Cadets Clean Up City

Air Cadets from Royton Squadron took part in a city wide clean-up operation, organised by Greater Manchester Police & Youth United, on Wednesday 17^th August 2011 following the rioting which took place on the 10^th & 11^th August. A group of Royton Cadets joined the event after being contact by Youth United (A coalition of uniformed youth groups) to show that the vast majority of children and young people within our communities, right across Greater Manchester, act as good citizens and are positive role models for future generations.

The Cadets helped to try and return Manchester and Salford towards normality, by assisting small businesses and vulnerable people from within the community. T-Shirts were provided by ASDA, lunch by Waitrose and cleaning materials and flowers by B&Q, with the event supported by the ‘I Love Manchester’ campaign (organised by Manchester City Council) and the Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester, Warren Smith.

The Lord Lieutenant started the day by welcoming and thanking the Cadets for their time. He said that they were the most important people in the room – and a fine example of the organisations that they represent. He praised them for giving up their time in the school holidays to help their local community and to help fix those images that have been portrayed of children and young people by the news in a negative light.

The eager work party was then sent to Holm Court, a high-rise block of flats in Salford, accompanied by Inspector Simon Miskell from Greater Manchester Police. The elderly residents that live in this building directly overlook Salford precinct, which was one of the main areas that rioting took place. Insp Miskell said; “These elderly residents were scared whilst the rioting took place right on their doorstep”.

Rosie O’Leary (16) was one of the Cadets that spent the afternoon clearing flowerbeds of rubbish, turning soil and planting flowers to brighten up the compound. Rosie said; “I’ve really enjoyed myself this afternoon. It’s good to know that the old people that live here will feel a bit better knowing that there are people my age who do care about our city and are willing to help others”.

Flying Officer Benjamin Atkins, an Officer at the Park Lane squadron, said: “The Cadets that have volunteered here today have proven to the people of this community that not all young people should be tied with the same brush. There has been some fantastic work here by these young people and they have certainly made a difference to people who were affected by the trouble. The residents have been out in force to thank the Cadets for their work and they are extremely grateful for what they have done.”

Fg Off Atkins went on to say; “Our Squadron has been in Royton for 70 years this year and although we are a charity ourselves, the amount of time the young people from our area have volunteered to help others and the amount of money raised always exceeds our expectations”.

Royton Air Cadets was recently named as the runner-up for the title of ‘Best Squadron in the UK’, which placed them second out of over 1000 squadrons. For further details, or if you are interested in joining the Squadron in the September intake, please telephone 0161 624 4227 or visit RoytonAirCadets.org.uk.