1

OXFORD URNU TERMLY NEWSLETTER

New Entry Sea Weekend

Having joined the OURNU at the beginning of the Christmas term in 2016, 10 of the New Entry completed a New Entry Sea Weekend in Portsmouth in Jan 17. Our objective was to familiarise ourselves with operations of, and life on board HMS SMITER. On our first day we received a guided tour of HMS VICTORY, which taught us a great deal of naval history, and HMS DAUNTLESS which brought us right up to date with the modern RN. During the weekend we all had to perform a 2 hour duty watch between the hours of 2000 and 0800 to introduce us to the regular watches we would do on longer deployment. On Sunday, after colours, we sailed out to the Solent to learn some key navigation and ship handling skills culminating in officer of the watch manoeuvres. Perhaps the most important lesson from the weekend was the reminder that lives depend on successful teamwork whilst on board. We all had a thoroughly enjoyable weekend and learned a great deal from the experience.

Burn’s Night Mess Dinner Words Ocdt Miranda Bell-Davies

Words Ocdt Jack O’Connor

On 4 Feb 17 the OURNU held a Burns Night dinner in the traditional style. OCdt Hugh Campbell kicked off the evening with some marvellous piping, followed by a rousing Address to the Haggis from Lt Jon Adair, which set a lively tone for the rest of the dinner. Many fines were given and gavels redistributed accordingly.

The dinner was concluded with a series of speeches and toasts by members of the Unit. Ocdt Emily O’Donovan gave an interesting speech on the life and works of Robert Burns. OCdts Oscar Briggs and Charlie Thurston’s toast to the lassies discussed the many mysteries of the modern lassie, while OCdt Zoe Laing’s reply focused on the more humorous antics of the URNU laddies over the years. The rest of the evening was filled with dancing and the usual mess games, including the shell game and the boat race. Overall, it was a thoroughly entertaining night which left us all with a great appreciation for the traditions of Scotland and the finest tra-ditions of the RN.

2

White Water Rafting at Lee Valley Words A/Mid Sarah Houghton

Words Ocdt Claire EvansURNU Sports Weekend

Oxford URNU went to HMS TEMERAIRE in Portsmouth to take part in the annual inter-URNU sports weekend in Feb 17. A group of 24 students represented Oxford at the event, participating in a variety of sports from swimming to bucketball, with many students trying their hand at multiple sports. First up on Saturday morning was the swimming relay closely followed by the rugby knock out tournament. Oxford had a tough match with injury ultimately contributing to our eventual defeat. At the same time, over on the AstroTurf, the hockey team put up a good fight against London URNU, losing 1-0 despite only having ten players.

The URNU had the fantastic opportunity again this year to have a day on the rapids at the Lee Valley White Water Rafting centre, just on the outskirts of London. After a safety brief, we were split up into teams of 8 to fit into 2 rafts. We had a few runs of the course to give us a chance to get our bearings and then our instructor put what we had learnt to the test! The day proved to be thoroughly enjoyable by working as a team and using newly found skills to surf on the rapids. We will be keen to return to carry on this yearly tradition.

Unfortunately, this meant that both the rugby and hockey team were knocked out of the competition in the first round.

Sunday morning saw the hotly-contested bucketball competition take place in the gymnasium, after which the teams headed outside for the netball. Yet to win anything, the Oxford team were determined and, cheered on by the rest of the Unit, won their first match against Cambridge. However the team were eventually beaten by Liverpool, who went on

to win the netball competition. The final event of the weekend was a 4x800m relay just before the scores were added up and the winners announced. Sadly Oxford’s enthusiasm was not matched by our score, and we ended up at the bottom of the table - we look forward to doing better next year!

3

SMITER in London: IWD 2017 & Iraq/Afghanistan

2017 marks the 100th anniversary of the formation of the WRENs and women in the RN. Four Oxford URNU students were given the opportunity to join HMS SMITER in London for International Women’s Day which tied into the celebrations. With Tower Bridge as backdrop, SMITER welcomed members of the press from the Telegraph and the British Forces Broadcasting Services (BFBS) on board. The CO of SMITER was interviewed accordingly and for the remainder of the day we, along with HMS EXPLORER and HMS EXPLOIT, hosted guests from the Met Police and the AFCO making 2 trips from Tower Bridge to the London barrier. After a sunny day sailing up and down the Thames, all 3 P2000s made their way to Canary Wharf in procedure alpha where they joined HMS ST ALBANS for a capability demonstration.

The final day in London was a surprise for the students on board as after days of secrecy a once in a lifetime opportunity revealed itself. The OCdts were required to look after members of the royal family at the Iraq and Afghanistan memorial service at Horse Guards parade. The main job for students and Ship’s Company was to act as runners and hosts for their allocated members of the royal family with refreshments upon completion. It was the job of the runners to ensure that small groups of guests were ready to receive the royals as they made their way around to personally thank both service men and women who had taken part in Iraq and Afghan campaigns. London was an action packed few days but all the students involved agree that it was not only a highlight their URNU careers but of their entire year.

Words Ocdt Emily Herbert

4

Drill Nights

CO’s Addresss

Compiled and designed by A/Mid Sarah Houghton.

Words Ocdt Robert Finch-Hatton Mason

When not sailing around Europe on board HMS SMITER or standing a few rows behind Her Majesty The Queen during the unveiling of the Iraq and Afghanistan Memorial; an essential part to every student’s annual term-time training is the weekly drill night. Drill nights frequently include necessary navigation and leadership training to prepare students for deployments and this term also afforded the opportunity for several external speakers. Lt Cdr Offord, the Hudson Fellow, delivered an interesting brief on leadership theory and how it has evolved over time. Lt Smith and SLt Bromley also delivered a brief regarding life as a Pilot within the Fleet Air Arm. Finally, our own CO Lt Jones and Lt James from HMS COLLINGWOOD delivered a joint brief about the WE Branch which highlighted how the Branch is integrated within the General Service and Submarine Service. Guest speakers are an essential addition to the standard training programme as they afford students the opportunity to expand on their naval knowledge.

Having reflected upon my inaugural term as CO of the OURNU I am hugely pleased to see the immense enthusiasm displayed by all Unit members. The wide variety of activities and diverse training that has been undertaken in such a short space of time has been impressive. Next term marks a change in leadership roles and as such I would like to thank the outgoing SMID James Letten, DSMID Ben Roberts and everyone else with a leadership or committee role for their sterling efforts in supporting the Unit. It is clear to me that the Unit is thriving and I look forward to next term as we build up to an exciting Summer Deployment programme.

Lt W Jones RN