HMS ''Forward'' is a Royal Naval Reserve unit located in Birmingham, England, close to St. Andrews football stadium. It has a crew of nearly 100 naval and marine reservists, in addition to a handful of full-time staff. The Birmingham University Royal Naval Unit, the Defence Technical Undergraduate Scheme 'Taurus Squadron' and a detachment of the Royal Marine Reserves Merseyside are also located on the site. The ship is particularly unusual in that it is situated 80 miles from the sea.

History

The base originated on a different site during the Second World War, and was originally known as the regional Naval Communications Training Centre. On 1 October 1984, the centre became a commissioned ship - a stone frigate - known as HMS ''Forward''. In early 1985, the unit moved to a former industrial unit on Sampson Rd North which, on 28 January 1986, was officially opened by

The Princess Royal Princess Royal is a style customarily (but not automatically) awarded by a British monarch to their eldest daughter. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been sev ...

. The unit once again moved in April 1999, this time to a new purpose-built building. Once again the official opening was performed by

. The ship acquired its name from the motto of the City of Birmingham - ''Forward''. The unit is affiliated with , a Type 45 destroyer currently in service with the Royal Navy.

Awards and noted events

In 2000, the ship won the Richards Trophy, a national seamanship competition, at . In 2004, the ship was granted the

Freedom of the City The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...

of Birmingham, from John Alden, Lord Mayor of Birmingham. In 2007, a team from the ship, led by new recruit Jules Morgan, rescued a man with hypothermia from

Snowdon Snowdon () or (), is the highest mountain in Wales, at an elevation of above sea level, and the highest point in the British Isles outside the Scottish Highlands. It is located in Snowdonia National Park (') in Gwynedd (historic ...

in driving hail. The ship became more famous in recent years when it produced a winner of

The Sun Military Awards The ''Sun'' Military Awards (televised as ''A Night of Heroes: The Sun Military Awards'' since 2009) is an annual awards ceremony which honours members of the British armed forces and civilians involved with the forces. The awards are organise ...

, Able Seaman Grandison, who won the national award for 'Best Reservist'. Grandison is a taxi-driver in

Sandwell Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county in England. The borough is named after the Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of the West Midlands conurbation. According to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, t ...

, but left his work and contracts to deploy to the Indian Ocean as part of a team to provide armed protection against piracy to RFA ''Wave Knight''. He was later promoted to

Leading Hand Leading seaman is a junior non-commissioned rank or rate in navies, particularly those of the Commonwealth. When it is used by NATO nations, leading seaman has the rank code of OR-4. It is often equivalent to the army and air force rank of c ...

Current tasks

Being the only large naval presence in the West Midlands, ''Forward'' is called upon to act in ceremonial duties and parades, and recently supplied contingents for the Birmingham Trafalgar Day, Remembrance Day, and Armed Forces Day parades.

References

External links

Official page
Royal Navy shore establishments Royal Navy bases in England Military installations established in 1984 Buildings and structures in Birmingham, West Midlands {{UK-navy-stub