Ordnance Insignia of the British Army
The Home Service Force and the RAOC.
D (HSF) Company, 15 Bn RAOC
The Home Service Force (HSF) was an integral part of the Territorial Army form to produce a force capable of defending vital installations throughout the UK, such as major Power Stations, Communication Centres etc, thus releasing both regular and/or TA units for other tasks. It began with a pilot unit in September 1982 and was expanded in 1985.
The criteria for enlistment were one of the following.
a) Former members of the regular Navy, Royal Marines, Army or Royal Air Force discharged with a conduct of Good or above.
b) Serving or former members of the TA with over 2 years service and qualified for a bounty at least twice.
c) Officers or adult instructors with any of the Cadet Forces with over two years service.
d) Former MOD Policemen with over two years service.
Entry to the ranks would be as a private soldier and the age ceiling was set at 50. Promotion would be to fill unit establishment and based previous service and current suitability. Officers within the basic recruitment criteria could enlist up to 55, the maximum retention age for all ranks was 60.
The role of each HSF unit centred on basic infantry skills, and, when considering the various backgrounds the members came from, it worked extremely well. (Although getting ex Royal Marines or Sailors to bang their feet or ex light infantry to march less quickly did cause some interesting first parades!) As recognition of their infantry role and the diversity of the recruits it was decided that the other ranks would be classed as Rifleman.
Normally each HSF unit, and there were 48 of them, were attached to the TA unit closest to their nominated Vital Installation. The one exception was D (HSF) Company 15 Bn RAOC, Parsons Barracks, Donnington, whose Vital Installation was to be the Central Ordnance Depot.
D (HSF) Company 15 Bn RAOC was officially formed on 1st April 1985 and was to be fully operational by 1st September 1985. The initial recruiting interviews took place on the 25/26/27th April under the watchful eye of Lt Col DMM STOBIE RAOC, Commanding Officer 15 Bn RAOC and Major Guy Cockerton TD ex 2 Mercian TA the D (HSF) company commander.
The first company training weekend was held on the 31st May/2nd June when recruits were issued with a free issue of clothing similar to the Individual Reservist’s Home Retention Scale. This meant that the unit was badged as an RAOC unit. (The RAOC cap badge. was worn again with great pride by the only ex RAOC soldier in the unit WO1 (Conductor) R. J.(Bob) White - Bob started as a Rifleman, but soon progressed to Platoon Commander) Administrative support for the unit was provided by 15 Bn as was the initial basic infantry training. The Regimental Staff of 15 Bn and the instructors took great patients with the more mature recruits who took the training with the laid back attitude that is found in most experienced servicemen. It was at this weekend that the formation regimental dinner was held with the CO 15Bn and the training staff in attendance.
Later in that year the company, by now 2 platoons strong, took part in the Home Defence Exercise “Brave Defender”, where they successfully defended the Depot against an attacking forces of regular soldiers. It was during the exercise that the Armed Forces Minister Lord Trefgarne visited the unit commenting “I do not think people want to get too worried about the “Dads’ Army” image with such a professional attitude” “I am lost in admiration “ for the unit.
The Unit continued to train within the depot one night a month with the occasional week ends. This ensured that the unit maintained up to date knowledge of the layout of the depot. Each year there would be a combined exercise when the unit would meet up with other HSF units from the West Midlands District. The 1986 week end was held at the Recruit Selection Centre, Sutton Coldfield and in 1987 it was the Week End training camp at Swinnerton. A company training weekend was held when the opposition was provide by the reserve squadron of the SAS. During the night sat/sun the troop sergeant decided that to test the response of the company he would rouse them by pretending they were under attack. Having first ensured the platoon officer was awake he threw a thunder flash in the direction of the least likely area of attack. The company stood to immediately but was met by rapid small arms fire from the direction the thunder flash had been thrown. Unbeknown to him he had foiled a SAS attack! At endex the SAS were very complementary about the high standard of soldiering from soldiers who seem quite long in the tooth.
By 1988 it had been decided that the company would should come under command of a TA unit and in March 1988 was rebadged to The Queen’s Own Mercian Yeomanry.
M Comerford - August 2003 - HTML Revision 1