Manchester and Salford Universities Officer Training Corps

Officer Cadet Scotton attended the Army Festival of Climbing in North Wales, which featured both outdoor climbing and indoor competitions. The festival began with a day of sea-cliff multi-pitch climbing on Anglesey.

The indoor competition started with six top-rope qualifying climbs on day one. Day two consisted of a bouldering competition, followed by a talk from professional climber Hazel Findlay. The final day featured the semi-finals and finals, where Officer Cadet Scotton competed in the elite category.

He achieved outstanding results, winning the bouldering competition, the Men’s Under-25 Lead category, and the Men’s Elite Lead overall title. Well done! 🏆

Five of our Officer Cadets went to Kinloss in Scotland to complete the Inland Kayaking Foundation (K2F) course. Over the week, they progressed from learning the fundamentals of paddling to confidently traversing Grade 2 white-water rapids.

For most of the group, this was their first Adventure Training course, and they embraced every challenge thrown at them. Throughout the week they pushed themselves outside their comfort zones, taking on demanding features such as the “Washing Machine” on the River Spey, and performed exceptionally well throughout the course.

Weekend 6 gave Intermediate and Senior Terms the opportunity to practise Platoon Attacks alongside OCdts from Liverpool and Lancaster. Taking on leadership roles helped build on the skills and training they’ve developed throughout the year in preparation for ADX this summer.

On Sunday, they stepped up as ICs and 2ICs for Junior Term, who carried out Section Attacks in the field for the very first time!

This week, six of our OCdts attended the Northern Exposure event at Altcar alongside representatives from Liverpool and Lancaster. The event gave employers the opportunity to learn more about what the Army offers to both Regular and Reserve soldiers.

It was also a valuable chance for our OCdts to explore different regiments and consider which they may wish to join after graduating.

Thank you for having us!

NWOTR- Queen’s Cup Challenge (QCC)
QCC is an inter-UOTC sports competition held at sandhurst, where OTCs from around the country submit teams to compete in Hockey, Football, Netball, Rugby, Tug-of-war, and a 4x1km relay race.

Our teams competed fiercely in their sports, with football, netball, and rugby all narrowly being knocked out in their brackets, but our hockey team went unbeaten in 6 games leading up to the final, where they unfortunately lost 0-1 in extra time🥈

More success came in the Tug-of-war, where our team made their way through to the final with sore hands and gritted teeth. We gained our second runners up award of the day in this final as we were defeated 1-2.

To end the day, we competed in the relay race around the grounds of RMA Sandhurst. With impressive sub-3 minute kilometre times, our team of 4 made the whole unit proud and against tough competition we placed 5th overall in the QCC.🎉

We’re immensely proud of all competitors and well be back next year to claim more than runner up awards💪

Cadet Adventure Exercise 2026

NWOTR recently had the opportunity to travel to Wales for an Adventure Training trip. We delivered foundation-level instruction in activities such as mountaineering, inland kayaking, rock climbing, and mountain biking.

Our juniors were fortunate to take part in a multi-activity course, giving them the chance to experience each activity across the week.

NWOTR offers a wide range of Adventure Training opportunities, stay tuned to see what else we get up to!

Regimental Dinner 2026
Every year, MSUOTC hosts a regimental dinner where officer cadets and staff come together to celebrate the end of the year. This year, we were fortunate to enjoy live music from a band, along with some fantastic speeches from both cadets and staff. A huge thank you to all the officer cadets and staff for making this such a memorable year.

Congratulations to Ocdt Forbes-Laird on coming third in the Cross Country Inter-Service Competition in the Under 23 Women’s Division! 🥉🎉

For the past week, NWOTR OCdts and Staff have been on a sailing expedition in the Canaries!
As days passed, the crew learned the basics of sailings, conducted continuous watches, completed sail drills, and adapted to extended time at sea. Whilst their discipline, teamwork and endurance were being continuously tested, they were rewarded with amazing views of volcanic coastlines, Spanish beaches and surprise dolphins during their open ocean crossings! Good luck to them as they head off for the second half of the expedition!!

This past week, Ocdt Innes participated in the Army Equestrian Grassroots League with the Royal Artillery Saddle Club’s lovely horse, Duke.
Soldiers and officers alike from across the Reserve and Regular Army came to Larkhill Garrison for the two-day event. It encompassed both show jumping and dressage competitions for riders to take part in. It was a fantastic opportunity to begin competing in dressage. As a first-time competitor facing a steep learning curve, it gave her the chance to learn and develop in all aspects of dressage and horse care.
Comment from Innes: “In the future, I hope to participate in more events like this to continue developing my skills and progress further.”
Well done on achieving 1st place in her category!