The Educational and Training Services form part of the

Adjutant General's Corps The Adjutant General's Corps is a corps in the British Army responsible for many of its general administrative services, named for the Adjutant-General to the Forces (now the Commander Home Command). As of 2002, the AGC had a staff of 7,000 peo ...

and have done since 1992 when this Corps of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

was formed. Their remit is to continue the general education of soldiers and officers alike, as well as the actual military training of the soldiers of the Army.

History

The Educational and Training Services Branch can trace its history back to 1762 when the First Regiment of Guards (Grenadiers) based at the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...

established a Unit School. In 1797 the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

opened a Regimental School at

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

Station, and in 1812 the British Parliament first provided funding for Army schools. This was the first widespread, state funded education system in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

Following the establishment of the Regimental School System, all Army Sergeant Schoolmasters were formally trained in The

Monitorial System The Monitorial System, also known as Madras System or Lancasterian System, was an education method that took hold during the early 19th century, because of Spanish, French, and English colonial education that was imposed into the areas of expansion. ...

this being the most modern form of instruction at the time. Thus, the Corps of Army Schoolmasters was established in 1845 to provide Education for Soldiers and their families. References exist to Army Schools, now Army Education Centres, being in operation continually since 1898. In 1992 the

Royal Army Educational Corps The Royal Army Educational Corps (RAEC) was a corps of the British Army tasked with educating and instructing personnel in a diverse range of skills. On 6 April 1992 it became the Educational and Training Services Branch (ETS) of the Adjutant Gen ...

was disbanded and its Officers transferred into the newly formed Educational and Training Services Branch of the

Traditions

Members of the ETS Branch are entitled to wear blue socks with their Number 2

Service Dress (British Army) Service Dress is the style of khaki service dress uniform introduced by the British Army for use in the field from the early 1900s, following the experiences of a number of imperial wars and conflicts, including the Second Boer War. This varian ...

uniforms; this is a unique part of their uniform, as a variation of socks is not seen in other units which wear infantry pattern service dress. This stems from a Royal Warrant of 1854 which instructed Army Schoolmasters to wear: "a blue frock-coat, heavily braided in black, and worn with gold shoulder-knots, a sword and a crimson silk sash, and a cap with scarlet band, bearing a crown in gold thread".

Organisation

ETS is an all officer, all graduate, branch. It provides education to Regular and Reserve Army personnel, helping them to meet the challenges of the 21st century by training for certainty and educating for uncertainty. Officers are primarily employed as follows: *Learning and Development Advisors (LDAs - usually in the rank of

Major Major ( commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicato ...

) who specialise in the analysis, design, delivery and assurance of Defence wide training and educational courses. *Training Development Advisors (TDAs - usually in the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

) in the Army's Capability Directorates, Army Recruiting and Initial Training Command. *Specialist Language Training Managers within the Defence Centre for Languages and Culture in either Foreign or English Language training. For example, Officer in Command of the Pre-RMAS course for Officer Cadets from foreign militaries attending courses at

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town o ...

Army Education Centres

The original authority for the establishment of Army Education Centres was granted in 1947 for "up to eighty education centres, wherever a concentration of 1500 men or more had displayed a need". Currently, the below are in operation:

Career pathway

An ETS Officer would usually start their career in one of two roles: Learning Development Officer (LDO) in an Army Education Centre, or an instructor at the Army Foundation College Harrogate (AFC(H)). Later roles include: Army Training Regiment (ATR) LDOs or Platoon Commanders, Army School of Education (ASE) Instructor, or assignments in the wider Army.

Affiliation

The Educational and Training Services Branch is a member of the

International Association for Military Pedagogy The International Association for Military Pedagogy (IAMP) was founded in November 2005 in Strausberg (Germany) as a successor to the European Military Pedagogy Forum (EMPF). The IAMP is an independent network of professionals whose studies focu ...

(IAMP).

Affiliated corps

* - Royal Australian Army Educational Corps * - Royal New Zealand Educational Corps

Notable alumni

Quentin Blake Sir Quentin Saxby Blake, (born 16 December 1932) is an English cartoonist, caricaturist, illustrator and children's writer. He has illustrated over 300 books, including 18 written by Roald Dahl, which are among his most popular works. For his ...

(cartoonist) during

National Service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The ...

served in the

Royal Army Education Corps The Royal Army Educational Corps (RAEC) was a corps of the British Army tasked with educating and instructing personnel in a diverse range of skills. On 6 April 1992 it became the Educational and Training Services Branch (ETS) of the Adjutant Gene ...

. ** "I joined the educational corps and taught enlisted boys at Aldershot": "I tried to teach them English, which in most cases meant punctuation and spelling. In some ways it was like Dotheboys Hall, and they used to run away. Towards the end of my two years, I illustrated what I suppose was my first book, a pamphlet called English on Parade." *

Archie Cecil Thomas White Colonel Archibald Cecil Thomas White (5 October 1890 – 20 May 1971) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwe ...

VC after serving as a captain in the

Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own (Yorkshire Regiment) The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment), frequently known as the Yorkshire Regiment until the 1920s, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, in the King's Division. Raised in 1688, it served under variou ...

transferred to the Army Education Corps and reached the rank of Colonel to serve as Command Education Officer Home Forces from November 1940 to August 1943. *

Ronald Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell Ronald Gorell Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell, (16 April 1884 – 2 May 1963) was a British peer, Liberal politician, poet, author and newspaper editor. Early life and education Gorell was the second son of John Gorell Barnes, 1st Baron Gorell, Pre ...

founder of the Royal Army Education Corps on 15 June 1920. *

Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter (21 October 1926 – 5 October 1984) was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series '' Rising Damp'' fro ...

served as a Sergeant in the Army Education Corps during the Second World War. *

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. ...

Edward Keith Bryne Furze was a Military Knight of Windsor from 1955 to 1971, he is buried in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. Grave of Brigadier Furze at Windsor Castle

Grave of Brigadier Furze at Windsor Castle

Richard Foord Richard John Foord (; born 13 February 1978) is a British politician and former British Army officer who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tiverton and Honiton in Devon since 2022. A member of the Liberal Democrats, he won the seat ...

elected as the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

(MP) for Tiverton and Honiton in 2022.

References

External links

ETS Branch on the Army website
{{The British Army Adjutant General's Corps Military units and formations established in 1992 British Army training