Army
Work Starts On Homes For Troops Returning From Germany
A significant milestone has been reached at Salisbury Plain, with the first section of new service accommodation there being craned into place.
It follows the announcement by the Defence Secretary of a further £1.1 billion investment into new accommodation and facilities both there and in Aldershot.
It's all to accommodate and support units returning from Germany under the Army Basing Programme.
Among the units arriving back home include 19 Regiment from Tidworth and 26 Regiment Royal Artillery from Germany.
Lt Col Lawrence Quinn, who's been involved with organising the construction of the new facilities, understands that some might have trepidation about returning from Germany:
"The British Army has a long tradition of being in Germany. I was born in Germany, my dad was a soldier... our roots go really deep in Germany, so I completely understand the trepidation about leaving the country to come back into the UK, but we've done a lot of work here to make sure that they're going to embed within the local community [and] we've worked with the local council to make sure that it's a smooth transition for them."
The single living accommodation units being built will also be supported by 442 brand new family homes, set to be built nearby at the village of Durrington.
The investment is significant and will include new and improved technical facilities as well as office, catering, and leisure services for soldiers and families.
The whole Army Basing construction programme is due for completion by 2020, and should see all British Army units based in Germany move back to the UK
Despite the billions ploughed into the moves, by 2022, the MoD says it'll make savings of up to £240 million a year.
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