South Yorkshire Times September 22, 1945

A C C Under Fire
Conisbrough Youth Council Discussion.

At Friday’s meeting of Conisbrough Youth Advisory Council Mr. J. Proctor presiding, it was reported that at the present time it was out of the question for the local authority to proceed with, on giving any assistance in the building of the community centre, as a price which such an abolishment would cost is prohibitive.

Coun. G. Cheshire urged that the Youth Council should go forward in the matter without the help of the local authority as there were several avenues which could be explored for financial support.

Mr. Proctor pointed out that concrete evidence of needs would have to be produced to any of the organisations which sponsor such schemes, before they would part with any money and the community would have to show by the measure of their response to appeals that there was a need for the centre, or the matter would drop through.

On the motion of Mr. Cheshire it was decided “to appoint a committee to create machinery to explore a scheme for providing the community centre.”

The following were elected to the committee: Messrs. D Sheldon, G. Cheshire, J. Kirkby P. Lunn and Mrs. West.

An application from the Army Cadet Corps for affiliation to the youth Council which had been deferred from a previous meeting, pending the receipt of information as to the activities of the Corps was again considered by the Council.

Mr D Sheldon, who said that he had at one time been opposed to there being affiliated, said that after giving the matter careful consideration yet changes opinion, and he now proposed that the Cadet Corps be admitted.

Miss Packwood said that keep them out of the Youth Movement would be unreasonable discrimination when they had admitted the A.T.C. and the G.T.C. These two movements and been developed in the water and they are now lapsed.

If the Army cadets were affiliated to Youth Council, and the movement lapsed, they would still have the boys in the Youth Movement.

Mr J.I.Webster said that by keeping them out of the Youth Movement they would alienate sympathy, is perhaps a good thing that these boys are joined the Cadet movement where they were under some kind of control.

Views Unchanged

Mr H Gomersall said that everybody knew his views on the matter, and he had not changed. The A.C.C. savoured of prewar Germany. He had seen these boys on parade at a Sunday service at the Edward All, and it was the most disgusting sight of his life to see boys of 14 in uniforms like soldiers. The military had got all of the boys, and the whole purpose of the movement was for military training. Enlightened people were not looking forward to militarism. All that was wanted was a police force, and all possible steps should be taken, through the parents if necessary, to prevent the boys joining the movement.

He went on: “Some time ago, Ald Hyman came down from Wakefield to a special meeting to make me change my mind, but he didn’t succeed. He said to me after the meeting that it was up to us to kill the organisation after the war.”

Mr Gomersall said that he thought there was a determination to continue regimentation, but he felt that instead, the boys should be getting some form of education.

The a.T.C.and the G.D.C.were doing something of value during the war and he agreed to them coming to the youth Movement.

“Nobody it was of a more adventurous spirit than boys of 14, and I’m not going to be coerced by the military authorities. They say that there is no rigid discipline, but I’ve seen them parade like proper soldiers.”

Pastor Kirby said he would support Mr Gomersall’s view. Atomic bombs will make sort of training that the boys were getting obsolete.

The secretary, Mr I.K.Hetherington, said he was against war, but he asked the Council to bear in mind when making their decision that in the Cadets, there were 110 Conisbrough and Denaby boys who had to meet in a building equipped for nothing but military training.

Mr Cheshire said he would oppose the application will stop

Mr D Sheldon said that the A.C.C. did more educational work and less military training than A.T.C. ever did. “We should be depriving them of the facility of obtaining games equipment if we don’t admit them into our organisation. Only Conisbrough in this district is keeping them out. We can’t dictate which organisation youth shall join. Are we being fair to them by keeping them out? I know from some parents that their boys better for being in the A.C.C.”

The voting was eight in favour of affiliation and five against

Mr Gomersall then asked the second day dropped a particular as to the number of cadets who were taking advantage of the Evening Institutes.