’s 75th anniversary year.

A birthday party will be held in April, its month of inauguration, as well as a mess dinner in September and its annual Trafalgar Day parade in October.

A recruitment evening will be held at its home, the former Feversham Street Nursery School, at 7.15pm on Wednesday, April 24, where young people aged ten and above and their parents can find out more about joining.

For more information, call (01274) 305245.