Tywyn Detachments Tom Hesleton has recently attended the entrance exam to join The Army Foundation College in Harrogate where he passed with flying colours achieving an A grade and with test results high enough to choose any trade he wants. He will enrol at the college in September.
Tom has been a cadet since 2019 and was promoted to Lance Corporal upon completing his one-star training in October 2021. He represented the detachment at the Major Generals Review (the final parade before the Trooping the Colour) in London in 2022 and is scheduled to take part in Exercise KwaZulu-Natal Ddraig the pan-Wales expedition to South Africa this summer representing Clwyd and Gwynedd Army Cadets.
Tom is from a military family, his grandfather and father were both in the Army and his older sister has joined the RAF. Suzanne, his mum, reported that the assessors had to tell him to stop when he was doing the fitness tests; he just kept going and wiped the floor with the rest of them. He travelled all the way to Lincoln on his own by train and turned up suited and booted looking smart. Quite a few of the other potential entrants were in scruffy joggers and hoodies. Some were sent packing on the first day as unsuitable.
Tom said “Cadets in my opinion is a place for young people to have fun, learn new skills and have some awesome experiences. I have enjoyed going away on camps and meeting new people and making new friends. I have also enjoyed the different lessons during the cadet training nights such as map reading, drill, first aid and much more. I feel that all these skills and experiences will benefit me in my future career.”
Detachment Commander Lesley Hughes said “Tom is a quiet, determined young who leads by example, his turn-out is impeccable and he is a credit to the detachment. We will all miss him enormously but at the same time, we wish him every success for the future. I am so proud of Tom he’s one of the best cadets I’ve had the pleasure to meet. “
Minden Company Commander Wendy Thomas said “Congratulations, that's a fantastic achievement, Tom. All your hard work has paid off and the result is well deserved.”
We all look forward to following Tom's military journey and wish him well.
