Am currently serving on an Army base in the south of England. A stripe heavy Defence Committee is meeting here in the next couple of weeks.
The general standard of accommodation here is passable, but there is a lot of grade 4 - pretty shocking. I found out from an oppo last night that 20 of the better rooms in the officers' mess have had the present incumbents kicked out into alternative rooms. The rooms are then getting a full Dhoby, new carpets and furniture if required and a lick of paint as well - for a 1 night stay.
The thing that really bugs me is that if a Senior Officer comes to visit, if we go out of our way to make things appear better than they are, then how the FF can we expect them to know what the current state of affairs is. Ontop of this , I think the money would be far better spent improving the accommodation for the JR's who really need it.
Am wondering if this could have something to do with the fact that the base is mostly run by a contractor who will want this opportunity to make themselves look good. Meanwhile a mate of mine has got cupboard doors not fitted, a broken Khazi and a shower that would be better suited to Damien Hirst exhibition! (some of you may say at least he has them - fair point) And the chance of getting it fixed is minimal as the effort is going into the aformentioned visit. Or that is the way it seems.
The general standard of accommodation here is passable, but there is a lot of grade 4 - pretty shocking. I found out from an oppo last night that 20 of the better rooms in the officers' mess have had the present incumbents kicked out into alternative rooms. The rooms are then getting a full Dhoby, new carpets and furniture if required and a lick of paint as well - for a 1 night stay.
The thing that really bugs me is that if a Senior Officer comes to visit, if we go out of our way to make things appear better than they are, then how the FF can we expect them to know what the current state of affairs is. Ontop of this , I think the money would be far better spent improving the accommodation for the JR's who really need it.
Am wondering if this could have something to do with the fact that the base is mostly run by a contractor who will want this opportunity to make themselves look good. Meanwhile a mate of mine has got cupboard doors not fitted, a broken Khazi and a shower that would be better suited to Damien Hirst exhibition! (some of you may say at least he has them - fair point) And the chance of getting it fixed is minimal as the effort is going into the aformentioned visit. Or that is the way it seems.
