Today the giants arrived!
Alongside charity Standing With Giants, we’ve been working on a very exciting project to create an immersive art installation as part of our Respect the Range campaign. The team have been working hard to create an awe inspiring temporary art installation comprising of 31 ‘giants’ located next to the Salisbury Plain Training Estate and the Westbury White Horse.
The Respect the Range campaign aims to raise awareness about how MOD land can go from calm to combat in a matter of seconds. MOD land’s primary use is for military training, but some areas are also accessible to the public - the installation hopes to educate the public about how to safely access MOD land and ensure vital military training isn’t interrupted. The Giants are made up of three 10ft Military silhouettes representing personnel from locally based 5 Rifles, surrounded by 28 6ft silhouettes representing members of the public.
The artwork is helping to spread campaign key safety messages in a visual and engaging way to make the public stop and think more about the area they are in and ensure they only accessing MOD land when and where it is safe to do so.
We are asking the public to take some simple steps to help keep themselves safe when on or near to military land:
- Look out for red flags and take notice of all signage
- Check firing times before heading on to the estate
- Always stick to public footpaths, bridleways, byways and PROW
- Never touch any military debris, report it for safe removal
- Keep dogs under close control and pick up after them
Brigadier Gavin Hatcher commented “At a time of heightened tensions across the globe, war in Europe, conflict in the Middle East, its imperative that our military undertake crucial training safely and uninterrupted. The public can access and enjoying the unique and varied MOD estate where permitted, but only when and where it is safe for them to do so, and always with caution. Military training can take place 24/7 and MOD land can go from calm to combat at a moment’s notice. By working together, we can ensure the public and our military keep each other safe.”
Mike Green, DIO Chief Executive added “DIO is committed to ensuring a fit-for-purpose training estate which includes a safe-space for our military to train. We also recognise our responsibilities to the public and providing them with the information to make informed choices about the way in which they access military land. This campaign plays a vital role in this work.”
Whilst some areas of the estate permit access to the public, it’s important the Military and the public work together to keep each other safe and ensure our Armed Forces can conduct vital training uninterrupted.
The launch of the event brought together DIO, DTE, local stakeholders and included a poetry reading by the Little Troopers from the nearby Bratton Primary School. Watch our video to find out more about the project and how it all came together.
#RespectTheRange
