Nick's Ramblings

I was reading this post by Scouter Doug in which he talks about donating to Shelterbox. This is an organisation that “provides emergency shelter and lifesaving supplies for families around the world who are affected by disasters at the time when they need it the most”. And they send all the stuff needed in a box! This is of course a time when such items are needed in Japan.

I was going to make a donation through Doug’s FirstGiving page, but didn’t when I realised I’d heard of them before and that they are actually an organisation based in Cornwall (one of my favourite parts of the country. And I’m not saying that because my Aunty is Cornish!). So I checked out their site and gave some money (it’s better for me donating in the UK as they can get Gift Aid which means free money from the Tax Man – sorry Doug. USA people please use Doug’s link).

On the menu list the bit that said ‘Scout Association’ caught my eye. It appears that since 2009 the SA and Shelterbox have been in partnership (this has, I’m embarrassed to say, passed me by) to engage Scouts of all ages about the needs of disaster relief. As well as Scouts raising money they work with Scouts across the world to help deliver the relief. You can read more here.

But, importantly, it’s not just the UK Scout Association they work with, it’s the BSA as well – see here (although they do seem to have our logo on the top of the page and not the BSA!).

So please give a donation to this worthy cause and take a look at the various Scouting resources and maybe think about what your Beavers, Cubs and / or Scouts can do to help. I will be mentioning this to my Group’s Leaders.

Slight aside: Scouter Doug and many other BSA Leaders (Jerry, Shawn & Steve to name but a few) are marking the BSA’s 100 Days of Scouting, by making a Scouting based post every day for 100 days. I’m very impressed at their dedication and the ability to write that much! So please take a look at the blogs and be inspired!

This year marks the 25th Birthday of the Beaver section. Beavers have been official members of the Scout Association since 1986, but had in fact been around for some time before that.

A younger section than Cubs was seen to be needed for some time and was done so in a similar way to which the Cubs were started (younger brothers of Scouts wanting to get involved) . The concept was started in Canada and / or Northern Ireland in the 1960’s. Within the SA, Beavers were only in Northern Ireland until the the late 1970’s / early 1980’s when Beavers were then trialled in Scotland. By 1982 Beavers were introduced to the rest of the UK (in fact our friends down the road had been running Beavers for some time at that point see here), but they were not yet full members of the SA. That had to wait until 1986, hence the 25th Birthday this year.

Beavers is a great section as the kids are so young and energetic and every activity is new to them. Going on a Beaver sleepover, for example, is a very exciting experience for them!

We’ve had Beavers in my Group sine 1990 and it’s interesting to see that some of our young Leaders and older Scouts started with us as little 6 year old Beavers. It also makes me feel old! Just think, that those Beavers who started in 1986 are now in their early 30’s!

There are lots of activities planned to make this a special year for the Beavers and a special badge has been issued (see above). However, the badge is not very well liked and is a bit vague. Some of the comments I’ve heard are ‘what does it show?’, ‘that’s a Beaver????’ etc. Not the best badge the SA have ever produced!

Never mind, lets hope that Beavers who are celebrating this year remember ‘their’ birthday and go on all the way through to Network and the Queen’s Scout Award!

The Scout Association has closed down the Scoutbase website this last week and transferred its content to the Member Resources section of the main SA site.

Scoutbase was the SA’s first presence on the internet and was started way back in 1996! Here is a short history of the site written in 1998, which I lifted from Google’s cache of the site (I guess this will soon go).

ScoutBase UK — Our own site on the World Wide Web.
A long time ago … in a far away galaxy…

Oops, that’s another story – but sometimes it feels that way. ScoutBase UK is now well established as the Scout Association’s official Web Site, and this is perhaps as good a time as any to look back at how this communications initiative came into being and why. This is not the place to write a history of the Internet or the World Wide Web (WWW), fascinating though it is.

No, let’s just accept that there is this enormous network of computers which now covers the whole World and which can be of use to us.
Smoke signals.

Scouts have always been fascinated by communications, after all the subject was part of our regular training programme for years – hands up all those who still remember a bit of Morse or semaphore.

It’s hardly surprising then that from the earliest days of home computers you could find Scouts attaching early modems to their Sinclair Spectrums, and starting to communicate with one another by means of electronic bulletin boards. It needed a couple of good solid Scouting character traits to stay with that early technology – patience with the slow and unreliable connections and extreme bravery when it came to facing one’s phone bill! But the pace of technology snowballed and those connections became faster and more reliable, and the phone bills need no longer be life-threatening. Or to put it another way, the time had arrived to put the Scout Association on the Web.

If you were strong enough to have survived the early IT Strategy papers, you will remember that a presence on the Web was always part of the Association’s forward thinking; but provision of the necessary finance and staffing was another matter. And this is where the story really starts….
The Vision.

Back in the dark days of the early 1990s (pre – ScoutBase you might say) several Leaders and Venture Scouts were already putting information up on the fledgling Web with a view to assisting others in their day-to-day Scouting, and creating electronic links to exchange ideas and information with other Scouts around the World. It soon became obvious that there was a duplication of effort and considerable scope for confusion. Looking back it now seems incredible that these various efforts could so easily and quickly be brought under one roof; perhaps this says a lot for the ability of Scouts to work together in a common cause.

The newly formed grouping – which gave its embryo site the name ‘ScoutBase UK’ – then took the step of offering its vision, its services, and the site, to the Scout Association. It wasn’t a walkover – you try living through a four-o-clock in the morning rehearsal for a presentation to the IT Steering Committee! But, finally, in October 1996 the Committee of the Council took the step of accepting ScoutBase UK as the Association’s official Web Site. And this is where the story really starts ….

The original grouping was of just four individuals, but there was no way they could cope with the vision that was to be ScoutBase UK. Editors were quickly recruited for each of the eight main sections of the Site; they in turn recruited their own staff members. These staff were found from all over the country and contact was (and still is) almost entirely electronic; in a very short space of time ScoutBase had become what was probably one of the earliest ‘virtual’ organisations in the UK, if not the World. It saves the Scout Association a fortune on office space!

So now Scoutbase is no more. Which is a shame. It was the ‘go to’ place when you needed information no matter how obscure. Of course there were some problems with it, the main one being the searches, which could throw up all sorts of odd results!

Hopefully its replacement will make finding what you actually want a lot easier!

Of course, as I’ve mentioned previously, you can always use the the Wayback Machine.

Scoutbase is no more, long live Scoutbase.

Since the awful earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Tuesday, the New Zealand Scout Association have launched a ‘Sponsor a Blanket’ initiative.

The NZ emergency services have stated there is a lack of blankets available and people can sponsor one for a donation of NZ$10 (just over £4).  You can make a donation via PayPal here.

I know the Scout Association are also promoting this cause in their weekly email, but it’s worth restating! Please try to make a donation to this worth while cause.

Today is Founder’s Day where Scouts and Guides (and all variations there of) celebrate the births of Lord and Lady Baden-Powell.

To celebrate the WOSM and the SA are encouraging Scouts to wear their neckers (scarf) at work, school etc. and to change their Facebook photo to one with them wearing their necker. See here and here.

I’ve done mine, have you done yours?

The yearly census of all Scouts in the UK is now complete and while the national results don’t get released for a while yet, locally the figures are looking good.

For my Group we actually have one less member than last year, but I’m not too worried for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the previous four years all showed some significant growth and secondly, having seen the Beavers and Cubs on Friday, it does look like we’ve had a fair number of Beavers and Cubs join us since the figures were taken in mid December.

It’s also worth noting that the figures in our District are also up for the fifth year running. It will be interesting to see what the figures are for the other 2 Districts local to us and also the figures for the County.

However, using the highly unscientific method of guesswork(!), I am fairly certain that the number of Scouts both locally and nationally will be up again.

I’d be interested to hear how numbers in my reader’s Groups, Districts and Counties are doing this year. Indeed, I’m interested to hear how the numbers of Scouts are going in everyone’s own little corner of the world, no matter where you are! Please leave me your comments!

Since I wrote my ‘Elf ‘n’ Safety post, the Scout Association have issued some guidelines about playing games in the dark (see the bit about the bloke who sued for a shoulder injury).

The advice reads –

Games advice

19/01/2011

A recent judgement on a Scouting accident which occurred in 2001 relates to a game run in the dark and has led to enquiries from leaders.

The Judge in the case acknowledged the value that Scouting brings to young people and the wider community. It is important to appreciate that the judgement related to a specific case with specific circumstances where a game was intended to be played in the light and was simply transferred to dark conditions, indoors, without sufficient consideration given for the increased risk involved in the view of the Judge.

This judgement does not mean the end of games in the dark.

Assess risk

The key message continues to be that you remember to assess the risk for your activity and consider whether it is suitable to take place in the dark and, if it is, what additional controls might need to be in place to keep it safe.

Some games are best played outside only, where there is much more space.

Additionally, after a spate of Dodgeball incidents, please follow the same principles; assess the risks and consider the surface of the activity area, and whether it is free of slip and trip hazards.

Some games are played standing on chairs or benches. Be sure this is suitable for the age and ability of those playing.

Considerations

In summary, when planning all games – consider:

1. The space and environment in which your game is taking place

Explain boundaries or potential hazards that perhaps can’t be removed such as walls (lots of injuries are caused by running into walls to stop – broken wrists, bumped heads, for example), polished wooden floors, tables and chairs around the edge of the room.

2. The age and ability of those taking part

3. Do they know the rules?

It is good to remind them in case of new joiners or if they have not played it for a while.

4. Ensure adequate supervision

Remember, those games, locations and activities we use most often are assumed the safest and may be forgotten as having potential for an accident when assessing the risk.

Which can be basically read as ‘Don’t be Stupid’! A lot of H & S stuff can be boiled down to that simple statement, but unfortunately these things do need spelling out to people in very simple terms to ensure that accidents don’t happen!

Still, nice to read that the SA are issuing sensible advice and not banning everything in sight.

Every year or so, the Scout Association updates the rules by which the organisation is run. These rules, Policy, Organisation & Rules (PO&R) have just been updated.

There are many changes reflecting the the way Scouting needs to be run in 2011. I won’t go into them all, but one of the more interesting ones is with regard to Beaver’s nights away. The change in rules, together with this factsheet, now says that Beavers can stay away from home for longer than 24 hours (the previous rule) as long as it’s for one night. The problem with the 24 hour rule was that it made everything a bit rushed. It meant that you had, for example, to start the ‘camp’ late in the morning so breakfast etc. the following day wasn’t too rushed. This change now means that a camp can be run from 9 in the morning, to say, 3 the following afternoon, which means more activities and less rushing.

The other major change is that Beavers can now camp under canvas, as long as there is suitable alternative indoor accommodation available in case of adverse weather conditions. Actually they could before, but that was only on a family camp with their parents.

My Group’s Beaver Leader is really enthusiastic about the increase in time for Beaver camps, but she says she’ll hold off on the camping under canvas for a little while longer!

These changes in rules are great for the Beavers and hopefully will mean that they have a lifelong love of camping.

Back in September I wrote about the health and safety culture that is creeping into Scouting (well all aspects of everyday life really) and how it is being taken to the extremes. The main problem being the ‘where there’s blame there’s a claim’ type culture.

After watching the film of the Chief Scout’s visit to Kibblestone in 1963, I did have a little go at the campsite for removing some of the ‘dangerous’  activities on the site (rope swings and the swimming pool). I’d then sent an email to a couple of people in the District to let them know about this interesting film and I did have a little moan about the fact the campsite is getting too safety conscious for its own good and somewhat boring. In fact, I can’t remember when our Scouts last camped there – and this is ‘our’ site!

One of the people I emailed, replied to me –

I know – but whereas in the past had there been an accident on a rope swing, I suspect nobody would say anything, now somebody would say “But your Health and Safety check reported it as a potential hazard and you did nothing, therefore all insurance is invalid and Kibblestone will face financial ruin and be closed down”. A very sad statement about the World we live in but they had to react to that one and not some ideal!!

I was there when the discussion took place – heard all the arguments but in the end the rope swings had to go!!

Thanks no win no fee lawyers.

The other thing that came to my attention was the case of a man who sued the Scout Association as he sustained an injury to his shoulder in 2001 while playing a game in the dark. To be fair the report says that –

An MRI scan in 2007 disclosed a “permanent impaction injury”, which meant he would always suffer pain when the shoulder was under stress.

However, he can still happily play rugby!

It wasn’t a particularly dangerous game or badly run as the Scout Association didn’t leave the Group in question to fend for themselves!

So thanks again no win no fee lawyers.

As I said before, I am very much in favour of being safe, but not to the point that there is no adventure. It’s right to be safe and prepared, but in the end, it’s gone too far.

First of all, I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and Santa brought you what you asked for!

Looking through the business section of Sunday’s Telegraph , I saw this article (it is also in Monday’s Independent) about the revival of Bob a Job week or Scout Job week.

Bob a Job week was introduced in the late 1940’s as a way of raising money for Scout Groups. The basic premise was that a Cub or Scout would knock on the doors of people in their street and ask to do jobs for the people in return  for a ‘bob’. A ‘bob’ was the slang name for 1 Shilling which was part of the pre decimal monetary system we had in the UK prior to 1971 and to quote Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman in the book ‘Good Omens’

the British resisted the contaminated foreign notion of decimal currency for a long time because (a) it was foreign; and (b) they thought it was too complicated.

1 Shilling when decimalised was the equivalent of 5 pence and as an example 1 Shilling in, say, 1960, would be worth around £2 today.

The name of Bob a Job week was changed to Scout Job week sometime after decimalisation as it was wanted to get away from only getting 5p for a job. Indeed I can remember being somewhat miffed at doing a load of work for someone in the early 1980’s and only getting 5p!

I know our Cub Pack always participated in Job week and Akela, or to give him his official title ‘Dad’, gave prizes to the three Cubs who raised the most money. I don’t remember doing it in Scouts though.

Job week was stopped in that form in the 1990’s when, quite rightly, there were concerns about young kids knocking on stranger’s doors asking to come in and do jobs for them. And so other ways of raising money were devised. Although there was an attempt to revise it in 2001 by getting Groups to do bag packing in branches of Asda (I was so pleased to spend my birthday that year, on my day off, bag packing in the store where I worked!).

It seems as though the Scout Association are to re-launch it in 2012, but with more of a business feel to it. The idea is being run by the chief exec of an insurance company who is also a Scouting Ambassador, who says –

We want young people to come together as teams rather than working individually – it’s about putting the Scouts back at the heart of the community.

I was a Scout and I had 11 business learnings before the age of 20. The biggest single one is making things happen and getting on and doing it. It is about determination and persistence, never giving up and sticking with it. It’s what makes good Scouts and good business leaders.

I have to admit that I do like the idea of Job Week as it does instil into the Scouts that we can’t just get something for nothing and they have to work to get the money. It will also be interesting to see how it all works out with the business context.

I’m sure more information will be released in the near future and I’m sure I’ll be writing about it!

As many of you will know, one of the things I’m interested in is the history of my Group. So the other week this letter in the local newspaper caught my eye. It was about the filming of the then Chief Scout’s (Sir Charles Maclean) visit to Kibblestone Camp site in 1963. On the off chance it showed some of our Scouts, I contacted the chap who made it asking if he would send me a copy. And he did!

It came on DVD, which was a transfer from the original 16mm film. In 1963 the standard format of home movie film was 8mm, so to have this as a 16mm film shows that it was produced to a professional standard (the BBC often used this format for filmed TV shows and the Beatles film Let It Be was filmed on 16mm).

Watching the film there does appear to be one Scout who is highly likely to be from Porthill.

That’s him at the back in the middle.

The only down side is I have no idea who he is! It looks like he was with Scouts from Bradwell, who we have always had a close association with.

It also seems that our Cubs may have been there as well.

The Cubs on the right in the red neckerchiefs could be ours, but it’s very difficult to know where the are actually from. However there is a leader on the left wearing a light green shirt and red neckerchief who looks very much like the Cub Master of the time.

You can see the film and more information on my Group’s History site here.

It is very interesting to see all those Scouts and the campsite nearly 50 years ago. Especially as Kibblestone is my local site and I’ve been there many times. It’s also interesting to see the swimming pool and rope swings in use as the pool is now a ‘caving experience’ and the rope swings removed due to ‘safety issues’, and yes I am having a pop at the camp site here!

The original film was presented to the Stoke-on-Trent & Newcastle Boys Scouts Association (now Stoke-on-Trent & Newcastle Divisional Scout council) and to the Boy Scouts Association (now the Scout Association) at Gilwell, but has only been shown a limited number of times since it was shot. I am going to ask the chap who shot the film if he did any other for the Scouts, as this film, and possibly others, deserve to be seen as they are important parts of our local Scouting history.

One thing that doesn’t seem to change is the fact that the Chief Scout tried to speak to as many of the Scouts as possible (the commentary says he spoke to all!) and this is something the current Chief Scout, Bear Grylls, is also very keen to do when he goes on Scouting activities.