In 1994 when all Army Apprentice Training was dispensed with by the Government of the day the last of the Beachley Boys passed out and moved on to their future career with the Regular Army. Beachley Camp as we knew it was no more and remained vacant for a while.
It was later decided that the camp should be redesignated a Barracks and much work was carried out to bring the place up to standard to accommodate Infantry Regiments. The first Regiment to arrive was the Welsh Regiment and they were to remain at Beachley for two years.
On the departure of this Regiment, they were succeeded by others, The Cheshire Regiment, The Green Howards, The Royal Anglian Regiment to name a few but all remaining for the usual two-year tour.
However, as the last of the Regiments left a newly amalgamated Battalion from the Light Infantry Brigade arrived. The Battalion was the 1st Battalion The Rifles, an amalgamation of The Royal Green Jackets, The Devon and Dorset Regiment, The Royal Gloucester, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment and Beachley was to be their home for an anticipated fifteen years. This Battalion has proved to be a welcome influence within the local community as well as an extremely supportive unit to our Association and the Heritage Centre.
Sadly in 2018 the Ministry of Defence declared the Barracks surplus to requirement for the Core Activities of the Army and issued notice of its’ closure by 2027 and its’ subsequent sale for development.
It will undoubtedly be a very sad day when the gates close for the final time and Our Beachley Camp with 70 years of young men arriving, working, playing sport and enjoying hobbies and everything else that went on at the Camp before finally departing for pastures new and along with Beachley Barracks will be no more but a reminder of our history.