An Ashburton woman has been deployed to Iraq to work for the most senior British military officer in the Gulf State. Jane Allen, 49, is a Commander with the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) and in her civilian life is an IT manager with the Department of Constitutional Affairs (DCA). She has taken on the role of media officer to Royal Marines Lieutenant General Sir Robert Fry. Her tasks will include briefing the general, and the various task force commanders, in the media effort and liasing with the local Arab, national and international media for whom Iraq remains high on their news agenda. She joined the RNR in 1980 as a communications rating, passing her officer's section board in 1983. Since then, she has had a varied career, including being appointed RNR equerry to Prince Michael of Kent, honorary Commodore of the Royal Naval Reserve, in 2001, and latterly the officer responsible for reservist employer liaison. As a member of the RNR, Cmdr Allen is expected to be called upon at any time to serve alongside the full-time members of the UK armed forces, helping them to meet their operational commitments worldwide. 'The RNR has presented me with some unique opportunities worldwide and I have enjoyed many special friendships,' she said. 'There are about 3,300 reservists throughout the UK and I feel privileged to be counted among their numbers. 'The reservist organisations enable the British Armed Forces to extend their reach worldwide in their efforts to promote maritime security.' Volunteers like Cmdr Allen commit considerable amounts of their own time away from their families as well as their regular employment. The DCA actively supports its employees, who are also part-time members of the UK's armed forces. As members of the RNR, reservists combine the demands of a busy job with weekly evening training sessions and between four and six weekends of instruction and practice and a minimum 14 days extended specialist training each year.