General Sir Patrick Sanders R'84 appointed Head of British Army

We are delighted to hear that General Sir Patrick Sanders R’84 has been appointed the new Chief of the General Staff with effect from June 2022, making him head of the British Army at a hugely important time. As he says, “The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a stark reminder that the world is becoming increasingly dangerous and uncertain with war on land coming to Europe for the first time in decades. The British Army will play its part in defending the UK and our allies as we have for centuries”.

Upon leaving Worth Patrick was commissioned into The Royal Green Jackets and spent his early career in Germany, Norway and the UK. He has subsequently commanded operations in Northern Ireland, Kosovo, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan and more recently been Head of Strategic Command focusing on the threats posed by cyber warfare.

In contacting Patrick to pass on our congratulations, he said how honoured he feels to be selected for the post and how his time at Worth provided him with a set of values that he will draw on heavily in what promises to be a testing time as the head of the army. “I’ll always be inspired by those who took such care to educate and mentor me, particularly Dom Bernard Moss and Dom Stephen Ortiger who remain a big influence on me”, he said.

Interviewed for The Blue Paper in 2014, Patrick talked about the two qualities that his time at Worth had highlighted; humility - the ability to recognise that you may be wrong; and selflessness – putting others first. But the greatest gift Worth had given him was faith, a source of strength and comfort during dark times on operations. Patrick also talked about his ultimate ambition at that time was to attend Glastonbury – an ambition he may still have to wait a while to fulfil! We wish him well.