Our Anchor boys have learnt a new skill of Archery 🏹 and some lads have refined their skills. They then took to building some Lego, letting their imagination run wild! ⚓
our Junior section took part in the fitness monopoly followed by the bleep test. We also started to learn some figure marching. 🥁 To end the night we did hide and seek! ⚓
This week our company section talked about how we could run out of energy by doing too much, by pacing ourselves and thinking greener we can reduce our consumption. We spoke about how God can often provide that hidden energy that enables us to cope at various stages in our life. We played handball and made four different energy drinks - "Green Tea", "Coconut Cranberry Drink, "The Fire Hydrant" and "The Quick Fix".

Tonights Agenda was jam packed!
The Anchor boys learnt some basketball skills as well as learning about hibernation.
The Junior section learnt about fair trade and its impact on communities and people. This inluded a blind taste test between fair trade and none-fair trade items of food.
The Company section praciced their archery skills.

Great first session back. We had one new Anchor Boy join us tonight who settled in perfectly. Tonight the Anchors did a craft involving animals, as well as some parachute games.
Our Junior section had two lads join from the Anchors and are fitting in fine. They took part in a series of activities. Including: Dodgeball, Hide n Seek and some detective themed puzzles.
Our Company Section have been dusting off their table tennis skills.

Looking forward to starting the new session on the 10th September 2024!

After another successful Brigade camp we want to say a well done to our lads who attended. Besides taking part in a wide range of activities all week they managed to come 1st, 2nd & 3rd in the UNO competition. Well done Lads! Jayven 1st, Alfie 2nd, Leyton 3rd.

The 2017-18 Boys'Brigade session has once again been a successful one for the Company. Our Anchor Section won the Battalion Sports, our Junior Section won both the Cross Country and 5 a side football events and our Company Section won the 14 and under sports, the overall sports trophy and the Cross Country.

Congratulations to our Anchor Section (joint winneras of the Battalion Best Anchor Section Award), our Junior Section (winners of the Battalion Best Junior Section Award) and our Company Section (winners of the Battalion Best Company Section Award). The Company as a whole were awarded the Best Overall Company Award.

Congratulations to members of our Company Section who attended the annual Battalion Camp at the West Midlands Camping Centre, Dyffryn Ardudwy and won the Activities Afternoon Trophy. Also to Joshua Stevenson who was awarded the prestigious Elizabeth Dutton Award for his endeavour, leadership and enthusiasm throughout the week.

Well done to the Company Section on once again winning the Battalion Indoor Games Trophy at the annual competition on 26th January at Tunstall Methodist Church. In addition, the team won the Potted Sports Competition, won jointly with the 34th Company, Smallthorne.

Congratulations also go to our individual winners at the Indoor Games:

Reuben Hookey - Draughts Champion

Joshua Stevenson - Chess Champion

Tom Woodall - Badminton 14 & Under Champion

Jacob Shuker - Darts 14 & Under Champion

The 8th Company team of Joshua Stevenson, Reuben Hookey and Daniel Stevenson won the coveted J.H. Greenwood Scripture Shield – the second time that the Company has won this trophy in the past three years.
Well done to all the members of the team.

The Annual Awards once again took place at the Longton Methodist Central Hall, attended by the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire, the High Sheriff of Staffordshire, the Lord Mayor & Lady Mayoress of the City of Stoke on Trent and Councillor Kath Banks.
The 8th Company received individual and Company awards for the various competitions that had been won during the previous session. In addition, Charlie Daws, Joshua Stevenson and Toby Wall received their President’s Badges and Certificates.

This was another excellent performance by the 8th Company members, winning both the Indoor Games Trophy and the Potted Sports Trophy.
In the individual competitions the 8th Company triumphed in:
Darts (14 & Under) – Harry Bradbeer
Badminton (14 & Under) – Daniel Stevenson
Badminton (18 & Under) – Joshua Stevenson
Snooker (14 & Under) – Tom Walters
Draughts (Open) – Reuben Hookey
Table Tennis (Open) – Toby Wall

Well done to all the lads who took part in the Battalion Swimming Gala. Great reults from Toby Wall and Tobias Pugh who both won their events in the Company Section competition.

Our Junior Section team of Jacob Shuker, Kieran Simmons and Gray Bradbeer also acheived great results in winning the 10 & over and Overall Winners' Trophies. Jacob was also the Junior Battalion 50 metres Champion

Due to the bad weather during the summer, the Cross Country was re-arranged for September with the 8th Company doing exceptionally well in all Sections:
Anchor Fun Run (ages 7+) winner was Sirus Armstrong
Junior Under 10 winner was Ethan Dean
Junior 10 & Over winner was Tobias Pugh
Junior 10 & Over runner-up was Kieran Simmons
Company Section 14 & Under winner was Toby Wall
Company Section 14 & Under runner up was Harry Bradbeer
The Anchor Section won the Anchor Fun Run Shield while the Juniors won the Freda Ellam Trophy. The Company Section was once again Runners Up.
Well done to everyone for a great night.

August 2016 – Bembridge, Isle of Wight
Seven members of the Company Section attended Camp on the Isle of Wight. The lads were joined for the week by Reuben Hookey’s cousin from the 1st Isle of Wight Company.
It was a great week of fun and fellowship with Rev Stephen French leading worship throughout the week and the Camp Activities team providing a wide range of on-camp activities.
Various off-site activities took place including trampolining, mountain biking, combat games, “water fun” and the famed “Monument Race” from the Camp up to the monument on the hill.
Members of the 8th Company won a number of awards including Table Tennis Champion – Toby Wall, Draughts Champion Reuben Hookey and Monument Race Winner Toby Wall.

Camp 2017 is being held at the Boys’ Brigade’s North West District Camping Centre, Kirkham, near to Blackpool.

Congratulations to Joshua Stevenson, Charlie Daws and Toby Wall on attaining their Presidents badge at the Presentation Evening. Keep going boys, Queen's Badge next!

We are very proud that Jacob Shuker from our Junior Section represented the North Staffs Battalion at the dedication of the paviours service, laid in the Boys' Brigade Memorial Garden at the National Arboetum, Alrewas on Saturday 21st May. Jacob read the Laurence Binyon verse: "They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old........."

Opposite is a photograph of Jacob with the Brigade President, Lord Griffiths of Burry Port, at the dedication

Well done to all the members of the Company who took part in the Battalion Indoor Games and Potted Sports events at Tunstall Methodist Church on Saturday 23rd January.
The 8th Company once again won the Indoor Games Trophy and were Runners-Up in the Potted Sports.
Congratulations to:
Reuben Hookey – Draughts Champion
Tom Plant – 14 & Under Badminton Champion and Toby Wall – 14 & Under Table Tennis Champion

At a special ceremony held in the Sir Stanley Matthew’s Suite at the Britannia Stadium, Matthew Atkinson was presented with his President’s Badge and Liam Wall, Scott Huson and Tom James received their Duke of Edinburgh’s Bronze Awards. Tom James also received a special “Make A Difference Award” certificate for his voluntary work at the Carney Pools Fishery.

The awards were presented by Mr Victor Takadiwa, Regional Director of the Cambrian Group.

Congratulations to the Company Section Swimming team who have once again swept the board at the Battalion Swimming Championships held at Fenton Manor Pool. The team of  Liam Wall, Scott Huson, Charlie Daws, Joshua Stevenson and Toby Wall won the 14 & Under, 18 & Under and the Overall Championships.

Tom Robinson was an outstanding winner of the Junior Section 50M Championship and the team finished second overall in the Junior Gala.

Stoke City legend Dennis Smith congratulated everyone on a very successful Gala and presented the trophies to Tom and the teams.

As part of a project to produce 2000 model kilns for an exhibition at the Middleport Pottery,  the Anchors and Juniors joined together and had a great time making and customising their very own kilns. At a separate session, the Company Section joined with the Guides to add their contributions to the project.

The kilns will be on display at the Middleport Pottery in the Spring of 2014 when HRH the Prince of Wales will be attending.

Battalion Camp was this year held at Bembridge on the Isle of Wight and four lads from the 8th joined with other members of the Battalion for a brilliant sun-filled week of fun activities. At the Friday night Disco, a time capsule that was sealed at the Centenary Camp of 1983 (Porthpean, near St Austell) was opened and revealed a photo of Andrew Hulme, Richard & Michael Thrower and Gary Pritchard taking part in the Activities Afternoon event.

The 8th Company were joint winners of the Tent Inspection along with the 18th Company and Toby Wall won a silver medal in the energy sapping Monument Race.

Liam Wall, Scott Huson and Tom James successfully completed their D of E Bronze expedition on 20th August. Matthew Atkinson made up the team and Matthew successfully completed his "practice expedition".
On the first day the lads set off from Blackwell and journeyed through Flagg and Monyash to the overnight camp at Haddon Grove.
On the second day they journeyed via Middleton and Elton to the finishing point at Winster.
Well done lads!
The photo was taken just as the lads were about to set off after lunch from Flagg.

19/03/13

Well done to everyone who took part in the Battalion Indoor Games and Potted Sports at Tunstall on Saturday 9th February.
Although they did not win, the team of Callum, Jordan and Liam Bloore did well in the Potted Sports.
The 8th Company once again retained the Indoor Games Trophy with many fine performances in the various events.

Indoor Games Individual Winners

Darts 14 & Under Toby Wall

Darts Open Dan Wemyss

Snooker 14 & Under Charlie Daws

Table Tennis 14 & Under Matthew James

Table Tennis Open Callum Bloore

Chess Open Scott Huson

For the third successive year our Junior Section were the Battalion Bible Quiz winners, winning the General Knowledge and set passage rounds and coming second in the video round.

Congratulations to Ewan Davis, Reuben Hookey and Daniel Stevenson.

Members of the 8th Company had a great week at the Battalion Annual Camp and were winners of the "Stephen Nichols Trophy" for Best Overall Company in Camp. During the week the boys took part in a number of individual competitions winning the Chess (Ryan Webb), the snooker (Findly McPhail), the Table Tennis (Ryan Webb) and the Wii Bowling (Ryan Webb).

Well done to all the lads involved.

Tri-athlete, GB Duo-athlete and Olympic Torch Bearer Simon Hodgkinson presented the Awards at the Company’s Presentation of Awards evening held on 17th July.

Simon presented Queen’s Badges, the highest award in the Boys’ Brigade to Liam Wall and Daniel Wemyss. He also presented a whole host of badges, certificates, medals and trophies to the Anchor Boys, Junior Section and Company Section members during the evening.

During the evening, the Anchors received a special badge that has been commissioned to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

During the Year Ryan Webb has been successful in gaining the President’s Badge

The Company has once again been very successful in Battalion Competitions and has recently been judged to have the Best Anchors, Best Juniors, Best Company Section and Best Overall Company in the North Staffs Battalion.

For the 4th consecutive year the 8th Company Juniors took part in the annual Greenpower Gathering of Goblins electric car event at the Goodwood Motor Circuit in Sussex. This year, the 8th were the only Boys’ Brigade representatives taking part.

Our overnight stay was at Roffey, in Horsham, the headquarters of the 1st Roffey Boys’ Brigade. The weather on Sunday morning was far from inviting and we had to negotiate heavy showers as we made our way to Goodwood. Our arrival coincided with an improvement in the weather and so we were able to unload the cars, pass the scrutineering tests and get into the day’s activities. First off was the Drag event where our two cars gained  very creditable 16th (Ewan, Joshua Stevenson & Daniel) and 17th (Charlie & Joshua Thorley) places out of a field of 63 cars. The Slalom course proved to be very challenging and the final “Gate” caught out many of the drivers.

The afternoon saw the teams negotiating the Sprint course which was set out around the Goodwood Circuit’s chicane area. Again our two cars did exceptionally well gaining 10th  (Ewan & Joshua Stevenson) and 25th (Charlie & Joshua Thorley) places overall.

With all cars lined up in the pits ready for the “Race of Champions” the heavens opened and so we all had to wait for the sun to come out again.

Our two cars driven by Charlie Daws and Joshua Stevenson, were allocated rows 8 and 14.on the starting grid and  with all 63 cars lined up the Union Flag signaled the start for each row of cars in turn to set off on the 2.4 mile lap of the Goodwood circuit. Joshua’s car seemed to speed round the track and despite a collision caused by one of the other cars as they exited the chicane, he passed the chequered flag, followed shortly after by Charlie who had also driven a creditable race.

We all enjoyed another great day at Goodwood and look forward to next year when we will have a number of new drivers able to take part.

Well done to all our lads – Charlie Daws, Ewan Davis, Joshua Thorley, Joshua Stevenson and Daniel Stevenson.

On a very wet May evening, teams from both Junior and Company Section took part in the Battalion 5-a-side Competition at Staffordshire University. Junior Section were winners in the Open section and the Company Section were winners in the 14 & under Section. Another successful evening for the 8th.

Eleven of our Junior Section Boys represented the Company at the 2012 Figure Marching Competition held at the United Reform Church, Dresden. Following a superb performance they were once again Battalion Champions in this competition. The 'shiny 8th' lives on.

Ryan Nickisson is the latest member of the 8th Company to gain the coveted Queen's Badge Award. Ryan completed his Queen's Badge requirements at a course held at the Boys' Brigade headquarters, Felden Lodge on !9th February and received his Queen's Badge from the Brigade Secretary Steve Dickinson.
With the very kind help of Stoke City Football Club Ryan Shawcross presented Ryan with his Queen's Badge and Certificate at the end of the Stoke City v Norwich game watched by family and friends. This was a very fitting conclusion to Ryan's long and distinguished service in the 8th Company as the following day he and his family emigrated to Perth in Australia.

4/2/2012

Held at the Central Hall on Friday 4th February, this annual event saw our Anchor and Junior boys joining with those from other Companies to entertain the audience with their singing which got the evening off to a splendid start.

The 2010 / 2011 Session saw the 8th Company winning a wide array of trophies within both the Junior and the Company Sections. Individual successes saw Toby Wall (Cross Country), Joshua Stevenson (Swimming), Ryan Webb (Swimming, Table Tennis, Chess), Ryan Nickisson (Cross Country, Sand & Surf), Kye Nickisson (Cross Country, Darts) and Scott Huson (Chess) all honoured for their achievements.
The Company also received fifteen trophies including Best Junior Section and Best Overall Company.

During the evening, Ryan Webb received his President’s Badge and Certificate from the Lord Mayor of the City of Stoke-on-Trent Councillor Terry Follows.

These events were held towards the end of January at Tunstall Methodist Church. Once again the 8th Company lads proved themselves to be amongst the best in the Battalion winning both the Indoor Games Trophy and the Potted Sports Trophy. Individual successes during the event included: Kye Nickisson retaining his 14 & Under Darts title and Scott Huson winning the Chess Championship. In the Open Table Tennis Competition, Ryan Webb rested the trophy from the defending champion and his close rival Ryan Nickisson.
Well done to everyone.

Over 30 boys from the Company had a great Christmas Party celebration at the Festival Park Superbowl on Tuesday 20th December.

For the second year in succession, our Junior Section were worthy champions in the Battalion Bible Quiz with 51pts - they were 16 pts ahead of the second placed company.

Congratulations are due to Joshua Stevenson, Ewan Davis and Reuben Hookey.

At the end of August 2011 four members of the 8th Company attended the Boys’ and Girls’ Brigade annual Camp at the West Midlands District Camping Centre, Dyffryn Ardudwy in Wales.
This year the Boys’ Brigade celebrated 125 years of camping and all those who attended the camp were presented with a commemorative badge at the end of the week. This was also the 111th year of camping within the North Staffs Battalion.
During the week, a whole range of activities took place both on and off site. These included canoeing, abseiling, karting, quad biking, football, parachute games, swimming and a BBQ.
We had a very enjoyable and successful week, coming second in the Best Tent Competition.
Ryan Webb won the Open age group table tennis and the Chess competition and Ryan Nickisson won the Open age group Sand & Surf Race.

Camp 2012 will be held at the North West District Boys’ Brigade Camping Centre at Kirkham near to Blackpool.

For the 3rd consecutive year the 8th Company Juniors took part in the annual Greenpower Gathering of Goblins electric car event at the Goodwood Motor Circuit in Sussex. Each year sees more participation from the North Staffs Battalion and so in addition to our two cars there were two cars from the 18th Dresden and one car from the 2nd Barlaston Companies.

Following the usual overnight stop-off at Christ Church in Chichester, we made our way to Goodwood early on Sunday morning. The weather forecast was not good and so it was a rainy start to the day.

Everyone was soon in action preparing their cars for the scrutineering judges. With no problems encountered it was off to the Drag Event where this year there were three cars lined up side by side for each heat. Our drivers - Toby Wall, Charlie Daws, Ewan Davis and Joshua Stevenson all put in creditable performances before moving on to the Slalom Event. To cope with the large entry of teams, there were two Slalom courses set out on the Goodwood straight, below the main Grandstand. The test required drivers to negotiate a series of "gates" which were offset down the course and then to finish with the car stationery within a marked box. As the rain continued to fall it was a demanding task to negotiate each gate without hitting any of the markers or missing any gates. Each of our drivers had three attempts with varying degrees of success. At this point we decided to take a break for lunch in the hope that the weather would improve. After lunch we all headed for the Goodwood chicane for the Timed Lap event. Despite the very wet conditions and a broken drive belt the lads once again performed well.

Adjustments to one of the cars was interrupted by a cloud burst but we managed to set the car up just in time to line up on the starting grid for the Race of Champions. Our two drivers, Charlie Daws and Ewan Davis lined up with the other 61 cars; a truly spectacular sight. The Union Flag signaled the start for each row of cars in turn to set off on the 2.4 mile lap of the Goodwood circuit. With the race finally over and all cars safely back in the paddock, it was time for the presentation of awards. To our great delight we were awarded second place in the Slalom event and so the two drivers of car 54, Joshua Stevenson and Ewan Davis proudly stepped forward to receive their trophy. This was our very first success at the Annual Goblin Event which crowned a damp but very enjoyable day.

Well done everyone!

Both the Junior Section and the Company Section took part in the 5 a side competition held at Staffordshire University. The Junior Section took part in the Open event although two of the boys were still under 10. Unfortunately they did not win the trophy this year but did not let themselves down. The Company Section entered two teams and won the 14 and under age group. Well done!

This year five of our boys joined with three boys from the 18th Company to take part in this competition. The team gave a very creditable performance and were clear winners.

The Annual Presentation of Awards Evening was held at the Methodist Central Hall, Longton in the presence of the Lord Mayor & Lady Mayoress of the City of Stoke-on-Trent (Councilor Denver Tolley and Mrs Lynne Tolley) and the Mayor of Newcastle under Lyme and Consort (Councilor Mrs Ann Heames and Mr Bill Heames)

Once again the 8th Company was the most successful Company in the North Staffs Battalion for the 2009/10 Session, picking up eleven of the team awards and eight individual awards.

Of the Battalion's Premier Awards, the Company won the Best Overall Company, Best Company Section and Best Junior Section trophies along with the Junior Section Bible Quiz trophy.
The Junior Section won the Under 10 age group 5-a-side football.

The Company Section won the Cross Country, 14 and under Swimming and were the Overall Swimming Champions. They also won the Open age group Sports the Overall Sports Championship and were the outright winners of the Indoor Games.

Individually, Ryan Webb was the Battalion 100metres Swimming Champion and Joshua Stevenson the 50metres Junior Swimming Champion. In Cross Country Ryan Nickisson was the 14 & Under Cross Country Champion while Toby Wall became the Under 10 Champion.

In the Indoor Sports, Ryan Webb (14 & Under Table Tennis), Ryan Nickisson (Open Table Tennis), Matthew Atkinson (14 & Under Snooker) and Kye Nickisson (14 & Under Darts) were all individual champions.

To celebrate the Centenary of the North Staffs Battalion, a special Carol Service was held at Bradwell Methodist Church on the 9th December.
The service was well attended and each Company was asked to participate in the various aspects of the Service of Carols and Readings.
The 8th Company provided Christingles for the service and these were processed into the church by the Boys of the 8th during the first carol. At the altar, candles were set out in a 100 formation to reflect the Centenary of the Battalion. Officers from the 8th Company then had the honour of lighting these symbolic candles.
A retiring collection raised £68 which was donated to the Children's' Society.

For the second year, Joshua Stevenson, Toby Wall and Charlie Daws represented the Company at the Junior Section Battalion Bible Quiz held at Tunstall Methodist Chuch.

The Company are delighted that all their hard work paid off when they won the competition and brought this prestigious trophy home to Longton.

Another successful night for the 8th Company at the Battalion Swimming Gala held at Fenton Pool on Saturday 9th October.

The Company Section were Under 14 winners,overall winners and came 3rd in the under 18 section. The Junior Section were runners up in their section which was a very good acheivement considering only 3 boys took part.

Congratulations to Joshua Stevenson who won the Junior Section Battalion Championship and Ryan Webb, who was the Company Section winner. Both boys were creditable winners as they were both competing against much older boys.

On the 28th August, six members of the Company, along with 2 of our Guides, joined with other Boys' Brigade and Girls' Brigade Companies from Staffordshire for the Annual Camp which was held this year at Bembridge on the Isle of Wight.

The weather throughout the week was excellent which allowed for all the planned activities to take place unheeded. Swimming, Water Sports, Ice Skating, Rounders, the Isle of Wight Monument Race, Pony Trekking, Football, Combat Games and Orienteering were just some of the many activities enjoyed by all those on Camp. The 8th Company came second in the Overall Camp Competition and the Tent Inspection.

In the individual sports, re introduced after a 1 year break, Ryan Webb established an excellent record for the week. He won both the Table Tennis and Pool tournaments and was runner up in the Chess tournament.

Next years' Camp will be at the Boys' Brigade West Midland Camping Centre, Dyffryn Ardudwy.

With an entirely new and very young racing team, the 8th Juniors sought to take on the might of sixty other teams from across the UK at the annual "Gathering of Goblin Cars" event at the Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit in Sussex. The North Staffs Battalion was again represented by both the 8th and 18th Companies, with 2 cars from each Company.

Arriving at 9.00am the teams had little time throughout the day. After having the cars checked by the scrutineers it was straight into the first activity of the day. From Drag Racing to the Slalom, from the Gates Test to the Velodrome style Timed Lap, all the boys had a fantastic day trying to outdo all the other teams.At each event they were ably backed up by a vocal group of enthusiastic parents. Ewan Davis, Charlie Daws, Bradley Hobson, Joshua Stevenson and Toby Wall all did extemely well in all the events they competed in and can be justifiably proud of their performances.

The final event of the day - the "Race of Champions" - only permits one driver from each team to complete one lap of the Goodwood motor racing circuit and so it was given to Toby Wall and Joshua Stevenson to "fly the flag" for the 8th Company. The tension grew as each car was lined up on the grid and then they were off -each line of cars waived off by the race starter with his Union Flag. Within a few minutes of disappearing round the Madgwick Corner the lead cars were starting to come into view down the Lavant Straight as they approached Woodcote and the Chicane before entering the final straight and the chequered flag. Although we did not win the event all our lads can be well pleased with their performance.

Another good night for the Company and Junior Sections. The Company Section were Runners Up in the Under 14 section, winners in the Under 18 section and overall winners. The Junior Section only took part in the Under 10 section, but were a creditable runner up.

On Thursday 13th May the Company Section won the Holt Cross Country Trophy for the fourth year in succession. All the boys were 14 or under so further wins are anticipated. Ryan Nickisson was the overall winner of the Company Section event and Toby Wall was the first under 10 boy home in the Junior event. Congratulations to all who took part

Well done to the Junior Section who won the under 10 Battalion 5-a-side football competion held at Staffordshire University. This is a tremendous achievement for a team of boys who are in their first session in the Junior Section.

Our Company Section jointly won the Indoor Games Competition held at Tunstall Methodist Church. Congratulations to Ryan Webb, winner of the 14 & under Table Tennis, and Ryan Nickisson, winner of the 14 & under Badminton. The Company also finished second in the Potted Sports.

Once again the 8th Company was the most successful Company in the North Staffs Battalion for the 2008/09 session. Picking up twelve of the team awards and six individual awards.

Of the Battalion's Premier Awards, the Company won the Best Overall Company and Best Junior Section trophies along with the Junior Section Figure Marching trophy.

The Junior Section was outright winner of the Cross Country and joint winner of the Sports and open age group 5-a-side football.

The Company Section won the Cross Country, 14 and under Swimming, 14 and under Sports, Overall Sports Championship as well as sharing the spoils in the Indoor Games and Potted Sports.

Individually, Joshua Steele won the Junior Section Open Age Group Cross Country with Ryan Nickisson becoming the Under 14 Cross Country Champion.

Joshua Steele also won the 100 metre Battalion Swimming Championship becoming the youngest member ever to do this.

In the Indoor Sports, Ryan Webb (Badminton), Connor Roberts (Table tennis) and Liam Wall (Snooker) were all individual champions

2009

November 12th 2009 - 100 years since our Company was founded. The celebrations began on Saturday 14th November with a Birthday tea at Blythe Bridge Village Hall for our own boys and young people from other organisations at our Church. Before tea we were entertained by 'All the fun at the Circus', the children were then given the opportunity to try their hand at circus skills.

On Friday 20th November, Chris Brown MBE, a former member and nationally recognised explorer, gave a talk on his expedition to conquer Everest. One of our boys volunteered to try out the kit - which he found incredibly heavy.

8.00 a.m on Saturday morning saw 60 people meeting for breakfast. The Rev. Stanley Johnson, a former Company Chaplain, gave the address.

On Saturday evening, present staff and past members enjoyed a 3-course meal whilst catching up with old friends. Much reminscing took place, even an impromptu band item. Members travelled from far and wide, Wales, Yorkshire, Devon and Australia to name but a few. At the end of the evening the Birthday cake was cut by past Battalion President and former 8th Company Captain, Tony Nicholls, who was himself celebrating a special birthday.

On Sunday 22nd November, a Celebration Service was held. Specially printed Centenary membership cards were presented to all current members and a commemorative banner was dedicated and given to the Church. The present boys and staff took part in a sketch based on the life of the Company. After the Service, the Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent, Councillor Jean Bowers, unveiled a plaque in the Church foyer commemorating the 100 years of service by the boys and young men of the 8th Company.

Everyone agreed that the celebrations had been extremely enjoyable and successful, many friendships were renewed and new ones made. A page has been established on Facebook to enable former members to keep in touch.

On the 17th October our Company Section boys won the Under 14 section of the Battalion Swimming Gala. An excellent result considering only 3 boys were involved - quality not quantity. A special mention for Joshua Steele who won the Battalion Championship - probably the youngest Champion we have had in the Battalion.

The Junior Section finished 3rd in their section, again with only 3 boys taking part.

On August 29th, eight members of the Company, along with seven Guides, joined other Boys' & Girls' Brigade Companies from Staffordshire for the Annual Camp which was held this year at Porthpean, just outside St. Austell in Cornwall.

Although the weather was very mixed, we all enjoyed another excellent Camp which culminated in a Fancy Dress Disco on the final evening.

During the week activities included swimming, cycling, pony trekking, canoeing, 'high ropes', football, table tennis and a number of special activities for the Seniors.

The 8th Company came 2nd in the Tent Inspection and 2nd in the Activities Afternoon Competition.

Next years Camp will be on the Isle of Wight.

Junior Section at Goodwood

The Junior Sections of the 8th and 18th Companies enjoyed a brilliant day at the " Goblin Car Gathering" held at the Goodwood Motor Circuit in Sussex. All the boys performed really well in what was the first outing for the cars which were funded by "Awards for All". The 8th Company are looking forward to following up this event with new boys coming into the Section. The new session will provide openings for new team members in this exciting new activity.

Best Overall Company

In July the 8th North Staffs Company won the "Best Company Award" for the 2008/2009 session. The Junior Section were winners of their section, the Company Section were runners up and the Anchor Boys were third.

Company Section win Battalion Sports

The 8th North Staffs Company took part in the Battalion Sports Competition at Northwood Stadium on Friday 19th June. The Company Section were winners of the 14 & under age group and also the overall trophy winners. The over 14 age group finished runners - up. At the same event the Junior Section were placed joint 3rd. The Anchor Boys were runners - up at their event which took place at Longton High School 2 weeks later.