Catterick Garrison: How The Salvation Army supports recruits

Major Pam Ralph-Barratt (Ripon) talks about providing support to soldiers going through military training.

Two days a week, Major Pam Ralph-Barratt drives from Ripon Corps to the Catterick Garrison, three miles south of Richmond, North Yorkshire. Home to thousands of British Army personnel, it is the biggest military training garrison in Europe. It includes the Vickery Club, a canteen run by The Salvation Army. Pam is the only Red Shield Services support officer in the UK and Ireland Territory. She talks about her additional appointment journeying alongside young men and women being prepared for war.

How long have you been doing this role?

I took over from Majors Colin and Deborah Stevens in June 2025. When I was asked about the role, I was like a rabbit in headlights! Why me? I had no military background. Chaplains and padres were already on the garrison, so that’s why I was given the title of Red Shield Services support officer. The Ministry of Defence said the work at the Vickery Club is invaluable, which is why The Salvation Army is still here.

What does your day-to-day look like?

My role is based in the Vickery Club, a very old and long pre-First World War building, which used to be the officers’ mess. It’s a space where people can decompress and recuperate. In the day, we have military personnel who help train the recruits, along with civilian staff and, in the evening, we have the recruits. The Salvation Army has eight staff members, so I support them, but also everybody who comes in. I can signpost people to safeguarding, to welfare or to the padres. So my day involves talking to people.

A lot of the conversations are geared towards God, particularly towards the end of the recruits’ 12 weeks of phase one training. Many of them are searching for someone or something that will help them in the days ahead. In October 2025, I met with the commanding officer because this is the only barracks in the country without a church ‘behind the wire’ (on-site). I asked if we could use the cinema room in our building and, with the commanding officer’s blessing, the padres and I started a Christian service on Sunday nights.

How old are the recruits?

Between 16 and 36 years old. Over those first 12 weeks, you see a difference in them, not just physically but also mentally. It’s the same in church. It’s quite a transient congregation – sometimes we have 40 recruits, sometimes 5 and we have a discussion. God’s certainly working in their lives.

Where do you see God moving?

The number of real God conversations I’ve had is incredible. Some recruits were living on the streets and thought ‘it’s either this or join the military’, but the testimonies they have of meeting God through difficult times are remarkable. Coming here, they just want to share the love of God with their peers. They’re so alive with Christ! It gives your heart a huge leap. I’ve also met Salvationists from Nigeria, India and other countries. They tell me about The Salvation Army in their countries and I explain about the Army in this territory. And there are recruits who find God here. Their friends kneel beside their beds as they say the Jesus Prayer, asking God to come into their lives. The number of recruits who have come into a knowledge of Jesus, because they’ve come questioning, is amazing.

What have you learnt since you started the role?

To listen well! Also, not to make assumptions about someone’s experiences, but to learn about the whole person. Little acts of kindness and encouragement make a difference. It’s about being there and serving others, which is what my calling has been all these years. I’ve seen John 15:13 – ‘greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends’ – from a military perspective. Because the recruits are quick to bond with each other. They become a family, and I’m part of that family. I’ve learnt so much. I’ve got to be on my toes with the Scripture as well!

Is it hard to switch off from it?

It’s at the forefront of my mind, because I do a lot of intercessory prayer. I’ve signed the Official Secrets Act, and I can’t tell people about my work in detail, but I’m praying for the officers, soldiers, recruits, civilians and the Vickery Club staff.

What can we pray for you?

Discernment, wisdom, compassion, a listening ear, and that I have the resilience to support the people I meet. And pray for them, that they experience hope and acceptance through God’s love.