Defence review 56 sites to close by 2040
Nutloose,
Been many hundreds of "Army people" at St.Athan for years, there are going to be many hundreds more. The Royal Signals folk from Cawdor Barracks, or Ex RAF Brawdy, were going to be moving in but they are now slated to be "subject to reprovision," when Brawdy is disposed of.
Greenham Common?
I think the fact that you have the Atomic Weapons Establishment at one end of the runway plus Newbury at the other meant that as a civil airfield Greenham was always a non starter.
Been many hundreds of "Army people" at St.Athan for years, there are going to be many hundreds more. The Royal Signals folk from Cawdor Barracks, or Ex RAF Brawdy, were going to be moving in but they are now slated to be "subject to reprovision," when Brawdy is disposed of.
Greenham Common?
I think the fact that you have the Atomic Weapons Establishment at one end of the runway plus Newbury at the other meant that as a civil airfield Greenham was always a non starter.
Quote:
Benson also fits that description and could be expected to be talked about at Odiham
Benson also fits that description and could be expected to be talked about at Odiham
I wonder if the toss of the coin will simply be based upon the property market and the value of the site on that basis?
As for
Thank heavens for keeping RAFC Cranwell safe....
Probably have to bring back the ban on cadets going into Sleaford imposed after a fight here involving cadets and airmen. Al Deere lifted the ban in about 1964. Had not realised how little we had missed.
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I was shopping opposite Chetwynd Barracks today, lots of nice new buildings on the site, shame they're shutting it, with the way things are going, you would think they would design any new buildings as prefabricated units that could be moved.
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Nutloose:-
"I cannot envisage a new Airfield ever being constructed in the UK, what ever happened to care and maintenance?"
Resource Accounting and Budgeting (RAB) happened, that's what! At least, the poorly implemented version used by the MoD. A cost for everything, and the value for nothing.
"I cannot envisage a new Airfield ever being constructed in the UK, what ever happened to care and maintenance?"
Resource Accounting and Budgeting (RAB) happened, that's what! At least, the poorly implemented version used by the MoD. A cost for everything, and the value for nothing.
Nutloose - I thought the same, but it turns out there are two different Chetwynd sites that share the same bit of land.
The Reserve Estate (e.g. Royal Engineers and HMS SHERWOOD) is, I believe, staying put and not closing. What is going instead is the very old part of the barracks that is in pretty poor condition. Having done a number of courses there recently, that part of the site is not in a good way.
What is more interesting is going to be whether any developer wants to buy doubtless contaminated land, with a veritable rabbit warren of tunnels beneath them from the old ordnance factory that dates back to WW1?
The Reserve Estate (e.g. Royal Engineers and HMS SHERWOOD) is, I believe, staying put and not closing. What is going instead is the very old part of the barracks that is in pretty poor condition. Having done a number of courses there recently, that part of the site is not in a good way.
What is more interesting is going to be whether any developer wants to buy doubtless contaminated land, with a veritable rabbit warren of tunnels beneath them from the old ordnance factory that dates back to WW1?
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Jimlad1
They were more than happy to buy land like that when the old Royal Gunpowder Factor (later RARDE)Waltham Abbey closed.....................
Glad I don't have a house on that site...............
Arc
They were more than happy to buy land like that when the old Royal Gunpowder Factor (later RARDE)Waltham Abbey closed.....................
Glad I don't have a house on that site...............
Arc
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And the area covered by buildings in Basingstoke that sit on the site of the old Smiths ( I believe ) instrument factory, and a lot of the radioactive residue from manufacturing the aircraft gauges ended up in the ground.
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Interesting that on the list to close is :-
RAF Henlow
Technical Site
and Airfield
But on this list ( from 2011)
https://www.theguardian.com/environm...-world-war-two
It states
Still, they will save a fortune on street lightning.
RAF Henlow
Technical Site
and Airfield
But on this list ( from 2011)
https://www.theguardian.com/environm...-world-war-two
It states
Contaminated sites
1. Sites not previously known to have been contaminated with radium:
HMS Daedalus, near Portsmouth: former naval air base
Defence Aviation Repair Agency Gosport, Hampshire: former aircraft repair depot
RAF Henlow, Bedfordshire: air base
1. Sites not previously known to have been contaminated with radium:
HMS Daedalus, near Portsmouth: former naval air base
Defence Aviation Repair Agency Gosport, Hampshire: former aircraft repair depot
RAF Henlow, Bedfordshire: air base
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^^^^^Regarding Above^^^^^
I am staggered at the lack of maintenance activity across the Defence Estate in the last 15 years or so. It would appear to me that contractors and their sub-contractors have been allegedly lining their pockets at our expense. This should be a job for the Fraud Squad rather than the NAO!
Building new estate is not the answer either. These modern builds fare even worse than the old buildings. Just the other day I was staying in a SLAM block that was less than 10 years old - it looked tired and dirty with various areas looking in need of refurbishment (paint peeling, water stains and threadbare carpets were the superficial areas, but also windows were poor fitting, metal doors had worn out and stairs had physically worn out). So new build is not the answer either UNLESS we have a decent maintenance and cleaning contract. On my Station the cleaners aren't allowed bleach based products or any form of decent domestic cleaning product, so all they do is push the dirt/grime around with weak detergents and water.
On maintenance the outrageous quotes that are coming from the Regional Prime Contractor is eyewatering. An example is a £25k quote to fix a hangar skylight panel - local roofing contractors are quoting £5k-10k for the same job and they have all the HSE certificates required to do the job. The material to fix the skylight is <£100 so someone is making a lot of money!!!
So the big ticket items don't get fixed, over the years they deteriorate further until DIO exclaim "it's cheaper to demolish and build again" (which it isn't if you don't use the Regional Prime Contractor - conflict of interest anyone?) and then they build a shiney new building and then don't look after it properly - after 15 years it looks like a bag of cr@p and the whole cycle goes around again.
It makes my blood boil and it needs to be gripped. If we still owned RAF Finningley, Duxford IWM, RAF Church Fenton, RAF Bicester, etc... then their hangars would be comdemned by our DIO and be up for a mahoosive demolition and rebuild - so how come the commercial companies that now own these estates continue to use these very same hangars without demolishing them and rebuilding?!!!
The whole thing is a farce and as ever the tax payer is the loser due to public sector incompetence...IMHO of course!
LJ
I am staggered at the lack of maintenance activity across the Defence Estate in the last 15 years or so. It would appear to me that contractors and their sub-contractors have been allegedly lining their pockets at our expense. This should be a job for the Fraud Squad rather than the NAO!
Building new estate is not the answer either. These modern builds fare even worse than the old buildings. Just the other day I was staying in a SLAM block that was less than 10 years old - it looked tired and dirty with various areas looking in need of refurbishment (paint peeling, water stains and threadbare carpets were the superficial areas, but also windows were poor fitting, metal doors had worn out and stairs had physically worn out). So new build is not the answer either UNLESS we have a decent maintenance and cleaning contract. On my Station the cleaners aren't allowed bleach based products or any form of decent domestic cleaning product, so all they do is push the dirt/grime around with weak detergents and water.
On maintenance the outrageous quotes that are coming from the Regional Prime Contractor is eyewatering. An example is a £25k quote to fix a hangar skylight panel - local roofing contractors are quoting £5k-10k for the same job and they have all the HSE certificates required to do the job. The material to fix the skylight is <£100 so someone is making a lot of money!!!
So the big ticket items don't get fixed, over the years they deteriorate further until DIO exclaim "it's cheaper to demolish and build again" (which it isn't if you don't use the Regional Prime Contractor - conflict of interest anyone?) and then they build a shiney new building and then don't look after it properly - after 15 years it looks like a bag of cr@p and the whole cycle goes around again.
It makes my blood boil and it needs to be gripped. If we still owned RAF Finningley, Duxford IWM, RAF Church Fenton, RAF Bicester, etc... then their hangars would be comdemned by our DIO and be up for a mahoosive demolition and rebuild - so how come the commercial companies that now own these estates continue to use these very same hangars without demolishing them and rebuilding?!!!
The whole thing is a farce and as ever the tax payer is the loser due to public sector incompetence...IMHO of course!
LJ
On the other hand when I took over most of the building at the hen MPA in 86 ISTR they were lifed at 15 years. Saw them on "Island Parish" the other week and they still look fairly good
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Some one sent me the list of closures the other day... probablyits for the best that most of them go. I mean HMS Nelson wardroom is hardly even used (because we have no RN now). Get it sold and convert it to nice flats. A lot of the buildings are old and in need of refurbishment anyway.
What we need are fewer old estates and more modern central military bases that are secure and fit for purpose. Face it, MOD has a big estate with big history and it needs to reduce its costs and minimize as well. Its a bit like Marks and Spencer in a way. Time moves on.
What we need are fewer old estates and more modern central military bases that are secure and fit for purpose. Face it, MOD has a big estate with big history and it needs to reduce its costs and minimize as well. Its a bit like Marks and Spencer in a way. Time moves on.
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Problem with Marks and Spencer is for some reason they do not do home deliveries, what is the point of ordering food on line then having to drive into a congested town centre, park up, pick it up from the bloody store yourself, then hump it all back to the car and again back into the home.
I still get amazed they close Airfields, put Pongoes on them and close barracks, heck you can build a barracks, but an airfield is another thing entirely.
I still get amazed they close Airfields, put Pongoes on them and close barracks, heck you can build a barracks, but an airfield is another thing entirely.
As a slight aside, I was in Malmesbury Abbey recently, finishing off a roll of film. Pictured is Hullavington's ensign, kept in the Abbey along with their Freedom of the Borough of Malmesbury scroll.
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I agree with Nutloose and Hangarshuffle
Sad but True..................
Arc
- Time does indeed move on
- We do need fewer but more secure bases
- We can't just build airfields in 5 minutes - but will we ever need them again in the numbers we once had ?? (and if we did we would just take over any Civilian airfield we wanted if the emergency was that great)
- The best solution is to move Army Units into disused RAF bases where money has been spent on facilities (and the large buildings and hangars suit storage and logistics) but separate the Airfield from the base by use of fences. That way we keep both facilities............ sadly it's too late for this approach now in many cases with bases sold off and redeveloped.
- Also we can't escape from the MoD Accounting system which absolutely punishes anyone who keeps any asset that isn't earning it's keep immediately.................
Sad but True..................
Arc
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On Radio 4 PM show now they are highlighting the housing shortage crisis. I would hope that a lot of the real estate to be sold is made into affordable housing for UK citizens if I'm honest. I've no doubt a few shady deals will be done as well. A lot of those buildings will surely become highly desirable flats, apartments and palms will be greased..
Bletchley
There is hope ladies and gentlemen , if they can bring back to life 
Bletchley in its new role albeit under private corp
Bletchley Park: 'Codebreakers school' planned for site - BBC News
Then the posiblities are endless ....and never know all the former airbases could be raised from the dead and have FJ courtesy of the likes of Draken Intl, Discovery
HHA, Cobham, Airtanker lol
cheers
Bletchley in its new role albeit under private corpBletchley Park: 'Codebreakers school' planned for site - BBC News
Then the posiblities are endless ....and never know all the former airbases could be raised from the dead and have FJ courtesy of the likes of Draken Intl, Discovery
HHA, Cobham, Airtanker lolcheers
Looking at the plans for the sell -off of RAF Brampton, I was intrigued as to what was the intention for the old BPOM mess (i.e Brampton Park House) under the developers.
Community and Regional Clinic Centre?, Training School? , Military Museum of Brampton?
Small Business's start up site? First buyers' Flat complex? Sheltered accommodation for war veterans? etc.etc.
Nope.
"Private House"
For whom?
I wonder.
Community and Regional Clinic Centre?, Training School? , Military Museum of Brampton?
Small Business's start up site? First buyers' Flat complex? Sheltered accommodation for war veterans? etc.etc.
Nope.
"Private House"
For whom?
I wonder.