Forces Ripon Community Information Portal

38 Engineer Regiment is able to boast a long and distinguished history with the City of Ripon, North Yorkshire, first coming to Deverall Barracks in January 1959. Joint Service Mountain Training Wing (Ripon) is also located in Deverell Barracks.


The ancient City of Ripon is home to one of the oldest Cathedrals in England dating back to the 7th Century. It boasts many charming buildings within delightful streets and maintains a variety of old traditions. Ripon is also within easy travelling distance of Harrogate, Leeds and York. The Ripon Racecourse calendar hosts popular race days throughout the summer. There are also many festivals and the market square provides a perfect venue for regular cultural and fun events throughout the year. The city is bounded on one side by the magnificent Yorkshire Dales and on the other side by the atmospheric North Yorkshire Moors.

The unit gymnasium is well equipped and open to all over the age of 16. The Wakeman Facility is home to most of the community based clubs and events in Claro Barracks. These include coffee mornings, Mums and Tots and Brownies. The ‘Wakeman Club’ may be booked for private functions. The ‘HUB’ provides internet access, Londis shop and bar/food facilities. There is also a barbers and Crèche/pre-school on camp.

There is a good bus service from Ripon to Leeds and Harrogate. Train services operate from Harrogate and Thirsk. Local International Airports are Leeds/Bradford and Teesside.

Ripon is predominantly a market town and still hosts ‘Market Day’ on Thursdays. There is a wide variety of small shops, including art & craft and gift shops. The local supermarkets are Sainsbury’s, Booths and Morrison’s. Most of the high street shops and department stores can be found nearby in the town of Harrogate or further a field in York or Leeds. The Metro Centre at Gateshead is less than a one hour drive.