feckinG RANT
Corporal
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Big difference, those chiefs aren't doing it on minimum wage, plus the press coverage they get can't be paid for.
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Big difference, those chiefs aren't doing it on minimum wage, plus the press coverage they get can't be paid for.
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In Scarborough James Martin re-defined the menu. The hospital cooks made it work!
Shiney Scot
SAC
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Did you fill in the complaints book and speak to the Duty Head Honcho regarding the poor standard?
needsabiggerfuse
Flight Sergeant
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Or whip out your mobile phone, and take a quick piccie. Do you get an itemised receipt at the till? If so, put that in as well. If you feel strongly enough about this, and I believe you do, then you'll need to build a case. Date - time - cost - etc. Evidence, evidence, evidence, or it's just another whinge.
PraiseBacon
Sergeant
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Sounds very much like the kind of student housing that is common throughout the country – and with those, even 18 yr old kids away from mummy for the first time usually learn to cook basic meals and keep the place clean very quickly. Also much how it works in shared houses – i.e.. where people rent a room, and shared use of the kitchen, rather than rent the whole house)
Serious point and question though goaters – does the mess even need to exist today as it has done in the past? – would it actually be better to give people a fitted kitchen and allow them to either cook for themselves, or eat in the bowl / naffi / local restaurants as they want to – the rest of the country manages it quite well.
SLAM blocks get fitted kitchen – and keep the naffi bar (or bowl, rugby club/ foty club bar as appropriate)
The old folks home could then be accommodation with a bar (and do food if needed – just like others pubs seem to manage). Outside caterers could easily bring in food for summer balls etc – happens all over the country. Much the same principle for the Rodney’s mess
Training establishments and operations would still need to be catered – although that is very do-able.
The current arrangement is a hybrid, and doesn’t seem to be working out – either there is a charge for livers in food at a set price (whether that is provided by service or contract caterers) – else you take the money and cook for yourself / buy in food as needed. Pretending meals can be quality on a PAYD basis, at the previous daily meal rate, is not viable regardless of who cooks it (never was, as the meals missed subsidised the rise in quality over what could be afforded on a PAYD basis) – ISS is coincidental to the drop off in quality, and are probably feeling a bit shafted as well.
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They are sick of me filling it in I think, valid point about pics, dont think they will be impressed in the mess if I start doing modelling shots though. I think Ill start a diary with pics and present it to them.
That is if blocks (or indeed any publically funded accommodation) are still provided post NEM.
True Blue Jack
Warrant Officer
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There's a lot of merit to your suggestion but it still leaves us with the problem of catering arrangements for operational deployments. If there were no messes as we now know them, who would cook the food in KAF? Even if we employed service chefs in the Bowl/NAAFI/Footy Club, chicken-in-a-basket is a very different type of catering from trying to fill up 300 hungry infantrymen.
What about mess functions? I think they are an important part of the Service ethos - which has already been eroded far too much - and believe they need to be protected but if the messes are not catering 3 meals per day, every day, how would you cater for the summer ball/Battle of Britain dinner, etc?
None of these problems are insurmountable but they would need to be resolved before we make such a fundamental change to our way of life.
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Employ military cooks to serve in Phase 1 Training Units, ships at sea, formal exercise areas and OOA.
All ranks at their home base go self catering.
For the Officers and WO & Sgts' messes employ civilian caterers for functions - there doesn't seem to be any lack of companies that do wedding reception etc.
XVR RA RA RA
Sergeant
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Can you explain why? I bet the most successful civvy companies out there don't do this.
Maybe an ex Snec who's now sat on an oil rig can write in and let me know if his oil rig dresses up like somebody out of a Jane Austen novel on Battle of Britain day and set fire to pianos on the helicopter landing pad as they have to pass bottles of fortified wine in pointless way and pee their pants as they are not allowed to go to the toilet before the tool pusher?
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I bet that most unsuccesful civvy companies out there don't do this either.
My concern about the whole cooking and shopping for yourself is what happens when you live in the middle of nowhere (Pretty much most camps)? New lad out of training with no car can't get to shops etc. Believe me you don't want to be using the Spar on camp for your shopping as it is THE most expensive place to buy what ever food they have in that day. Do we then start laying on shopping trips using MT in the evenings for singlies to get into the nearest town?
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I've seen some of these kids attempting to 'cook' when they are put on T-Bar, it would be a disaster for most of them. I've had some AMMs ask me how to cook burgers, fried eggs etc. I reckon the money we save on chefs would be spent on extra fire fighters
needsabiggerfuse
Flight Sergeant
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See my post #258 and see what a 9-year old girl achieved.
I apologise if you think I'm trying to teach you to suck eggs, but in a portfolio you will need:
1. INTRODUCTION: A short, objective, and punchy paragraph, e.g. 'There is perceived to be a problem with PAYD messing at ...'
2. ANALYSIS: How, Why, Where, When, you gathered your evidence.
3. RESULTS: What you found. Photographic, receipts, complaints book, cross references, etc.
4. CONCLUSION(S): Refer to your introduction, have you proven the case, etc
Good luck and I wish you success.
Last time I ate at KAF (albeit nearly 2 years ago) the Messes/DFACs were run by contractors (as was the case in Kabul, Leatherneck, MES, and Bagram). Didn't eat in Bastion though; however, I'll get to experience that later this year.
With the increase move towards CONDO we could feasibly only need caterers (and many other trades) for an initial deployment before handing over to contractors for any enduring commitments.
That's a dangerous road to go down and we are already a fair bit down it. In theory the whole RAF can be civilian, right up until we have to send people somewhere at no notice. We don't hear about overstretch so much anymore but it would only take one conflict to send us reeling again. The more bluesuits we get rid of the less intense that conflict has to be for us to struggle.