Haul Down

As I approach the end of what has been two and a half deeply rewarding years in command of Britannia Royal Naval College, I find myself reflecting less on what has been delivered and more on what has been learned. Dartmouth is not a place shaped by one Commanding Officer, nor by a single organisation. It is part of a far wider enterprise and many of the exciting changes you may have read about in the last few weeks are not the product of individual efforts, but of an accumulation of thinking, collaboration, shared endeavour and a helpful dash of courage from across a system.

If there is a consistent thread running through my reflections, it is that change was needed. It was clear to many of us that BRNC has reached another of those inflection points that have always punctuated the College’s history. For over a century, Britannia has adapted to meet the demands placed upon it by the Royal Navy. Those demands are again changing, and with them the expectations of what this place must do. Not for the sake of it, nor based on our preference as individuals to ‘fiddle’, but because the operational world around us is moving amazingly fast and we must respond. It is this urgency that feels different this time.

That recognition has played a significant role in reframing how we think about training at BRNC. It has forced us to move beyond structural conversations which, if we are honest, tend to be the place we like to start. Questions like where training happens, how long it lasts, and whether cadets should go onto the moors have been replaced by a more clear-eyed focus on purpose: what kind of people we are trying to produce, and what sort of Navy they must be ready to serve in. The conclusion – developed collaboratively across Team Fisher, the Training Management Group, BRNC and HMS Raleigh – is that we must produce better warfighters and better warfighting leaders. People who understand their teams from day one, and who can lead with confidence in complex, contested environments. And that we have no time to lose!

Figure 1: BRNC and Team Fisher Staff conduct a full rehearsal of concept drill to ensure they are ready for the first Officers’ Commissioning Course.

In many ways, the intellectual foundation for this shift did not come from something entirely new, but from looking again at something old. As just one example, the story of the Coastal Forces based in Dartmouth during the Second World War, and the broader system within which they operated offers, in my view, a powerful and under-appreciated parallel for the hybrid Navy we are building today. Small, disaggregated teams, often operating forward and at risk alongside their ‘big ship counterparts’, acting with initiative and autonomy yet integrated into a much wider system that enabled their deadly effectiveness. It was not a choice between large platforms and small ones, but a Navy that combined both, drawing strength from their integration rather than their separation. For me, there is something deeply compelling and poignant about this idea, that junior officers in command of small and effective flotillas could make such an impact. It is for this reason that modernising what BRNC does is such a powerful tool in helping the Service to prepare for the challenges ahead, and a timely reminder that this is something the town of Dartmouth has always done.

Figure 2: Coastal Forces – patrolling the River Dart.

Getting after all of this has involved an exciting journey to fundamentally re-examine what we do here at BRNC, and further upstream, to ensure that the training and education we deliver is up to the task. At its heart is a story of integration, of a system held together by trust, understanding and shared purpose which I am pleased to say now sits at the core of the changes underway in initial training. The introduction of Initial Naval Training (Foundation) for all our sailors and officers at HMS Raleigh, followed by the redesigned Officers’ Commissioning Course at Dartmouth, reflects a deliberate move to create a better Navy. Bringing officers and ratings together for the first ten weeks of training is not about efficiency or convenience. But is, instead, rooted in building cohesion, trust, and mutual understanding from the very beginning, reinforcing the idea of ‘one Navy’ rather than a collection of separate tribes. I know for all of us working on this these past few months, this is a really exciting prospect and something we all genuinely believe in.

Of course, this idea divides people and many have expressed these views to me online. From those that commend the idea of trying something new, long overdue for many, to others who jump to the conclusion that this is ‘the beginning of the end’ for Officer training at Dartmouth, which it is not. However, what is most important for me is that this change is understood for what it is. Not about delaying leadership development for officers, nor about creating a lowest common denominator experience as some have suggested. But instead, reshaping what we do on the premise that leadership formation begins at the point of entry. As such, the shared foundation is designed to establish core values, standards, resilience, judgement and responsibility while the subsequent course at Dartmouth will deepen authority, accountability and command responsibility for those selected as officers, and clearly articulate a higher bar we need our officers to attain. One that is more deliberate and visible to the whole force. The distinction is not one of quality, but of progression and something we are all confident can be delivered well.

Figure 3: Officer Cadets begin their Initial Naval Training (Foundation) at HMS Raleigh.

Alongside these conceptual shifts there have been practical developments that enable the vision to be realised. Creating space for the Officer Cadets to spend more time at sea on the Vahanas is one example. The Dartmouth exercise series has been vastly improved, replaced by more operationally focussed, more challenging and more realistic periods where our junior officers are truly tested physically, mentally and emotionally. We have invested in the capabilities to allow us to do this, with Sandquay now back online and other improvements across the estate to improve the lived and learning experiences. Of course, it would be easy to see this purely in terms of infrastructure but in reality, it speaks to something more fundamental: ensuring that training reflects the environment in which our people will operate. Instead of perhaps clinging on to an image of a Navy that is no longer relevant. This includes the use of state-of-the-art simulation, as well as blended online learning with digital devices to put the learning, and the responsibility, far more in the Officer Cadets’ hands.

Underpinning this is a shift towards a more modern, constructivist educational approach – one that aligns with the backgrounds most cadets now arrive with. Rather than passively receiving information, they are expected to actively build understanding, drawing on prior experience and applying learning in progressively more complex environments. This is evident in the design of the Endeavour series of exercises, which have replaced ABLE and MARL to better develop command, leadership and management through increasing levels of challenge – from the College grounds to Dartmoor and onto the River Dart. 

Figure 4: Officer Training Boats (OTBs), or Vahanas, alongside the new Sandquay jetty.

Equally important has been a broader shift in educational approach. The move towards a learner-focused model – one that emphasises reflection, adaptability and ownership – is not unique to Dartmouth, but it is particularly relevant in a naval context where uncertainty and ambiguity are increasingly the norm. Today, officers are not simply required to follow established procedures where the practice of basic knowledge transfer is enough. Instead, we need our officers to know they must be confident to think, to judge, and to act in conditions where the answer is not always clear. And, in my view, the Navy’s traditional parent-child model, is too slow if we are to keep up with the world around us. To do this the entire academic syllabus at BRNC has received a refresh with new lectures, different forms of learning, better assessment strategies and more demanding assessment, including higher academic pass standards within the externally delivered elements. We also now provide greater opportunity for the Cadets to think more strategically to show us, from the beginning, that they can make tough choices when there are no good options.

We have also taken the time to reflect more deeply on the types of people joining. A generation who retain a strong desire for identity, purpose and belonging, even as their prior experiences differ. As such, we have placed greater emphasis on how we safely onboard them, create a clear sense of identity, and establish BRNC as a psychologically safe environment in which to learn, develop and be assessed. This approach ensures we are not only demanding in our standards but also deliberate in how we help individuals reach them but reach them they must. I can already see how this lifts and improves our standards, which can only be a good thing.

Figure 5: Officer Cadets complete the final summative exercises, Exercise FINAL ENDEAVOR.

None of this work has been developed in isolation. Indeed, one of the most striking aspects of the past two and a half years has been the degree to which this has been a genuinely collaborative effort. Through Team Fisher and the Selborne contract, we have been able to draw on expertise from across the partnership – academic, instructional and operational – bringing perspectives together in a way that would not have been possible within a single organisation. That collaboration has been complemented by input from across the front line, HMS Raleigh, the Royal Navy Leadership Academy, and from those delivering and experiencing training in the Fleet.

It would be entirely wrong, therefore, to present any of this as something delivered by BRNC alone. If anything, the most encouraging aspect of what has been achieved is that it does not feel owned by one place or one group. It has been designed collectively, shaped by a wide range of voices, and, perhaps most importantly, it continues to evolve through that same shared effort. As I write this article, the first class of Officer Cadets to join HMS Raleigh would have already begun their training. The changes at BRNC will be helped by the complete rescheduling of the programme, which will now see six entry points a year, versus the old three. Of course, many will recall we have ‘tried this before’ but this time we must make it stick. More frequent entries, with smaller class sizes, can only improve our delivery as trainers and provide a better experience for the Officer Cadets. It is also hugely helpful when supporting those who may need to be back-phased for any reason, as waiting time to rejoin the course is vastly reduced.

Figure 6: A ship stability lesson delivered by one of our Team Fisher partners, Lincoln University.

The model of collaboration championed throughout all of these changes underpins what may prove to be the most significant development: the gradual repositioning of Dartmouth not simply as an officer training establishment, but as the centre of leadership development for the entire Royal Navy. The direction, set out clearly in the First Sea Lord’s War Fighting Plan, is that BRNC becomes a place where leadership is developed across all levels of the Service – from the earliest stages of entry through to more advanced points in a naval career. While BRNC will always be the home of officer training, it is a hugely positive step that the building which means so much to so many will, in time, welcome personnel from Able Seaman upwards. Demonstrating physically, as well as theoretically, the importance of cohesion, shared values and mutual respect.

This is not about diminishing the College’s traditional role, but about expanding the role it already has. Leadership, after all, is not something that is formed once and then fixed. It requires continual development, reinforcement and refinement. Bringing more of that activity into Dartmouth, and aligning it with the ethos and environment of the College, offers a powerful opportunity to strengthen the Navy’s approach to leadership as a whole. It also allows BRNC to build on its delivery of the Royal Navy Leadership Academy, which Captain BRNC has been responsible for since 2008.

Throughout all of this, there has been a careful balance to strike between change and continuity. It is my strong belief that BRNC’s history is not inconsequential; it is a massive part of what gives the place its meaning and timeless attraction to the countless Junior Officers I have seen pass through its doors. It is something they want and part of the affection so many feel for the College. The challenge, however, has been to ensure that we draw strength from that heritage without being constrained by or even hiding behind it. Initiatives such as the formation of the Britannia Heritage Trust – a charity recently established to conserve, restore and preserve the College and its artifacts – reflect that understanding, recognising that preserving the College as a living part of national history is entirely compatible with, and indeed supportive of, its evolution. And together it makes what we deliver here a modern, world winning formula.

Figure 8: Main College Doors – A right of passage for newly commissioned officers, funds committed for their renovation thanks to donations received by the Britannia Heritage Trust.

Looking back, I am conscious that none of this forms a neat or linear narrative. It has been, rather, an accumulation of effort shaped by the contribution of many, refined through discussion, challenge, disagreement at times, but underpinned by a shared recognition that the Navy we are becoming requires us to think differently about how we prepare our people. I do not mind admitting that it has not always been the easiest of journeys, but knowing I am merely part of a much wider team across a consortium of people driving in the same direction has been empowering. I know so many people are rightly proud of what they have produced. Naturally, as the first Officers’ Commissioning Course does not begin until September, there will be lessons to learn and minor changes to make, but I remain confident in what the brilliant teams at Dartmouth and across the group will deliver. I am just sorry I will not be here to see it.

Personally, as I pack my pusser’s grip, if there is a single point worth emphasising as I leave this command, it is that the strength of what has been set in motion lies not in the detail of any one change or person, but in the collective way in which it has been developed.

This time, it feels broader than BRNC, broader than any individual, and stronger for that fact. The conversations that have taken place, the partnerships that have been built, and the willingness to engage openly with change give confidence that Dartmouth is not simply changing for the sake of it. Instead, it is adapting at pace to meet the needs of the Service today. And when you add that all together with the historic significance of the building and the collective strength provided by our sense of shared history that in my view rows the whole thing together, the strength of our Alma Mater is simply hard to beat.

Lead with courage, Britannia!