S COUT U T Somerset Scout Newsletter May 2011 Issue 8 PLUS... pedal! You scout All your stories from around the county including a report from the county’s first road safety day. Somerset’s scout sailing centre offers learning opportunities for leaders, days on the water for young people and plenty of sailing fun besides. Taking the challenge Young people and leaders awarded at celebration day. this month... O the scouts and explorers that took to their bicycles for the county mountain bike challenge Have you ever been sailing? Birthday celebrations Somerset continues with its year of partying for Beaver’s 25th. our new web address... www.somersetscouts.org.uk/scoutout bookmark ScoutOut now and share with friends via Facebook
Transcript
SCOUT UTSomerset Scout Newsletter
May 2011Issue 8
PLUS...
pedal!
You scoutAll your stories from around the
county including a report from
the county’s first road safety day.
Somerset’s scout sailing centre offers learning opportunities for leaders,
days on the water for young people and plenty of sailing fun besides.
Taking the challenge
Young people and leaders
awarded at celebration day.
this month...
O
the scouts and explorers that took to their bicycles
for the county mountain bike challenge
Have you ever been sailing?
Birthday celebrations
Somerset continues with its year
of partying for Beaver’s 25th.
our new web address...www.somersetscouts.org.uk/scoutout
bookmark ScoutOut now and share with friends via Facebook
you scout...Explorers selected for the World Scout Jamboree held a fund-
raising big breakfast in Yeovil in March. St Andrews Scout Group HQ was decked out like a café and it was soon filled
with hungry supporters. Leaders and parents helped prepare, cook and serve the breakfasts the explorers carried off the fund-raiser with great success raising £269.54 in profit. The money goes towards covering the cost of visiting this year’s World Scout Jamboree which the young people going have had to fund-raise all themselves.
WSJ Big Breakfast
Trinity Beavers enjoyed a tour of Taunton’s fire station back in February. The station’s White Watch showed the beavers around all of the fire engines, let the youngsters spray water
from the engine’s hoses and led the group on a tour around the fire house. And, as if spraying a fireman’s hose wasn’t enough excitement, the Beavers found the automatic ejection of the charging lead from the fire engines to be brilliant! With thanks to Matthew Franks.
Vargflock, Vargflock, Vargflock (Swedish).Frome cubs held a Swedish night in April with a WSJ Sweden
theme. The cubs from 10th Frome dressed up in blue and yellow clothing and played ‘Kubb’ – a kind of team skittles
game. They also tried some real Swedish foods including roll mop herrings, crispbreads, chocolate oatcakes, raspberry desserts and ginger biscuits. The cubs even found some time to make Viking helmets and did their grand howl in Swedish. Vargflock, vargflock, vargflock: Pack, pack, pack.
Driving Skills
Young people in Somerset were given the chance to get behind the wheel of a 52 seat coach, driving school cars and even an
articulated HGV in March as forty two scouts spent a day learning about road safety and awareness.
“This was the young people’s idea,” said event coordinator Stuart Talbott. “We’ve had some really positive feedback from parents telling us the young people went home after the event full of ideas about how to make their experiences on the county’s roads safer ones.”
The Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service also bought along their driving simulator to the road safety and awareness event.
The simulator gave young people the chance to experience what drunk and drugged driving is like as well as how difficult it can be to stop a vehicle if someone walks out into the road unexpectedly.
www.somersetscouts.org.uk
Jurassic FunSomerton Scout Group went to adventure
camp PGL Osmington Bay in April. Both cubs and scouts stayed at the park just outside of
Weymouth on the Jurassic Coast. Everyone had a go at the ‘Jacob’s Ladder’
climbing activity, the zip wire and the archery. Afterwards the scouts raced around on quad bikes and the cubs went and played on the park’s big swings. Everyone had such a great time some of the cubs and scouts didn’t want to leave!
you scout...Exec Training OpportunityA Capitol Time
Cubs from Yeovil visited the Palace of Westminster in March. 27 youngsters and their seven leaders made the journey to London after being invited by MP David Laws. The group were
treated to a tour of the House of Commons during which the cubs were delighted with stories about Henry the VIII and Guy Fawkes.
The group then went to Westminster Abbey where they held a scouts own at the memorial to Lord and Lady Baden Powell. During the ceremony Nathan Bowden-Hoyland and Kieran Saywell were presented with their Chief Scout’s Silver Awards for which they had to complete six challenge badges over two years.
Census Summary
A Fleeting Visit
Hiking ChampsBeating 21 teams to come in first place, the Great Lyde
Comanche Cubs triumphed at the Yeovil District hiking competition in March. Teams orienteered their way around
a six km course taking part in a series of challenges on their way including a scavenger hunt. The winning group were then presented with the rather shiny Centaur Hike Trophy.
Beavers from 1st Wellington in Taunton Deane visited the Fleet Air Arm Museum in March. The beavers toured the museum’s collections before playing games, having dinner and watching
Toy Story 3. The youngsters then enjoyed a sleepover at the group’s HQ.
check out our new county website
Driving Skills
And Central Scouts completed their expedition challenge badge by also taking a trip to London for a weekend in March. They travelled by train and while in the city visited
the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum before popping into Baden Powell House for hot chocolate. The scouts also had a tour of Tower Bridge and vsited The Monument. The Monument is a monument built in memory of the Great Fire of London of 1666. All nine scouts on the expedition made it up 311 steps to the top where they were treated to some fantastic views of London.
www.somersetscouts.org.uk
We’re holding a workshop for Exec Committee members in October. I know it seems like a long way off but what better time to get it in your diary! We will be covering
subjects such as GSL-Chair partnerships, adult recruitment, effective SAS support, network, explorers, sub committees, budget setting and agenda ideas.
It’s a great opportunity to meet other Exec Members, network, share ideas and be inspired in your role. Tangier Scout Centre, Taunton. RSVP Claire Chick. [email protected]
For the first time ever more girls joined the scouts nationwide than boys. 4330 girls and 3796 boys became members between January 2010 and January 2011 and overall
membership is up by 14% from 444,059 in 2005 to 507,867 in 2011. This last year saw a rise in female membership of 6.9% and it’s up 88% on 2005. 66,576 girls now enjoy scouting in the UK while the nation’s waiting lists remain high at over 33,000 names.
In Somerset we grew by 2.8% on 2009 recruiting 131 people across the county and our total membership rose to 4803. This accounts for 9.5% of the South West’s membership of 50,556 which in itself is up by 2.5% on 2009/2010.
In total Somerset is home to 748 girl scouts, 3,093 boy scouts, 749 leaders and 213 in organisational support.
Contacting us
With the launch of our brand new county website last month the media team has also been busy setting up easily recognisable and memorable email addresses for contacts
at county. County Commissioner Shaun Dale, for example, can now be contacted via [email protected]. And because our new email addresses are role not name specific (in most cases) you no longer need to change your address book every time an appointment changes within the county management. You can find a full list of current county contacts at
www.somersetscouts.org.uk/contact-2/ Getting your message to the right person has never been easier!
Click the video box or visitwww. somersetscouts.org.uk/
media/pictures/ MOUNTAIN BIKE CHALLENGE
2012SUN MARCH 4th
1st Place Winners
10-11 Ewan Meagher, 1st Watchet
12-13 1st Matthew Bracher,
West Coker14-15 David Middleton, 1st Watchet
16-17 Reuben Whitcombe
Centrum Explorers
Adventure
at the right levelThree new hill walkers, a fleet of canoes and a whole scout sailing centre: it’s adventures for all, and that includes the grown-ups.
Somerset took over ownership of the scout sailing centre at Sutton Bingham this year.
With its cupboard full of kit and three Comet Trio sailing boats the Somerset Scout Sailing Centre is primed and ready for a summer of sailing fun.
In March Russ Witcher, water activities permit assessor, and the Sutton Bingham team held two sailing experience days. Both leaders with sailing knowledge and leaders without tried their sea legs on the waters of Sutton Bingham
reservoir near Yeovil. Permits were recommended, spinnakers were hoisted and some leaders were inspired to stick around and gain experience and qualifications.
In fact the sailing centre now offers the opportunity for leaders to gain sailing and motor boat qualifications in return for offering your services and skills at a few sailing weekends during the year. It’s a great way to learn if you’ve never been on the water before and because you’re helping us out with leadership for the young people we help you out with the cost of learning.
The sailing centre is booked up throughout the summer so there is no lack of opportunity to get out sailing and enjoying yourself. Groups in Somerset are also invited to book sailing experience days up at Sutton Bingham. All kit is provided, all you need are a bunch of enthusiastic young people!
Next try out sailing day:
MAY 21stContacts: Chris Jones (Chairman)01935 474212 [email protected]
Wide open spaces, big skies and an endless stream of grid referencing opportunities. Just a few of
the joys of Dartmoor! And it’s where 21 Somerset leaders spent the weekend in March hiking. It was a training weekend led by Hill Walking Advisor Tony Dyson that tested both practical and technical skills.
The group stayed in simple lodgings just south of Princetown on the moor in bunk bed dormitories. There was plenty of micro-navigating to and fro very specific points covering about 15km over the day. Three of the leaders on the trip were recommended for their hill walking permits while the remainder are continuing their training.
“Gaining the permit means I can now deliver hikes away from home (i.e. on open moorland type areas) with more confidence, now that my abilities have been tested, and for parents I think it gives them peace of mind knowing that I have been assessed for leading groups on wilder terrain. In the process I learnt many new techniques which are really useful to have,” said Renira Rutherford (scout leader at South Petherton).
The permits awarded allow leaders to accompany young people up to 800m above sea level which covers most of southern
Britain and a large portion of northern Britain.
“I feel a responsibility to learn and gain qualifications when I can in order to be able offer more skills and adventure to my scouts. And I enjoy it - the learning is as much for my own interest too. It’s a fantastic opportunity for leaders,” said Renira, “I only wish I had a careers advisor who could have told me about scouting before. It was not available to me as a teenager so I never considered scouting as a voluntary leader until I started looking and I then realised that scouting offered me all the opportunities to continue all that I enjoy at the same time as helping others gain new skills and confidence. I’d love to look into a crystal ball and see what the scouts may remember and use in life.”
If you would like to improve your hill walking skills or gain a permit in something adventurous such as sailing or canoeing, drop us an email and we can put you in touch with the right people.
evenings were beautifully clear and explorer Becky
Owen said, "It was great to be back on the water.”
The canoe day trip went from Langport to Oathe
Lock. Six of the Levels Explorers are now planning
to complete their D of E Gold Expedition by canoe
in the summer of 2012.
And bring a pair of good sturdy boots...
Jake and Becca celebrate being back on the water
st
25BEAVER Celebrations continue around Somerset to mark the 25th anniversary of beaver scouting. In Wellington, during March, beavers held a district birthday party for
Taunton Deane at Wellington Junior School. Over 100 youngsters turned out for a day of games and disco dancing. Even the limbo set was dug out adding a certain spice of challenge to the festivities and pass the parcel went down very well with the beavers as it so often does. “I think it was something to do with all the sweets that were available every time the music stopped!” said Jacqui Hopkins - ADC Beavers Taunton.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. The big beaver party is this September at Merryfield Airfield near Ilton. The Beaver 25 Fun Day looks set to be a corker with a climbing wall, assault course, a craft tent and not just one but several bouncy castles! This takes place on Sunday September 18th 10am – 4.30pm and details can be found on the county diary.
Beavers are also being given the chance to design a celebratory badge for the 25th anniversary. The competition is to design a two part badge, 4 inches in diameter, for your camp blankets and there is a prize for the winning design. In order to
earn the badge beavers are invited to embark on their Beaver
Challenge and attend the fun day in September. Closing
date for design entries is July 31st and for more information about the badge competition, requirements for earning the badge and the fun day contact Tricia Sedgebeer:
Final preparations are in place and months of planning are at last coming together for the Chief Scout’s visit
to Somerset on May 7th. Bear Grylls is visiting two locations in the county as part of his two day tour of the South West by helicopter and hundreds of scouts and leaders have signed up to be at Somerset’s events to see Bear.
At Huish Woods near Taunton, the Network scouts spent the Easter weekend building a brand new gateway onto the Beacon field. The old one, made of pioneering poles, was rapidly rotting so with some shiny new poles and a little enthusiasm from the Network scouts a brand new gate was erected just in time for Bear’s visit to the camp site. Further camp site improvements include a new collection of signs and plaques made by joiner Simon Lacey to update and improve old ones. The improvements come not just for Bear’s visit but also for Huish Woods’ 50th anniversary celebrations taking place this September.
Simon Lacey also spent the Easter weekend
making up a brand new sign to accompany the Network scout’s gateway from an enormous chunk of Oak that he carved the words ‘Beacon Field’ out of.
Around 650 people are expected on site at Huish Woods for Bear’s visit and over at Yeovil youngsters are eagerly awaiting Bear’s visit to the Yeovil District Jamboree. Bear meets scouts in the North Cotswolds, Gloucestershire and Avon before getting to Somerset and after Bear has greeted and met young people in our county he’s off to Cornwall before visiting a further two locations in Devon. Then on day two of the tour Bear flies down to both Jersey and Guernsey before visiting Brownsea Island, Buddens camp site in Dorset and two locations in Wiltshire.
You can keep up to date with the tour in Somerset by visiting our Facebook and Twitter pages.
County JamboreeSomerset’s annual celebration of celebration. This year the camp takes place at Merryfield Airfield near Ilton.
Jamboree Visit DayCubs aged 9+ invited to spend the day at County Jamboree.10am - 6pm. £6 per cub. Book-ing in advance see online diary.
Network Beach TripFun and games on the beach at Exmouth followed by a fish and chip supper.
Cub OlympicsTake part in this epic sporting event organised by Camelot district 1 - 4.30pm. See online diary for further information.
22nd World Scout JamboreeKristianstad, Sweden. Som-erset takes part in the world’s largest gathering of scouts.
Network Summer CampThis long weekend of summer fun takes place at the Blackwell Adventure Centre. Contact Peter Venn for more [email protected]
A day of awardsAfter three days of hiking in thick
rain and heavy fog the fourth and final day of Gordon Robertson’s Gold
DofE hike was bathed in sunshine - a sign, perhaps, to mark the end of Gordon’s three year effort to gain this prestigious award. And in April, alongside 47 other equally as hard working leaders and young people, Gordon was awarded his Gold DofE at the county’s annual presentation day.
The celebration, held this year at Queens College Taunton, recognised the scouting achievements of 48 adults and young people. Long service awards of 5 years through to 50 years long service were awarded and both Mike Seagar and Lady Gass were awarded their Silver Acorns - an award for a specially distinguished service for a period of not less than twenty years. Three leaders were also presented with a Chief Scout’s Commendation.
A selection of Somerset’s young people were also awarded with Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond and Platinum Chief Scouts awards and Gordon Robertson was awarded his Gold DofE as the only young person to have achieved this in time for this year’s presentations.
“It’s great satisfaction to complete your DofE. It gives you such a boost – a kind of warm feeling inside that is hard to explain
but you know it is completed,” said Gordon who mowed his local church lawns for 12 months as part of his award. “It took about four hours to mow the lawns in around the graves,” continued Gordon. The determined network scout also learned the guitar for the skill element of the award, played hockey for his recreation and hiked for four days in the Lake District to complete the expedition requirement of the award. “We
walked the Scafell Pike Horseshoe in rain and fog. At one point we got lost and ended up scrambling a climbers route along the north face of Scafell.”
Gordon is now looking to complete his Queen Scout’s award for which he just needs
to complete an environmental project. Gordon hopes to spend a few days clearing weeds from a canal volunteering for the environment agency but for the time being is happy to have achieved his Gold DofE and to have been awarded at this year’s presentation day: “The presentation day was actually better than I expected! My dad loved it and my mum was very proud, as mothers always are! I think my dad was particularly proud to see me presented with my Gold DofE because he never had the chance to do it himself. It was really nice to mark the occasion.”
Long service awards were awarded and both Mike Seagar and Lady Gass were awarded their Silver Acorns
