| Claro Barracks | |
|---|---|
| Ripon | |
  Claro Barracks Location within North Yorkshire | |
| Coordinates | 54°8′37″N01°33′0″W / 54.14361°N 1.55000°W |
| Type | Barracks |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defence |
| Operator |  British Army |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1914-1915 |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | 1915-Present |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | 21 Engineer Regiment |
Claro Barracks is a British Army installation in Ripon, North Yorkshire. It is set to close in 2026.
The barracks, which were originally established as the command depot i.e. convalescent camp for Northern Command, [1] opened in April 1915 during the First World War. [2] Wilfred Owen wrote many of his poems when based at the barracks, known at the time as Ripon Army Camp, [3] in spring 1918. [4]
At the start of the Second World War, the School of Military Engineering, which had been based in Chatham, was split into two training battalions, one of which re-located to the barracks. The barracks were renamed Harper Barracks, after Lieutenant-General Sir George Harper, a famous engineer general. The site was identified as a home for the School of Bomb Disposal, formed in 1941, reflecting the nomination of the Royal Engineers as being responsible for the discipline. Both the School of Military Engineering and the School of Bomb Disposal returned to Chatham in 1949. [5] During the 1950s, Harper Barracks was the home of a Royal Signals training regiment. [6]
In 1959, the barracks became the home of 38 Engineer Regiment, who would remain there for nearly half a century. [7] The barracks was rebuilt and renamed Claro Barracks, after Claro Hill - a local beauty spot, in the 1960s. [8] In 1974, a bomb attack by the Provisional Irish Republican Army badly damaged the barracks. [9]
The barracks went on to become the home of 21 Engineer Regiment in 2008. [10]
The Ministry of Defence announced in March 2013 that the site had been earmarked for closure. [11] Consequently, in November 2016, it was announced that the site would close in 2019. [12] This was later extended to 2023, [13] and once more to 2026. [14]
The following notable units are based at Claro Barracks. [15]
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the Sappers, is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is headed by the Chief Royal Engineer. The Corps Headquarters and the Royal School of Military Engineering are in Chatham in Kent, England. The corps is divided into several regiments, barracked at various places in the United Kingdom and around the world.
The Royal Corps of Signals is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield communications and information systems essential to all operations. Royal Signals units provide the full telecommunications infrastructure for the Army wherever they operate in the world. The Corps has its own engineers, logistics experts and systems operators to run radio and area networks in the field. It is responsible for installing, maintaining and operating all types of telecommunications equipment and information systems, providing command support to commanders and their headquarters, and conducting electronic warfare against enemy communications.
The Royal School of Military Engineering (RSME) Group provides a wide range of training for the British Army and Defence. This includes; Combat Engineers, Carpenters, Chartered Engineers, Musicians, Band Masters, Sniffer Dogs, Veterinary Technicians, Ammunition Experts, Bomb Disposal Operators, and Counter Chemical Warfare experts, as well as Command and Leadership.
11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search Regiment RLC is a specialist regiment of the British Army's Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) responsible for counter terrorist Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD), the safe recovery or disposal of conventional munitions. The regiment also has an ammunition inspectorate role supporting the Inspector Explosives (Army). With headquarters in Didcot, the regiment has sub units geographically based throughout the UK to provide a nationwide high readiness response capability in support of the police.
The Defence Explosive Ordnance Disposal, Munitions and Search Training Regiment is an element of the Royal School of Military Engineering responsible for the delivery of training to British Army Ammunition Technicians, Ammunition Technical Officers and Search Operators. The Regiment delivers training from two locations: Marlborough Barracks, MoD Kineton near Kineton, Warwickshire and St George's Barracks, MoD Bicester, near Bicester, Oxfordshire.
Aldershot Garrison, also known as Aldershot Military Town, is a major garrison in South East England, between Aldershot and Farnborough in Hampshire. The garrison was established when the War Department bought a large area of land near the village of Aldershot, with the objective of establishing a permanent training camp for the Army. Over time, this camp grew into a military town and continues to be used by the Army to the present day. It is home to the headquarters of the Army's Regional Command, and it is also the administrative base for the 101st Logistic Brigade. The garrison plays host to around 70 military units and organisations.
Bulford Camp is a military camp on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England. Established in 1897, the site continues in use as a large British Army base. The camp is close to the village of Bulford and is about 2+1⁄4 miles (3.6 km) north-east of the town of Amesbury. The camp forms part of the Tidworth, Netheravon and Bulford (TidNBul) Garrison.
St George's Barracks is a British Army installation near to the village of North Luffenham in Rutland, England. It is set to close in 2026.
The 15 Field Squadron is a Field Squadron of the Royal Engineers a part of the British Army based in Wimbish.
Waterbeach Barracks is a former military installation in Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire. The site was an RAF Station, RAF Waterbeach and then used by the Royal Engineers, part of the British Army, from 1966, until 2013 when the site closed to make way for housing.
35 Engineer Regiment is a unit of the British Army's Royal Engineers under operational command (OPCOM) 8th Engineer Brigade, Force Troops Command. The Unit provided close support engineering under operational control (OPCON) to 20th Armoured Infantry Brigade. It is now an Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search unit. It is located in Hameln, Germany.
21 Engineer Regiment is a regiment of the British Army's Royal Engineers. It is currently based at Claro Barracks, Ripon, North Yorkshire.
8th Engineer Brigade is an engineering support formation of the British Army, which forms part of 1st Division.
MoD Bicester is a large military storage and distribution centre just outside Bicester in Oxfordshire. The St David's Barracks part of the base is home to 1 Regiment RLC, and is set to close in 2028.
The structure of the British Army is being reorganised to the Future Soldier structure. The Army is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff (CGS), with Army Headquarters which is located in Andover, Hampshire. Subordinate to that post, there is a Commander Field Army, and a personnel and UK operations command, Home Command.
This is a list of units of the British Army's Royal Engineers.
The 1st Field Engineer Squadron is an engineer unit of the Corps of Royal Engineers within the British Army. The squadron was first formed in 1914 following the mobilisation of the Army for the First World War. The squadron later supported The Cavalry Division and the first British Army of the Rhine. The squadron later saw service in the Second World War and today supports the 21st Engineer Regiment of the new 1st Strike Brigade.
25 Engineer Group is an engineering group of the British Army's Corps of Royal Engineers.
Future Soldier is a reform of the British Army resulting from the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy published in March 2021. The aim of the reform is to create a more lethal, agile and expeditionary force, able to fight and win wars and to operate in the grey-zone between peace and war. Future Soldier was published on 25 November 2021 and deals with the organizational changes of the British Army, with changes to personnel and equipment were set out in the Defence in a Competitive Age paper published on 22 March 2021.
29 and 37 AES will move to 21 and 32 Engineer Regiment as part of this re-role