berkshire scouts annual review 2015

Berkshire Scoutsannual review 2014–15

Berkshire Scouts

APRIL MAY JUNE JULY

AUGUST OCTOBER

DECEMBER JANUARY FEBRUARY

DRAGON BOAT REGATTA P6

this year Berkshire grew the largest number of young people anywhere in the country!

Annual Review 2014-15

QUEEN’S SCOUT AWARD P4

MARCH

NOVEMBER

WINGS 2014 P11 UGANDA 2015 P8

SEPTEMBER

Even better Scouting for even more young people

2 annual review 2014–15Berkshire Scouts

It is difficult and probably unfair to single out any particular achievements but to me there are a few that really stand out:

n WINGS 2014 was a fantastic success enjoyed by so many young people in Berkshire and from around the world and other parts of the UK;

n the fact that we were able to give even more young people a Scouting experience, as our census numbers increased by some 4%, with really good increases in the Scout and Explorer sections. We also seem to be retaining substantially more young people in the transfer between sections;

n we’ve started a County Youth Forum which I hope will make a real difference as it progresses;

n Project Africa – a great team of leaders and young people travelling out to Uganda this summer. They have been working together over the last year, training and preparing for a trip that will make a real difference to the communities we are working with in Uganda;

n an increased number of Queen’s Scout Awards.

So for the next 12 months, I hope for some really exciting developments in Berkshire. With new Local Development Officers (LDOs) and projects identified by District Commissioners, we should see even more young people enjoying and benefitting from Scouting across Berkshire; the new Scout Network provision should kick in so that we engage and retain yet more people in the 18–25 age group; our ‘youth shaped’ agenda moves forward with the Youth Forum; yet more support for young leaders; as our support for sections more generally and in developing excellent programmes is increased; and finally we have what I am sure will be a hugely successful Uganda 2015.

THANK YOUA massive thank you to the County Team, the County Executive Committee, and the District Commissioners, who give so much support and encouragement to Scouting across Berkshire. The hard work they put in supporting our leaders and young people is very much appreciated. In addition, we very much value and are grateful for the work of our staff members: Karen Thurlow on the administrative side of things, and our new LDOs, Betony Taylor and Jacqui Masoero.

Finally… a heartfelt thanks to all of our dedicated leaders and supporters who give so much of their valuable time in making Scouting a reality for our Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, Explorer Scouts, and Network members. You make a real difference to the lives of young people. Thank you.

Nigel Bevan, County Commissioner

INTRODUCTIONFirstly, thank you everyone for the welcome I have had in taking on the role as County Commissioner in Berkshire.

From the start of October last year I have seen, heard and learnt about the tremendous range of Scouting activities throughout Berkshire in Colonies, Packs, Troops and Units as well as the supporting programmes put on within Districts and the County.

Half way through this past year, and after just over 10 years as our County Commissioner, Hamish Stout left us to become the new Regional Commissioner in the South West. Hamish has made a huge contribution to the development of Scouting in Berkshire over the last 10 years and was without doubt an inspira-tional County Commissioner. Our sincere thanks go to Hamish for his hard work and support over many years.

You will see from this Annual Review the highlights of events as well as the breadth of support for Scouting in Berkshire over the past year, whether that is in the work of the ‘youth shaped’ agenda, growth, international activities, and events including WINGS 2014, activities, adult training, or the support services and Trustee support that backs all this up.

Berkshire Scouts congratulate Hamish Stout (our former CC) on his award of the MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for ‘services to Scouting and to young people’.

3Berkshire Scoutsannual review 2014–15

YOUTH FORUMA key focus as part of The Scout Association’s vision to 2018 is that ‘Scouting will be shaped by young people in partnership with adults’.

The most important places for this to happen is in every section, every week. We have also been working to begin creating opportunities for young people to shape how Scouting happens across the County. The County Youth Forum has representatives (aged 16–25) from Districts and is beginning to develop its own project areas.

This will expand later in the year for those aged 10–16 alongside many Districts also working towards similar arrangements. We see this method as a great way to get some keen and motivated young people involved in the wider Scouting world, whilst of course remembering the importance that their own section is shaped by young people in partnership with adults.

Pete Jeffreys, Deputy County Commissioner

YOUTH SHAPED

‘Scouting will be shaped by young people in partnership with adults.’


18–25 PROGRAMME Over the past year, the 18–25 section has been focused primarily on a combination of supporting Districts that are rolling out Network units, and helping young people to achieve their top awards.

We now have 18–25 provision (either in the form of a Network Unit, or an Active Support Unit) in at least 6 Districts, and plans being formed for most others with a view to being rolled out by the end of the year, in line with The Scout Association’s Network vision to 2018.

QUEEN’S SCOUT AWARDSWe have seen a really encouraging increase in the number of Queen’s Scout Award (QSA) participants with at least 18 young people signing up over the past year, and 12 awards completed – recognition of excellent effort by each of these young people as well as the team of adults supporting each of them. In order to help people achieve the QSA we’re now looking to set up District-wide support groups, made up of people who have already completed their QSA, and those with appropriate knowledge and experience to provide support.

‘We have seen a really encouraging increase in the number of Queen’s Scout Award participants.’

Congratulations to the following who have achieved the Queen’s Scout Award, Scouting’s highest training award, over the past 12 months:

n Lizzie Stroud (Kennet)

n Jon Oxtoby, Adam Humphries, Richard Anderson, Callum Wilson, Paul Hutchinson (Maidenhead)

n Richard Baines (Reading Central)

n David Docherty, Chris Craig (Slough)

n Lee Anderson, Matthew Hayden, Callum Spiller (Wokingham)

Elliot Berg, ACC (18–25)

YOUNG LEADERSThe really encouraging growth in numbers of Young Leaders in Berkshire is due to the dedication, commitment, and enthusiasm of both the adult leaders training and supporting them, and more so of the Young Leaders themselves, many of whom have gone through Scouting and have now reached a stage where they wish to give back.

Over the last year, the improvements to the Young Leader scheme in Berkshire have meant that more dated ideas about Young Leaders have changed. Methods of training have expanded so that young people are no longer subjected to hours of tedious PowerPoint presentations!

Looking forward, it is an exciting time for Young Leaders; with revamped modules, a greater emphasis on Young Leaders taking more of a lead in their own training and of course in the running of the sections they work with. We will also be creating County-led Young Leader events, and looking at the big question that faces Young Leaders and Explorers as a whole, when they reach 18:

‘What happens next?’

Phill Wood, ACC Young Leaders

See p12 for St George’s Day

Awards! >


GROWTHLOCAL DEVELOPMENT OFFICERS (LDOS)In the Autumn we bid farewell to Helen Mackie and Ben Choi who served us well as LDOs, who both moved onto new opportunities elsewhere with our best wishes. We are proud that in April we welcomed Betony Taylor and Jacqui Masoero to join us as our new LDOs. Betony is new to Scouting and has experience of working closely with new and existing volunteers elsewhere to help our leaders to grow Scouting. Jacqui is a Cub leader and also works with young people in the outdoor education centre at Ufton Court.

As well as providing support for Groups and Districts to open new sections, Betony and Jacqui can also provide some advice and guidance for existing Groups to successfully recruit their own volunteers to strengthen their teams.

We have worked closely with District Commissioners over the last few months to identify areas in which they would like to open new sections. Some of these are in partnership with existing Groups looking to expand, and others are in communities which don’t already have Scouting provision. We’re pleased that many of these are already underway, with an increasing number of the setups being led by experienced local volunteers who are now dab-hands at opening new provision.

CENSUS

3 new Colonies

3 new Packs

7 new Troops

405 extra young people!

Over the last year, 3 new Colonies, 3 new Packs and 7 new Troops have been opened – and an amazing 405 extra young people have joined. These numbers are remarkable and for us all to be immensely proud of – we know that Scouting can be life-changing for many young people and so our commitment to offer oppor-tunities to many more young people is at the heart of what we do. We should be rightly proud that Berkshire has grown around double the UK average every year for the last 8 years – and this year Berkshire grew the largest number of young people anywhere in the country!

‘This year Berkshire grew the largest number of young people anywhere in the country!’

MEMBERSHIP ENQUIRIESOver the last year or so, the handling of membership enquiries for young people have been coordinated by Karen Thurlow, our County Administrator, who then puts them in touch with the relevant District contact. We know that these enquiries can take up a lot of time in some places and are extremely grateful to everyone involved in keeping a smooth process running.

Feedback from parents tells us how valuable it is for them to be kept updated about likely times their child can join, as well as seeing some good news stories out of the Group every now and again. More and more Groups are using their joining lists to get in touch with people to start the process of getting adults involved in flexible volunteering roles from the start!

Pete Jeffreys, Deputy County Commissioner


ACTIVITIESNow that our County on-line permit application and processing scheme is established, and more assessors have completed their assessment modules, we have been able to handle permit applications more efficiently. This year we have recommended 46 permits for leaders and instructors wanting to lead adventurous activities and already have arrangements for when archery comes under the permit scheme.

In addition, we have run a Remote Emergency Care (REC2) First Aid course for permit holders and others who need more extensive First Aid skills than First Response together with a programme of hillwalking training weekends for those seeking permits, while the County Climbing Adult Support Unit (ASU) has run a series of climbing sessions as well as a climbing weekend in Snowdonia for leaders and instructors seeking to expand their experience or gain permits.

The County Archery and Shooting ASU is now also off the ground and has already arranged its first shooting and archery courses for leaders.

As another part of our strategy for increasing the availability of adventurous activities, we have recently expanded the scope of our grants scheme for helping with the often high cost of gaining the qualifications to run adventurous activities. It now includes all activities covered by the permit scheme together with shooting. This year we awarded grants which will total approximately £1,800 once the applicants have completed their training as well as spending approximately £1,200 subsidising places on our REC2 First Aid and shooting courses.

‘This year we awarded grants which will total approximately £1,800 once the applicants have completed their training as well as spending approximately

£1,200 subsidising places on our REC2 First Aid and shooting courses.’

As a result of the success of the Dragon Boat Regatta held last summer when 22 teams took part, we increased our capacity and this June almost 400 Cubs and Scouts in 34 teams together with their leaders and parents descended on Wokingham Waterside Centre for a fantastic day on the Thames.

Bob Meldrum, ACC Activities

PROGRAMME


INTERNATIONAL SCOUTING

It’s been a very successful year for international Scouting with a highlight being the 5th WINGS international camp for 6,000 young people, held again in Windsor Great Park.

This successful international event continues to energise so many young people and leaders alike and has been the catalyst that has helped launch friendships around the world. The legacy of WINGS maintains the formation of lasting friendships and exposure to different cultures and experiences.

The countries our young people have had the oppor-tunity to visit during the year, as well as preparations for this summer, include: France, Germany, Gibraltar, Holland, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland, Uganda, as well as the Channel Islands and taking part in international camps around the UK.

WORLD SCOUT JAMBOREE (JAPAN)The World Scout Jamboree is a gathering of Explorer Scouts from almost every country and territory in the world. In the summer of 2015, tens of thousands of Scouts will converge on Kirara-hama (Yamaguchi Prefecture), Japan, the venue for the 23rd World Scout Jamboree. Over 3 weeks, 3 Units from Berkshire will enjoy home hospitality with Japanese families as well as the Jamboree itself – an experience they will never forget.

See p11! >


PROJECT AFRICA & UGANDA 2015

Project Africa (PA) is a Berkshire Scouts global awareness programme now in its 5th year. The theme remains young people supporting young people.

The PA programme was launched in 2010 and in the following year 90 Scouts and leaders worked at two special schools in Uganda (the Bukeka Children’s Centre and the Kavule School for the Deaf). This summer, 70 Scouts and leaders will be returning to Uganda to work at the Butagaya and Iwololo rural primary schools (again, refurbishing and building classrooms).

In the intervening years, the PA programme has been providing international programmes for sections in the County; the PA Challenge Badge; supporting teacher wages at Bukeka; as well as supporting other projects. A total exceeding £85,000 has been raised through this truly international community development programme.

2nd Thatcham Beaver Scouts have also been supporting the PA programme by sponsoring two children at the Kavule School for the Deaf. The Beaver Scouts have been sending gifts to the children as well as sponsorship at just under £2,000!

‘A total exceeding £85,000 has been raised through this truly international community development programme.’

ROGER KING INTERNATIONAL FUNDThis year the Fund has been extremely active by enabling 18 participants to take part in international Scouting experiences. The Fund is for individuals who, for financial reasons, might otherwise be excluded from international activities.

Bruce Clark, ACC International


COUNTY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (CEC)The CEC has had a very busy and challenging year with a wide range of business covered and there has been much to be proud of.

Firstly, the CEC was proud to see WINGS 2014 delivered so well, and from a personal point of view, I spent a week working on site, and seeing so many smiling young people reminded me what this is all about! I also believe we take it for granted how much time volunteers give to deliver such activities which provide life-changing experiences.

During the period leading up to WINGS we were also going through the recruitment process for a new County Commissioner. This was such a hard piece to be involved with as we could see many great candidates for leading the County forward. The role went to Nigel Bevan, and I’m very confident he will continue to take Berkshire from strength to strength. We must also pay tribute to Hamish Stout, who led, developed, and grew the County so well during his 10 years in the role of County Commissioner. I am sure Hamish will continue growing and developing Scouting both in his Group Chair role as well as in his new role as Regional Commissioner for South West England.

Over the last few years, Mick Stocks (County Vice-Chair) and I have been working hard to strengthen the ability of the CEC to tackle the many increasing issues facing Trustees both internally and externally. Hopefully, this will cascade to support District Executive Committees in their good work.

Recently, the CEC has been forming a number of subcommittees and working groups to spread the workload and to make sure work is progressed. These include a Safety Active Support Unit with both internal and external expertise; a Finance sub-committee to support the work of the County Treasurer; a working group looking at data protection issues; and we are developing a Trustee training team. The latest piece of work is establishing a working group to help with a number of items under the heading of ‘risk manage-ment’. It is early stages for some of these groups but we are confident that long term these will become a valuable resource for the County.

Karen Thurlow, our County Administrator, continues to provide an efficient service through the County Office, which this year moved seamlessly from Gravelly Court

to Sindlesham Court. The CEC is grateful to Alan Beavis and his staff at Berkshire Scout Enterprises Ltd (BSEL), for providing office accommodation for many years. BSEL continues to provide the employment service for Berkshire County Scout Council.

The Appointments Advisory Committee (AAC) continues to support the process of leader appointments at County level as well as occasionally supporting the work of some District AACs. Other CEC business has included a revised budget process; a full revision of procedures which includes financial controls and reserve funds; supporting large events (WINGS 2014, Uganda 2015, Jamboree Units, Dragon Boat Regatta, Explode, etc); as well as supporting the volunteer IT Team and the County staff employed through BSEL (two Local Development Officers and the County Administrator).

It would be remiss of this Trustee report not to mention the word ‘Compass!’ I am sure you will agree this has been a frustrating time for many and the cause of changes of many plans. For example, the annual census was suddenly switched back to the previous format and we were so impressed at how Groups and Districts turned this around so quickly. Next year, we will not be using ‘Compass’ for the census return and so please be prepared to continue with the current format.

Learning from the previous year means we were able to announce membership subscriptions as early as October for the coming year, and we can promise we will do this again this year. We hope this helps Groups and Districts with their budget and financial plans.

Finally, I want to thank all in Scouting for everything they do, and in particular, to thank my fellow Trustees across the County.

Mark Foster, County Chair


ADULT TRAININGThank you to the team for their continued support throughout the year both on the Harmonised Learning and Module courses.

A personal thank you to my team for their guidance over this last year and for reminding me things in Scouting do take a little longer to happen! Thanks also to all the Training Advisers (TAs) for their support over the past year. All TAs across the County have dual roles and so their time and support is very much appreciated. The TAs are an integral part in helping our adult leaders achieve their Wood Badge.

UPDATESWe now have regular Local Training Manager (LTM), Local Training Administrator (LTA), TA and Mentor Meetings across the County which I believe are bringing the District Teams together to plan, identify support, and offer validations at a more regular and local level.

A FEW CHANGESI don’t want to talk too much about Compass, but the delays have had quite an impact on the County training team (CTT)! It has been a challenge to plan the demand for future courses without an overview. However, we are internally addressing this challenge and we should soon have a better overview of where the CTT needs to be in relation to offering specific training needs to Districts and Groups.

Module and Programme changes have recently taken place and we are working our way through these to im-plement changes to the content of the training we deliver.

WOOD BADGES ACHIEVEDWood Badge recommendations and course attendances have both taken a slight dip this year and the team are looking at some of the reasons behind this. I believe the busy lives our adult volunteers plays a part. In today’s world we have so many things to do outside of Scouting and often with shorter timescales! However, it might be helpful to note that training achieved through Scouting can also be of great benefit for life outside of Scouting!

‘Note that training achieved through Scouting can also be of great benefit for life outside of Scouting!’

Part of our challenge as a CTT is to continue to think outside the box in supporting leaders who have not managed to complete their Wood Badge in the recom-mended 3 year period. In many cases it simply requires a chat with their TA to explore their skills and experiences… and yes it really is that simple… sit down with a TA and talk about your involvement in the District, Group or section, and see what could happen by the end of the evening!

ON A FINAL NOTEThe adult training team is always looking to add new members to the team to support and deliver training at both County and District levels. So, if you have a little time to meet for a chat please get in contact, I would be very keen to listen to your ideas of delivering support and training and perhaps how you could play a part.

Vince Knight, ACC (Adult Training)

2014In August 2014 Berkshire Scouts and Girlguiding Royal Berkshire jointly hosted WINGS 2014 as part of the Scout and Guide programmes.

The aim of WINGS 2014 was to build on the existing WINGS brand and provide an exciting and complete international experience of one week’s duration for Guides and Scouts aged 10–18. Alongside this it was to provide members of both organisations aged 5–10 and over 18 with opportunities to be appropriately part of the event.

So, how well did we do…

n over 90% of participants would like to return to WINGS at a future event, including a significant number of older participants who would like to return as staff;

n the introduction of the Squircle was a great success and contributed positively to the feel, form and functioning of the event;

n development of additional programme, tailored to the 14–18 year olds, was well received and should be continued;

n WINGS on Wednesday (WoW) for Brownies and

Cubs from Berkshire was hugely successful with 800

attendees. This is almost a fourfold increase on 2009.

It is worth noting that WINGS is entirely run by volunteers and it is to the credit of both associations that the skills exist to run such a large scale and high profile event, especially given the legal and regulatory environment that prevails in the UK.

The Delivery Leadership Team would like to express its thanks to all 800 staff who gave so willingly of their time, in a number of cases many hours, over many months. We would also like to thank the leaders who worked with us in both the good times and the challenging times, to ensure our young people only remember the fantastic WINGS 2014 experience. Lastly, our thanks go to the County Executives and the County Commissioners. Without their support and encouragement, WINGS would not continue to be the amazing and successful event that it is.

Brendan Booth, WINGS 2014 Director

annual review 2014–15 11Berkshire Scouts


County Scout Office Sindlesham Court Mole Road Sindlesham Wokingham rg41 5ea

0118 978 8292 [email protected] berkshirescouts.org.uk

@BerkshireScouts

/berkshirescouts

SUPPORT SERVICES

Much of the team’s work goes unseen but is vital nonetheless to the smooth and effective running of the County, and includes:

n the IT Team whose vital work supports the County website, diary, activity notifications and email communications – the team also host a number of Group & District websites;

n the Archivist who ensures the safe retention and logging of the documents and memorabilia across the County’s strong Scouting history – reserving the past for future generations;

n the Quartermaster who ensures safe storage of County assets & equipment, including IT and alongside the Safety Team on supporting the Portable Appliance Testing service;

n the County Administrator (County Secretary) whose work includes DofE Award Scheme registration, activity permits, adult training bookings (including First Response), DBS monitoring, insurance policies, activity training funding and acting as the link to national and international Scouting on behalf of the County – to name a few of the tasks!

Mark Ballard, ACC Support Services

ST GEORGE’S DAY AWARDSCongratulations and many thanks for fantastic service to Scouting to those who were awarded St George’s Day Awards this year:

SILVER WOLF § Jenny Gudgeon (WINDSOR & ETON)

BAR TO SILVER ACORN § Jane Taylor (MAIDENHEAD)

§ Sue Clarkson, Ron Spencer (PANG VALLEY)

§ John Croton (READING CENTRAL)

SILVER ACORN § Rob Ayre, John Bannerman,

Michael Fletcher, Gill Hague, Elizabeth Hogg, Alan Hoskins, Erica Hunter, Carolyn Newbery (MAIDENHEAD)

§ Rita Curran (PANG VALLEY)

§ Phil Addington (READING CENTRAL)

§ Caroline Coopey (TACEHAM HUNDRED)

§ Colin Smith (WOKINGHAM) – awarded posthumously

berkshire scouts annual review 2015

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