Hucknall's 1803 RAF Air Cadet Squadron have taken part in a drive to collect for a local food bank, in conjunction with the Fire Service.

The twelve recruits, who have recently joined, must complete a Pre-Duke of Edinburgh task in order to be enrolled into the ranks of the squadron. Usually, this is done by attending parades and events such as the Remembrance Day Service, however, the ongoing pandemic has made this difficult, so the organisation has been forced to take a different route.

Warrant Officer Rob Carr first joined the organisation as a cadet in 1993 and re-joined as an adult in 2007. It was his brainwave that has allowed the recruits to complete their Community Training.

"Because of the lack of events, we've been looking for something that embodies community. For a while I was scratching my head, then I saw on Facebook that Hucknall Fire Station was doing 12 Days of Christmas for Hampers to be donated to a food bank, so I got in touch with them."

Full-time Fireman, Daniel Pratt explains that the 12 Days of Christmas idea started the previous year amid the second Covid UK Lockdown, the fire service feeling that they could do more to help the local community. They started doing pharmacy runs to deliver medication to local residents, then proceeded to start working with the Under One Roof Food Bank.

"We thought it would be nice for people who can't afford things at Christmas, to give them a little bit of something, such as a hamper. Kids can get involved too, collecting 12 items over 12 days and putting them on Facebook to get the word out. It worked and it's just grown and grown from last year.

"The amount of food that's been donated has just incredible, the response has been overwhelming."

However, the sheer kindness of the community has given the drive its own problem. Only non-perishable items such as cans and dried goods can be taken and redistributed effectively, leaving things like chocolate behind. The fire service and food bank have worked around this by donating them to children's hospices and suchlike which "spreads the love a bit further."

The coalition with the Air Cadets only bolstered the effort. Within hours of briefing the cadets and putting the post up on Facebook, Rob was inundated with offers of help from parents.

"They were saying 'Put me down for this, put me down for that!'. Within three to four days, we'd had everything pledged."

Cadet Sergeant Nicola Saxton was charged with overseeing the recruits' efforts, guiding them as they organised the donated items and put them in the twelve bags, ready for collection.

"We helped the juniors sort the bags out, making sure the right things were put in each bag. There's all sort of things; choc, tea-bags shower gel, deodorant, cans of food, veg, sauces, all the type of stuff, really."

After the cadets' evening parade on Monday (13 December), the fire service arrived to collect the bags, the recruits gathering to help to load them into the fire engine's lockers.

The cadets were then treated to an impromptu training session by the firemen that included learning about such tools as the spreaders and the famous 'Big Red Key'. To round off an evening of local generosity and initiative, along with both community and Christmas spirit, they all had a go with the high-pressure hoses.