As a farm worker, John was exempt from the normal call up, but joined the Home Guard in June 1940. From there he was recruited into Auxiliary Units in Jan 1942 by Lieutenant Fisk.
| Unit or location | Role | Posted from | until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ningwood Patrol | Patrol member | 06 Jan 1942 | 03 Dec 1944 |
Farm labourer
Eric attended a course at Coleshill House with two other men. This caused him some problems as he wasn't allowed to say his reason to leave the Island which was in a restricted travel zone. He managed to get a travel permit from the local Home Guard Commander by telling him he was going on an agricultural course. Landing at Lymington he then had to explain to the Police why he only had a Post Office address as his intended location. Waiting until he was left alone he managed to slip away and catch a train to Swindon.
Having managed this he reported to the Post Office at Highworth, where the Post Mistress called up the transport to take him to Coleshill House for the course. He had the same problem on his return journey.
In an interview with John Worsley, John Scovell recounted some of his Auxiliary Units experiences.
After his death, his family found a number of items of items from his time with Auxiliary Units in the house. There were pull and pressure switches, a cordtex fuse tin and also his Stand Down Badge.
Gavin Scovell,
The National Archives ref WO199/3391,
1939 Register