Royal Navy Postal Unit

HISTORY
  During the 1939-1945 war, 120 Post Office Executives were granted RNVR commissions and in turn trained over 2,000 RN and WRNS personnel to form the worldwide Fleet Mail Organisation. The main Depot was at Reading. The Branch formed part of the Supply and Secretariat Branch of the RN.

  After the war it was decided to hand back the responsibility to the then GPO with the Regulating Branch being responsible for the 'in-house' aspects, but to form a Postal Branch of the RNVR which could be easily expanded in time of war, or emergency.
Curator note: On many small ships the communicator often acted as the postie and was responsible for all aspects of mail delivery.

  The Branch was formed in 1951 as the RNV (Postal) R attached to Divisions, it subsequently became an unattached Branch in which form it transferred to the RNR and became the RNR Postal Branch in 1959.

  With the formation of the Directorate of Postal and Courier Communications within the Ministry of Defence, but which is also a Department of the Post Office, the Royal Engineers assumed the responsibility for all Forces mail, and courier services in 1963. The foremost task of the RNR PB then became that of training to augment the joint services organisation in the time of war, or emergency, and assume from the Regulating Branch the (in-house), RN requirements for mail and courier facilities. The Branch is also tasked with providing such peacetime assistance as the RN may from time to time require.

RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING
  Officers and Ratings are recruited solely from Post Office employees and are entered on List 5 of the RNR. The present, recently revised, complement is 31 Officers and 325 Ratings to which the present strength of 43 Officers and 476 Ratings will be reduced by 1 January 1979.

  Initial training is carried out at BRNC Dartmouth by officers, and HMS RALEIGH by ratings. Thereafter technical postal and courier training is alternated with naval training annually with the technical training being carried out at the Home Postal and Courier Communications Depot, Mill Hill, London and naval training at various RN establishments. (By Curator: HMS MERCURY used to run postal courses).

  As their civilian occupation is that of their specialisation, and the need for technical training is thus reduced to a minmum, officers and ratings carry out various tasks during annual training and these include assistance to the Army throughout the year in the Postal and Courier Communications organisation in BAOR, back-up in busy periods at the Fleet Mail Offices at Gibraltar, Rosyth, etc, and during the various joint service and RN exercises. They also undertake the various RN courses for promotion and advancement.

SPECIAL TASKS
  Since its formation the Branch has set up Fleet Mail Offices for all major Fleet gatherings notable among which have been the Coronation Review (1953), the Clyde Review (1965), the Western Fleet Review, Torbay (1969), the NATO Naval Review (1969) and, most recently, the Silver Jubilee Review (1977). At the latter event, apart from providing the necessary mail and courier services with associated Post Office counter facilities, the Branch produced and marketed the first ever official RN commemorative philatelic cover, of which 60,000 were sold and realised a profit of £10,000 for the Captain of the Fleet Fund.

BRANCH BADGE
  The Branch Badge is the Belgian Posthorn.

COMMANDING OFFICERS
  Until 30 June 1977 the Branch was headed by a senior Post Office official in the post of Director Naval Postal Services (Designate), short title DNPS(D). The appointee was agreed between the Postmaster General and the Admiralty Board.

  The first two incumbents were ex-Army officers with wartime Forces Postal experience but without previous RN or RNVR service. The third, and last DNPS(D) was a serving officer of the Branch from 1951 until he retired in the rank of Commander in 1968. He was granted the rank of Honorary Captain RNR in 1975. The post of DNPS(D) was established as a full Captain RNR upon mobilisation.

  Parallel with the post of DNPS(D) the Senior Branch Officer was a serving RNR Commander from 1957 to 1977 prior to which it was a Lieutenant Commander.

  As a result of the Defence Review 1975, and the subsequent Review of the RNR PB, the post of DNPS(D) was discontinued from 30 June 1977 and the Senior Branch Officer post re-established as that of Head of Branch.