Families at Royal Britannia Naval College passing-out parade

Friends and family of 90 of the Royal Navy's newest officers have been able to watch their passing-out parade in person for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

The ceremony took place at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, Devon, on Thursday.

Captain of the college Roger Readwin said none of the recruits had been home since March due to Covid precautions.

Capt Readwin said: "It's been tough but I'm incredibly proud of the team."

Midshipman Lizzie Galloway, 24, who joined the Royal Navy as a logistics officer, said the experience had been "challenging" but she was excited for her friends and family to see what she had been working towards.

Fellow recruit, midshipman Will Sankey, 23, who was joined at the parade by his parents and girlfriend, Philippa, said it was "brilliant to have the family here and having not seen them in so long, it's great to be back together".

Capt Readwin said training "in the Covid-era has been very challenging indeed".

"We've done it with a lot of experience of being deployed on operations," he said.

"Our new entry divisions have been treated like individual cohorts and we've been protecting them from the virus."

Passing-out parades still happened during the pandemic but families had to watch via a live-stream - a service the college plans to continue offering, allowing those who are not able to travel the chance to watch from home.

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