> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Fradley veteran shares stories of National Service with students ahead of anniversary - URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/fradley-veteran-shares-stories-of-national-service-with-students-ahead-of-anniversary/ - Published: 2023-05-15T06:39:42.000Z - Updated: 2023-05-15T06:39:51.000Z - Description: A veteran of National Service has been visiting local schools to share his experiences. - Author: Lichfield Live - Tags: Education, Fradley, Heritage, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-22 19:07, News A veteran of National Service has been visiting local schools to share his experiences. The educational visits form part of the National Memorial Arboretum’s work to mark the 60th anniversary since the last serviceman was demobbed on 16th May 1963. More than two million 17 to 21-year-old men were conscripted between 1947 and 1960 to provide key additional personnel for the British Armed Forces, supporting operations in regions that had fallen under British control because of the Second World War. During the Korean War in 1950, the National Service term increased from 18 months to two years. In total, 395 National Servicemen were killed during active service, and their names are inscribed on the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum. Jim Brown served between 1958 and 1961\. The 84-year-old from Fradley has been meeting with students to discuss his experiences ahead of the 60th anniversary > “I was one of the last men to do National Service, and it profoundly changed my future career prospects. > > “At 17 I initially started training as a plumber, but then I started to think this was pointless as during two years of National Service those skills would be lost, so I stopped training and just drifted along killing time. > > “I was finally called up in December 1958 when I was nearly 20, and during my basic training for the RAF I was selected to join a telecommunications unit based at RAF Martlesham Heath, near Ipswich, which had a number of Spitfires and Hurricanes based there and was the embryonic Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. > > “From there I moved to Cyprus to be part of the intelligence gathering operation with No. 751 Signals Unit RAF based out of RAF Ayios Nikolaos and even extended my tour for a year before being officially demobbed in 1961\. > > “I returned to the UK with really quite an impressive set of skills and experiences from my three-year ‘apprenticeship’ with the RAF. I’d changed from being a bit of a no-hoper to having the confidence and skills to start a new career on civvy street where I went on to become a senior civil servant. > > “However, there were certainly downsides to National Service. When you’re a teenager, two years is a long time to be sent away, and friends and relationships often moved on in your absence, which made the return to normal life quite difficult after being demobbed.” > > Jim Brown Jim’s visits have been part of the National Service 60 school workshops organised by the arboretum. They are designed to introduce students to knowledge about veterans through photographs, words and lived experiences of veterans. They also offer students the opportunity to write to some of those who experienced National Service and their families. Rachel Smith, head of participation and learning at the National Memorial Arboretum, said: > “Sharing incredible stories of service and sacrifice has always been at the heart of the Arboretum’s learning activities, and this commitment to passing the baton of Remembrance to future generations has been recognised with multiple awards for our school trip offering. > > “Now, for the first time, we are going into schools directly to share these inspirational stories with students in their own classrooms as part of our new programme of workshops. > > “This means we can work with new schools, and particularly those that are unable to make the journey to the Arboretum. > > “Jim is an engaging and thoughtful raconteur who will bring to life his experiences as a National Serviceman, helping these young people to understand the transformative impact that National Service had on millions of people.” > > Rachel Smith The anniversary tomorrow (16th May) will see 1,000 veterans and their families taking part in the *Remembering National Service – 60 Years On* service at the National Memorial Arboretum. Visitors will also be able to explore a free exhibition until 20th June which shines a spotlight of those who were conscripted during the post-war years. For more information, visit [the National Memorial Arboretum website](https://thenma.org.uk/what's-on/exhibitions/national-service-60-exhibition?ref=lichfieldlive.co.uk).