1 February 2012 Issue 113 Meet Liz Craig Our new County Commissioner Liz Craig has been appointed as the new County Commissioner for Cam- bridgeshire and at 31 is the youngest person to lead the County’s 7,500 Scouts! Liz has held a number of roles in scout- ing, having been a leader working with Beaver Scouts and District Commis- sioner for Hatfield Forest District, Essex. She was also part of 8,000 International Service Team volunteers from across the world who made the World Scout Jamboree in Sweden last year such a fantastic event for 32,000 young people from almost every country across the globe. Liz says “There are 7,500 young people and volunteers in this county and it is my job to give both adult volunteers and young people as many opportunities for adventure as I can over the next few years.” She added “Scouting is about changing lives and I want to do that for adults as well as young people. Every adult who volunteers in Cambridgeshire deserves the opportunity to have as much fun as the young people they work with. I want to make sure they get as much out of being a volun- teer as they can. For me it’s not about adults giving up time to volunteer it’s about Scouting help them gain new skills and experiences” Liz brings to her new role a wealth of experience, in her professional life she has been the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Advisor for Hertfordshire County Council as well as National Advisor for Scout Network when the new section was launched in 2001. When not busy scouting, Liz and her husband enjoy outdoor pursuits in the company of their black Labrador.
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February 2012 Issue 113
Meet Liz Craig Our new County Commissioner Liz Craig has been appointed as the new County Commissioner for Cam-bridgeshire and at 31 is the youngest person to lead the County’s 7,500 Scouts! Liz has held a number of roles in scout-ing, having been a leader working with Beaver Scouts and District Commis-sioner for Hatfield Forest District, Essex. She was also part of 8,000 International Service Team volunteers from across the world who made the World Scout Jamboree in Sweden last year such a fantastic event for 32,000 young people from almost every country across the globe. Liz says “There are 7,500 young people and volunteers in this county and it is my job to give both adult volunteers and young people as many opportunities for adventure as I can over the next few years.” She added “Scouting is about changing lives and I want to do that for adults as well as young people. Every adult who volunteers in Cambridgeshire deserves the opportunity to have as much fun as the young people they work with. I want to make sure they get as much out of being a volun-teer as they can. For me it’s not about adults giving up time to volunteer it’s about Scouting help them gain new skills and experiences” Liz brings to her new role a wealth of experience, in her professional life she has been the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Advisor for Hertfordshire County Council as well as National Advisor for Scout Network when the new section was launched in 2001. When not busy scouting, Liz and her husband enjoy outdoor pursuits in the company of their black Labrador.
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My Jamboree and the ‘Jamfam’ By Marc Wiseman, Cambridgeshire Contingent Leader
After nearly two years of planning, team building, fundraising and all the build up, we eventually made it to the Jamboree. And, returning home from 19 days away on a trip of a lifetime with the Cambridgeshire Jam-boree Unit, it’s hard to know where to start telling you all about it, espe-cially as all of us who went could (and probably do) talk for hours about it!
So, in brief, here’s what we got up to... We set off from the UK in July 2011 for a few days in Copenhagen with the rest of the UK Contingent units, just 3,450 of us! Over the next few days we got to discover the city, ride rib boats out of the harbour and spend an afternoon trying out lots of different sports and activities. We took over Tivoli Gardens theme park in the centre of the city; in the words of one of the Explorers “we owned the place” and then, for our last night in Denmark, we got to party the night away at the amazing ‘Pre-Jam Party’ put on by the UK Contingent. Although the weather in Copenhagen may have been a bit dull at times, this didn’t matter as the city had a friendly feel to it, helped by 1,000’s of Scouts from all over the world who had chosen it as a gathering point prior to the Jamboree. We met Scouts from South Africa, Belgium, France, Spain, Hong Kong, Thailand, Poland, Holland (and the list goes on!). It was a great start to our adventure that had everyone excited, already worn out, but really hyped for the main event in Sweden. The next morning was an early start for us and a logistical nightmare for the UK Contingent team, having to get all 89 UK units from our hostels in the centre of the city, on to coaches and travelling out of Copenha-gen, over the famous Øresund Bridge to Malmo, and on to Rinkaby and the Jamboree site. By the end of the afternoon on the 27th July, all the UK Contingent had arrived on site; we spent that afternoon (and a good part of the next day!) setting up our home for the next twelve days.
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The time in Sweden seemed to fly by and the programme of activities, events and ceremonies kept everyone busy. There were five main activ-ity days, all run within the massive 2,000+ acre site, based on the themes of the Jamboree. There was a break in the middle of the week for ‘Camp-in-Camp’, where we all went off to smaller camps of just 200 or so Scouts, up to two hours from the main site, to camp with Swedish scouts in a traditional way. My patrol of ten headed off to a camp called camp örnee (it’s Swedish for Eagle).
As well as all the planned activities on site, there were lots of spontane-ous activities and events going on in the sub camps and in the main town area. On ‘Main Street’ there were several international food houses offering ‘traditional’ food and drink from their country and the UK had a castle for their food house. Everyone had lots of free time to so-cialise, chat and relax and have ‘Fika’ (Swedish coffee break) with friends old and new. With so much to do and see it might sound like we didn’t get much sleep, well, we didn’t, but it didn’t matter as every min-ute was an experience and part of the memories that the whole unit have to look back on. After 15 days away, were nearly done with our adventure. We had just one bit left… On the 7th August we headed to Portugal for HOHO (Home Hospitality) experience. For me this was the highlight of the whole trip and although we were not staying with families as originally planned, our host scout group in Vila Real, based in the northern Dorro region of Portugal, were exceptional, laying on three packed days of activities, sights and experi-ences, which with a small group of just 60 it was a vast contrast to the massive, multicultural experience of the Jamboree in Sweden. The journey that our group of 36 young people and four adults from Cambridgeshire took really was as good as it sounds, even with the late nights and early mornings. The trip was packed with lots of fun, chal-lenges, different cultural experiences and an opportunity for everyone to make lots of new friends from all over the world, something all of the young people will remember for the rest of their lives. If you see any of the young people from the unit, ask them, and they will
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tell you what an amazing time they had at the Jamboree and how their newly created ‘JAMFAM’ (that’s their Jamboree Family by the way) are looking forward to their next big Scouting adventure together. International friendship We may have only been in Portu-gal for a few short days, but the whole group became great friends, so much so that, within the ethos of Scouting and the spirit of solidarity from the Jamboree, we invited the group to stay here in the UK in 2012, so that we can show them UK Scouting and what Cam-bridgeshire has to offer. So there will be a visit from 40 of their new friends in the Portuguese group before Easter 2012 (30th March to 5th April). The ‘Jamfam’ are busy planning the trip and the fund raising they need to support it. We will be hosting the group here in the UK, with three days in Cam-bridgeshire, then a trip to Brownsea Island, as they wanted to camp on the site ‘where it all started’. Then we will be staying at Gilwell for the last few days, with a trip to London, so that the young people can soak up UK culture. We might even get to meet Bear if he’s about … another thing the Portuguese scouts really wanted to do. The future… Every four years, Jamboree’s bring young people from all over the World the opportunity to experience something really special and unique. So, for 2015, when the World Scout Jamboree goes to Japan, and when the young people in your group get the opportunity to be a
part of it, make every effort to help them make it a reality and have the experiences of a lifetime, just like the young people of the 2011 Cam-bridgeshire Jamboree Unit have had. I know many of them are already planning on how they can attend as Inter-national Service Team or Leaders in 2015, some of them are already saving up!
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Richard Hames looks back on the last six years
The last few months have seen more fantastic events in Cam-bridgeshire. Two examples being the Peterborough Gang Show that was a colourful, vibrant and energetic celebration. Well done to all involved, it was a thor-oughly enjoyable evening. The Top Awards event, held over two days was the largest ever and cele-brated the very best of Cambridgeshire Scouting. Well done to all those who received awards and also to everyone who helped them to achieve their success. Thank you also to parents and supporters who donated more than £1,000, including Gift Aid. We have just seen the CaSE contingent return from The Gambia where they linked up with previous projects. This time they built a village gar-den for locals to better provide for themselves. Undoubtedly this was another life changing experience for the young people involved. Cam-bridgeshire Scout Expeditions has done some fantastic work in recent years, primarily in Africa. I would encourage continued support for young people to take part in this type of experience, working on projects that provide longer term support for communities that need it overseas. 2012 will prove to be an exciting year, with the Queen’s Diamond Jubi-lee in June and the Olympic Games in August. I know that many Dis-tricts and Groups are already planning to celebrate and the Jubilee Bea-cons will be a big part of this. The Olympic Games will be a huge cele-bration and another opportunity to build programs and events with ac-tivities that stimulate young people in Scouting. These are my last scribbles in Noticeboard as County Commissioner and I would like to reflect on some of the achievements of the last few years. With our sixth year of sustained growth, membership is now more than 20% up during my tenure. All Districts in the County have contrib-uted to the growth in male, female, youth and adult membership in Scouting. Growth itself is not the main target but it is an indication that you are doing the right things, doing them well and attracting more peo-ple to experience our unique organisation. Members would simply not stay if they did not enjoy themselves, and this applies equally to adult volunteers as it does young people.
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We have available more training opportunities and as a result an increase in the number of Wood-badges awarded than ever through an expanded training team who have taken on more responsibility and are providing top quality courses covering every aspect of Scouting to sup-port you in your role. Noticeboard, OnReport and the County Website, which is currently being updated, all support our inter-nal and external communications. However, communication is a two way process and more wider contributions are encouraged from across the County telling everyone what you have been up to. Cambridgeshire Young Spokespeople have had lots of success, working with radio, TV and the local press. Our newspaper coverage is very positive and plays a major factor in encouraging more young people and adults to join. Our model of governance in Cambridgeshire has proved so successful that several other Counties have used it as a template for their own pro-cedures so they can try to bring their Counties up to the standard of Cambridgeshire. When I was appointed, I said that I wanted to help provide “better Scouting for more young people”. I said that I wanted the County to be more active, growing, well supported and well funded. Looking back I think that the team can say that these objectives have not only been met but exceeded in all areas, and I hope that you have benefited from this work. Whilst we must never be complacent, we can all be very proud of what we have achieved and the strong position Cambridgeshire Scouting now finds itself in. With these targets I set myself now met, it is time for me to move on and let Liz Craig take Cambridgeshire to the next level and build on what is the best Scout County in the UK. I am sure she will do a brilliant job. Thank you all for your fantastic support over the last few years and en-joy your Scouting. Richard Hames County Commissioner (2005 to 2011)
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Duchess of Cambridge becomes a Scouting Volunteer In January, The Scout Association welcomed the Duchess of Cam-bridge to Scouting, as Her Royal Highness announced that she is to become a volunteer in the movement. The Duchess will primarily help out at Scout Groups close to her home in North Wales, as well as others elsewhere from time to time as opportunities arise. She will be focusing mainly on Cub Packs and Beaver Colonies. We may well see her in the County, particularly as she will also work with East Anglian Children's Hospices based in Milton near Cambridge. The Duchess will help run various activities, similar to the 1,200 adult volunteers that are part of this organisation in Cambridgeshire, including games, first aid, cooking and campfires. As one of the UK’s most high profile people, it is hoped her involvement will encourage other young adults to get involved in Scouting. Despite numbers standing at over 6,500, Cambridgeshire Scouting is in need of more adult volunteers, with more than 950 young people waiting to join. We know that there is something for everyone as a Scout volunteer, and adults get much out of their involvement whether that is transferable skills for the workplace, confidence, or simply the satisfaction of know-ing they are helping their community. The announcement also underlines the organisation’s inclusivity. Girls have been members since 1976 and an 88% rise since 2005. There were more girls joining than boys in 2010. When the news broke, Louise Clover, GSL 1st Fenstanton & Hilton told the Cambridge News: ‘”It’s great that the Duchess can find time in her busy schedule to help Scouting develop the lives of young people in her local community.” Demands and pressures of modern life often mean it’s harder for people to find time to volunteer, so for some time now Scouting has offered volunteer roles in such a way that adults can get involved flexibly similar to the way that the Duchess is supporting Scouting.
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Flexibility in volunteering is the way forward So here are some examples of volunteers in Cambridgeshire that can only work in a flexible way. Like the Duchess, they too are an inspira-
tion. Jess Lockwood Jess, aged 20, joined 1st Fenstanton & Hilton Scout Group as a Scout then became a Young Leader at 14. She is currently a student at Reading University studying Real Estate. Jess volunteered to work with a Scout Troop in Reading and has been running the weekly programme during term time only. In the holi-days she helps out with Fenstanton and Hilton and
last summer was at CamJam where they hosted a Scout Group from Germany. All this fits around her studies and work placements. John Morris In 2011 John Morris was voted Cambridgeshire Young Person of the Year. Despite a very difficult childhood, which would have led many to give up on life and take a different path, John credits Scouting with helping him become the young man he is today. Living on his own since the age of 16, has not stopped John helping with Scouting, including projects in Africa nor gaining a place at Keele University. He is a truly inspirational young man who provides an ex-cellent role model for others. Chris Young Chris is Cub Scout Leader at the 1st St Neot's Scout Group. In his pro-
fessional life he is the East of England Quality Co-ordinator for the Quality Company. The Quality Company enables disabled people with learning disabilities to live their lives the way they want and to be part of the community. Chris has Cerebral Palsy and a learning disability but Hey Ho, this has not stopped him.
Go to www.thequalitycompany.co.uk to find out more.
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Beaver Section round-up 2011 saw the 25th anniversary of Bea-ver Scouting and I had the privilege of attending two Birthday parties in the County. Crafts Hill Beavers met at Cot-tenham Village College for a fun after-noon making puppets, a puppet show and a party tea plus a game or two. In December, Cromwell Beavers got together for a fun afternoon of games and a tea party. Thank you very much for inviting me to join in the fun. Baden Bear (my teddy) and I had a brilliant time at Crafts Hill District ‘Explorer’ sleepover at Copley. The Beavers really enjoyed making things, including their tea, taking part in a treasure hunt and a campfire. The following morning they had to search for their breakfast following ‘a failed air drop’ and later built shelters which were tested of course! Elise Vincent, 3rd Nene (Water Rats) Beavers reports that they held a Halloween Sleepover for 13 Beavers and four leaders. Great fun was had by all, with the children sleeping in indoor tents, a camp fire, take away supper, and Halloween activities including pumpkin carving. The event was held at the Werrington Scout HQ, Peterborough. Also last term, 3rd Nene spent a most enjoyable evening at Pets at Home. Easy to arrange with your local store, they provided experienced staff to show the Beavers around. They were able to see and learn about a variety of animals including Rats, Guinea Pigs, a Chinchilla, and Bernard the Komodo Dragon. The children were able to hold the ani-mals if they wanted and could ask loads of questions. After a look around the fish section they had drinks and biscuits, provided by the store. The Pets at Home evening was suitable for all sections of Scout-ing, so if you have a local store, you couldn't ask for a better free night! The planning for the Beaver Activity Days on Saturday and Sunday 14th and 15th July is well underway. Information will be available on the County website in the near future. It will be a bit like the Gilwell Fun Days without the queuing! Each Beaver will be given the chance to opt into sessions of activities that appeal to them. They will go round with a small group so will get the opportunity to make new friends as well as have new experiences. Do come along with your Beavers and join in the adventure. Diane Philbey Assistant County Commissioner (Beaver Scouts)
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Scout Community Week 14th to 20th May; a UK-wide fundraising initia-
tive, supported by B&Q, to help Scouts 'do 1 thing' to have an impact on their community . Scout
Community Week is the chance to work together on community projects or events and to raise money for Scouting.
Scout Association Volunteer VacanciesSee scouts.org.uk for volunteer vacancies on national project teams that give members the chance to make a big impact on the lives of
young people.
If you join this adventure then please write to Noticeboard about your experience
Cambridge Oxfam Walk This walk is in its 45th year and one of the longest running charity walks in the UK. This year Oxfam is aiming to raise £30,000
for humanitarian relief work.
Date is Sunday 20th May at Chilford Hall, Linton in rolling countryside. A variety of
walking distances are offered, ranging from a family-friendly 4 miles to a challenging 26
miles, with intermediate distances also. Why not enter a team for Scout Community
Week. For further information email: [email protected] or go to: http://
www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/
Mary's Meals is a charity that feeds over 600,000 of the world’s poorest children every
day through a schools based program.
Through Mary’s Meals, Youth Groups are able to develop the knowledge, understand-ing and skills of their young people through learning about the lives and challenges of
other young people in the world.
The charity has a network of volunteer speakers - ideal for the
Global Challenge. www.marysmeals.org
Wood Green is building a desper-ately needed vets surgery and the
charity has to raise £100,000 to kit it
out. Why not come up with a fun and innovative way to raise some of this
money. Scouts are great animal lovers and helping Wood Green will ignite that passion, seeing how your fundraising can make a real impact in the lives of
thousands of animals.
The Wood Green education team also delivers talks to Scout sections to com-
pliment the fund-raising. Ask the 7th Helpston Beavers and they will tell you what a great way this to combine
the Animal Friend Badge and Scout Community Week.
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Mepal 2012
Date for the 2012
Mepal event for
Scouts and Explorers is 12th
and 13th May
Tell us your Scouting news Email Noticeboard with Scouting stories.
Around 200 words plus a couple of good quality pictures to [email protected] by end of April
Beaver Activity Days 14th & 15th July
Planning is well underway. Infor-
mation is available on the County website now.
English Heritage sites For free castle visits for Scout Groups go to:
www.english-heritage.org.uk/education/free-entry
If you join this adventure then please write
Our Sporting Adventure Our Sporting Adventure is full of activities inspired by
the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. http://oursportingadventure.scouts.org.uk
Scouting Style Guide To download the new Scouting styleguide: http://www.scouts.org.uk/supportresources
For queries, questions or clarifications on commu-nications style and format email: [email protected].
Social media reminder
Remember to connect with Scouting through social
media on Association’s Facebook page and Twitter feed,
as well as Explorer and Network Facebook pages.
Beaver Scout residential experiences For information on weekend courses to help Beaver Scout
Leaders learn how to plan and run residential experiences in a hands-on and fun environment go to http://www.scoutactivitycentres.org.uk/
whatWeDo/leaderEvents.asp
Designed to give you the confidence to run a Colony sleepover
Know anyone who is passionate about Scouting but no longer a
member? Scouts’ Campfire Circle is a way to re-
kindle their adventure. To find out more visit https://
scoutscampfirecircle.org.uk/
Coach Training Mepal Outdoor Centre
GNAS Archery MLTB Climbing wall
British Fencing Association Canoe England Foundation
Canoe England Level 1 Quote SC20 for 20% off
www.mepal.co.uk Chatteris Road, Mepal, Ely
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Newmarket District Scouts are Martial Arts Champs Newmarket District Scouts, Liam and Dennis Courtenay-Moore are European Champion in Kook Sul Won Martial Arts. At the Euro-pean Championships in Kings Lynn, Dennis entered the Tech-niques and Forms categories and won Gold and Silver medals re-spectively. Liam entered Forms and Staff categories and earned two Gold's, making the boys European Champions 2011. To cap this Liam has just been awarded his Chief Scout's Gold Award too. I am sure you will agree this is an impressive performance, so please join me in saying “Well Done!” Steve Taylor District Commissioner, Newmarket
Cub Challenge Weekend 6th and 7th October 2012 If 2011 and previous years is any-thing to go by, Cub Challenge Weekend 2012 will be well and truly oversubscribed. So those Cub Packs that did not manage to get a place in 2011 please take note and remember to book early for this years event
As soon as the information becomes available Cub Leaders should get in with their numbers for the event. It is not any good waiting until Sep-tember when you go back after the holidays, as by then the places have always been filled. I had to turn a lot of Packs down in 2011 and this is not the first year a number of Cub Scouts have been disappointed. It is a very popular event and Cubs only get one chance to join in with the adventurous ac-tivities that are on offer.
Di Wisbey Deputy County Commissioner (Youth Programme)
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CaSE Expedition 2011 From a Citizen of Jiroff I’m sure many young people, and parents, often wonder why as leaders we go on about what Scouting can offer, making the most of opportunities and how we hope that young people learn to understand that to truly make the most of it they don’t just “come to Scouts” but become Scouts. Here, in his own words is what one Young Leader has to say. Please take time to share his words with those who are at an earlier stage in their Scouting journey, as inspiration for what they too can achieve. “It’s 5:30am, far too early to be up, even on camp, but we have our rea-sons. We are all shivering and in our hoodies, it feels as though it’s only a few degrees. We are sat below the flag pole waiting for the sun to rise. It’s the perfect time to think, and the perfect time to appreciate. This is why I love Africa. This is why I love Scouts. A daily reminder to us in the Gambia was to “leave the world a little bet-ter than you found it”. These ten simple yet effective words were said by Lord Baden Powell. Every time I read, write, say or even think of this quote, I am reminded of the dedication that adults and young people in Scouting, in the UK and across the world, give to this amazing cause. This expedition didn’t start on 2nd December when we flew to the Gam-bia, but in Spring 2011. It is a long process to organise a weekend camp for Scouts to a campsite down the road. It is an even longer process to organise a three week camp for a wide age range to Africa! When I was asked to help with the trip, I was a little naive and thought it would be easy enough so I agreed. Little did I know, I would end up organising most things for the trip, along with my own and group fundraising. Each young person that attends one of these expeditions has to pay to cover flights, insurance, food etc. This cost was £1,500 and was covered mostly by fundraising, which is a mission in itself. On 2nd December 2011, six of us who made up the main team, left the UK and flew to the Gambia for a three week expedition. The aim was to build a market garden for the women of a village called Jiroff. The land was about two acres and needed to be cleared of all the shrubs that was left after burning, the local women were amazing with
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their help! After a few days clearing, we started to dig the holes required for the fence posts, just under 300 holes around two feet deep each. Once dug, we then made a dry mix of cement and sand which we used to fill the holes around the wooden posts. Our next tasks were to nail the fence mesh to the poles and erect gates made by a local welder. On our last day we planted 44 trees and also saw the project I was part of in 2009. Before we left, the whole team were made Citizens of Jiroff, which was a great honour . Over the two Africa expeditions, I have made lots of amazing friends, and have left the world a little better than I found it. Away from the project, we stayed at a Scout lodge in Soma (about an hour from Jiroff) called Kaira Konko (which means “Hill of Peace”). Kaira Konko was built by Hampshire Scouts and the Manager and Commis-sioner of the area is Mr Lamin Kinteh or just “Kinteh” as we call him. Kinteh was awarded an MBE in February for his services to young peo-ple in Soma and the Gambia.
Scouting has helped me to open many doors opens through this expedi-tion where I have found amazing friends, met amazing people and had the best experiences ever. I’m going to leave you with what we said each day, at flag break and flag down, the Scout Promise “ On my honour, I promise that I will do my best, to do my duty to God and to the Queen, to help other people, and to keep the Scout Law” ; the Scout Motto “Be prepared” and a slo-gan well known to Cub Scouts “Do a good turn daily.” Alex is aged 17. He has just returned from his second African expedition (the first involved converting buildings at the school so they could have more teachers and therefore teach more pupils), and is already a great role model for younger Scouts in terms of what you can achieve when you become a Scout. To find out more about Kaira Konko go to www.kairakonko.com Louise Clover, Group Scout Leader Alex Fogg, Young Leader 1st Fenstanton & Hilton Scout Group
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County Development Hi, I am David Briston and I was appointed Deputy County Commissioner (Development) last summer and before this I was Ely District Commissioner. During the past five years, Scouting in Ely saw rapid growth year on year. The District’s Scouting roadshow was at many local events successfully contributing to the increase in adult and youth membership. My role includes practical support to Districts and Groups with:
• Active management of joining lists to encourage more adults into Scouting
• Creation of more spaces sooner for those of age to start on the joining (or ‘waiting’) list.
• Recruitment of adults for uniformed, executive and support roles
• Opening new sections to meet the demand for Scouting.
• Drawing up and updating District and Group development plans.
• Roadshows and displays to promote Scouting in your community If you would like help with recruitment, any of the above or in taking for-ward your own ideas then do get in touch with me. County roadshow equipment for loan If you have a local community event coming up, then the County equip-ment may be available to supplement your own displays. Please contact me to book the items below:
• County gazebo
• Rollup banners
• Cub & Beaver (8’ x 2’) railing banners
• Outdoor games (dominoes, Connect 4 & Jenga) Interested in becoming part of a small team to develop Scouting? Then drop me an email, a text or call for a chat about ideas you have to expand Scouting opportunities in the County, possibly based on a differ-ent way of promoting some of the fun, challenges and adventure you have been part of. I am keen to ensure that ideas from our younger members, as well as those that are more experienced are taken on board. You’ll find my contact details in the County Directory David Briston Deputy County Commissioner (Development)
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Are you properly insured? District and Group Executives take note!
The County Executive has discussed the provision of insurance cover for Districts and Groups. There appears to be confusion amongst members about what insurance is provided by County and/or the Association, and what should be provided by Districts or Groups within the County. The pre-sent situation applies. The Scout Association, through our subscriptions, insures all members, including young people, uniformed leaders and other members of Group and District Executives. However, neither the Scout Association nor the County insures occasional helpers or their children who may be present at a Scouting activity. The County has a specific policy which covers members’ children present at a County events. It is the responsibility of the District or Group to insure all occasional helpers and their children, as required. For example, a Group which op-erates a parents’ rota in its sections should consider insuring all parents who help, and their children (those who are not members) who come along with them. Volunteers at fetes, fireworks displays and other events fall into the same category. Insurance is not compulsory. It is for the individual District or Group to do its own risk assessment. However, County strongly recommends appropriate insurance, as the responsibility for helpers rests with the individual unit. Unity Insurance Services offer appropriate cover for this at a cost of £1.50 per adult per year. Website is: www.scoutinsurance.co.uk or call 0845 0945 703. The County has a ‘money loss’ policy in place, and also policies that insure against loss or damage to Abington Camp Site. For more details about insurance see Scouting Magazine, December 2011. The article is a timely reminder of the value of having all assets insured be that people, property or equipment belonging . If you need help, please feel free to get in touch Malcolm Robinson County Treasurer
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Abington Campsite Report
At the AGM last year, the then County Commissioner promised to contact the County once the Planning Permission had been granted for the potential devel-opment of Abington, the County campsite. Planning Permission has been granted and following a County Executive meeting in January as the Acting County Commissioner, I agreed to contact the County members. The County Executive would like to hear from any Individual, Group or District that has a proposal for the future of the site. Any proposal must be submitted by the 31st May 2012 and should include indicative costs and the potential benefits of the proposal. Having received the propos-als they will all be given due consideration based upon the benefit to young people, the Counties activities to that end and the cost benefit analysis of the proposal. The County Executive Committee will make a final decision on which proposal to implement at its September meeting. Proposals should be sent to the County Secretary by the 31st May 2012 This is an opportunity to have your say about the future of Abington and I hope you will feel able to contribute to the debate. If you have any que-ries or questions about this action please do not hesitate to contact me. Rob Lyon Regional Commissioner East of England [email protected]
Off to bed In the garden! Newmarket Explorer, Rob Challinor is sleep-ing outdoors for a year to raise funds for the charity that saved his sister’s life. He moved into a hammock in the garden in August to help Magpas. The emer-gency medical charity rushed to help his sister Kelly-Ann when she suf-fered serious head injuries when she was thrown from a horse in 2005. Rob has so far raised £160. If you would like to help contact Steve Tay-lor, Newmarket DC or visit: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action?userUrl=TeamMac&pageUrl=4
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Adult Training The Training Team has had some change of Roles. I have changed my role to County Training Manager; however I still remain the Local Training Manager for Cambridge District. Dave Musson is now Deputy County
Training Manager, whilst also keeping the role of Local Training Man-ager for Medhamstede and Nene. Brian Richmond’s new role is Train-ing Standardisation & Monitoring and remains Local Training Manager for Cromwell District. I would like to welcome the following new members to the team: Austin Hill (LTM) and Gerald Browning (LTA) Hinchingbrooke; Adam Thorpe (LTA), Ely and Fran Mchenry (LTM), Fenland. I am looking to increase the Training Team and require Local Training Managers, Local Training Administrators, Course Directors, Presenters and Facilitators. If you would like to join us please contact me: [email protected] We took training to Camjam last summer. I had not anticipated how popular it was going to be with leaders from all over the UK joining us for training. Over the week we had 44 participants take training modules and 17 leaders validating their modules. I would like to take this oppor-tunity to thanking Andy Bendon, Chris Halliday, John Lattimore and Jane Warren for delivering the modules, Sandra Tyrrell for validation and Cindy Abbott for the administration. Jane Carter County Training Manager
Scouts Speak Up Media training for Explorer Scouts Next course is at Ferny Crofts, Hampshire 17th and 18th March 2012. Contact: [email protected]
County Camp reminder, 28th to 30th September Full range of activities. Cost is £30 for Scouts and Explorers. Express interest now. Booking forms required by 1st April 2012 Contact: [email protected]
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County Diary
For further information about Adult Training see the County website: www.cambridgeshirescouts.org.uk
Training Dates
Date Modules Location
Sunday 26th February
Modules 13: Growing the Movement and 19: International
Cromwell
Saturday & Sunday 10th & 11th March
Modules 20: Administration (Managers), 21: Growing the Move-ment (Managers), 22: Section Support, 23: Safety for Managers and Support-ers and 24: Managing Adults
To be confirmed
Saturday 11th March
Safeguarding Nene
Sunday 18th March
Module 10: First Response Comberton
Sunday 25th March
Modules 5: Fundamental Values of Scouting, 14: Young People Today, 15: Challenging Behaviour and 7: Valuing Diversity
