THE new Commander of Colchester Garrison is embracing his role in continuing a 2,000-year military tradition.

One of the Romans’ first acts on arriving in Britain was to establish a garrison at Colchester, and the town has housed Army bases for centuries.

Colonel Tom Fleetwood is well aware of the history, having had family connections to the area since the Sixties.

Now firmly installed in his new role at Merville Barracks, he said he was keen for the Army to continue to play a full part in the life of Colchester.

Col Fleetwood said: “The soldiers who live in the garrison rely on people in Colchester for support. We live within the community, we shop here and we are a part of the community.

“That is where I have a major part to play.”

There has been no shortage of requests for interviews with the man who, after all, will be in charge of the military complex that houses 3,500 of Colchester’s residents.

The soldiers of 16 Air Assault Brigade are not permanently in situ – another challenging tour of Afghanistan is expected next year.

Before they go, they need to concentrate fully on training, and Col Fleetwood sums up his main job as being to make sure everything else in their lives is made as easy as possible.

He said: “We are responsible for all elements of the garrison’s housing, schooling, welfare, medical, accomMoDation and other support services.

“We need to look after all these things, so the soldiers can get on with their jobs.”

As well as looking after administration, garrison commanders have traditionally represented the Army in the public life of Colchester, a task Col Fleetwood said he and his fellow senior staff officers were more than happy to carry on with.

Sixteen Air Assault Brigade has been stationed in the town for ten years, and it is such a large troop that when soldiers are given new postings, there is a good chance they will end up in another Colchester-based unit.

As a result, many troops have put down roots here, getting married and settling in the area after leaving the Army.

Hundreds of soldiers have families living in MoD housing in Colchester, and a huge percentage of youngsters in schools like St Michael’s Primary, in Camulodunum Way, come from military backgrounds.

All this is reflected in the garrison’s strong representation on bodies such as local strategic partnership Colchester 2020, which the colonel has joined.

He said: “Colchester Council has far stronger links into the garrison than many other military towns.

“There is not an event we are not invited to, either to join in, assist or support. It is a clear recognition the garrison is very much part of Colchester.”

Col Fleetwood’s new posting is a world away from his last – training senior Iraqi army officers at the country’s equivalent of Sandhurst.

He said schooling the new recruits had given him hope for the future of the war-torn country.

He continued: “Iraq is a fascinating country. The people there are no fools.

“They come from a part of the world that was the cradle of civilisation.

“They have the potential to get back on a par with any middle-eastern nation with significant resources and wealth.”

The colonel’s own future will see him getting reacquainted with familiar places from the past.

He came to West Mersea on a holiday in 1968 with his parents.

They were so taken with the island they moved there permanently in 1974, when Col Fleetwood was 15, and remain there today.

The colonel married an islander, Sarah, has kept a house on Mersea for 13 years, and is a member of West Mersea Yacht Club.

The 49-year-old dad of six-year-old daughter Beth, and step-father to Sarah’s two sons, said he was pleased to finally get the first local posting of his 30-year career.

He said: “I have genuinely always wanted to serve in Colchester and I’m delighted to be back here at last.”