2014 The Awesome Year That Was In Scouting

Father Christmas visits North Baddesley Beavers

15th Romsey Beaver Scouts held their Christmas party last Tuesday and Father Christmas came and handed out some presents.

Cubs make their own lanterns

As part of the Romsey late night shopping evening a team of hard working volunteers organised a lantern parade through the town. The pack had an artist visit for two meetings to help make and cover the lanterns as part of a community project. We were tasked with decorating the creations with trees to make the forest for Red Riding Hood as part of the pantomime theme. Matthew took the microphone from the compere in the Market Place to explain we were from 1^st Romsey Cubs. Wellow Cubs also took part and were singing on route.

First Romsey - Shoeboxes for operation Christmas Child

All Scouts Promise "To help other people"

 
This Christmas 1st Romsey Scouts have taken this ideal literally and have prepared & donated gift boxes to be distributed as part of the Operation Christmas Child programme run by the International Relief charity Samaritan's Purse .
A speaker came to address the troop, and described a bit about the organization, and how some very simple things we take for granted can make a really big difference to those less fortunate. It was also interesting to hear some detail of the logistics of how the boxes get from the UK to where they are going. After this Scouts brought various gift items

along to their meeting, and then spent an evening packing and wrapping the boxes. Although we don't yet know where the boxes will end up, we hope to find out eventually, as all boxes are tracked as they are delivered.

 
The intention is also that taking part will count towards part of the promise badge.The picture shows Scouts from 1st Romsey Troop, with the boxes they have prepared, just before they were taken to a collection point.

Mike Page Jones

1st Romsey

Greeen Blue Peter Badges for the group

There was great excitement last Thursday as the postman arrived at the homes of Beavers, Cubs & Scouts from 3rd Romsey Scout Group.  In the post were letters for members of 3rd Romsey who had taken part in the Himalayan Balsam pulling and attached to these letters were GREEN Blue Peter Badges.

We have helped Catherine Chatters of the Hampshire & Isle of White Trust to clear balsam at Newtown in the New Forest and at the Blackwater River at Ower.  The Scouts & Cubs braved very wet weather last year and the newest Beaver members of the Group joined them in blazing sunshine & stinging nettles this year to help clear this very invasive plant.  The Scouts & Cubs learnt a great deal from the evening and Catherine explained to them the invasiveness of this plant and how it can clog our waterways.  They also did a report for the Scout website and for the local village magazines and the local paper explaining the importance of this work and what they had learnt.  To gain the Blue Peter Badge each Beaver, Cub & Scout had to write a letter or article or draw a picture explaining what activity they had undertaken and how it had benefited the environment and what they had learnt.

It was only on receiving their badges that the Beavers, Cubs & Scouts worked out that they can now apply for a Blue Peter Card and gain free entry (with a paying adult) to many attractions throughout the UK - an added bonus!

Congratulations to all of you!

Sarah Beaman

3rd Romsey Scout Leader - Ashanti Troop

Incident Hike - 1st Romsey

Last month saw First Romsey Scouts braving the elements for a variation of the 'incident hike' theme.

Having been practicing a bit of pioneering and the use of gas stoves and lanterns at the HQ it seemed like a good idea
to incorporate this into more of a realistic exercise, now the nights are properly dark.

After arriving at the Black Hill Road car park, Scouts divided into 3 teams and each team was issued with a subtly different set of instructions,
either to start an activity, or to hike off on a predetermined bearing, to seek out a particular cache of equipment and instructions for a challenge.

Hidden around the 'course' were some kits of parts for emergency basha shelter building, in orange survival bags, illuminated by a glow stick.

Scouts had to find the right kit, and follow the instructions to build the shelter, to the satisfaction of nearby adult, before continuing round the course to the next challenge.

All teams that completed the course in time managed to
a) build a tripod to hang a lantern for morse signalling, (tripods OK, signalling less successful, perhaps we should revisit this !!)
b) to build an emergency shelter large enough to protect the team, and
c) to make and consume a cup of cocoa each.

Although not all teams did things in the same order or the same places, they would all do all of the challenges at some point in the evening.

Due to one compass that had lost its magnetism (!) one team came in rather later than planned.
Hopefully once warmed up and dried out everyone who came will decide they had fun after all.
At last we know where to improve for next time !

As always, of course, thanks are due to all leaders and parents who kept  this running smoothly,
and to the youngsters who gave it their best shot.


Mike Page-Jones,
1st Romsey.

Hannah Kentish, The Scout Association’s first ever UK Youth Commissioner

Hannah Kentish, The Scout Association’s first ever UK Youth Commissioner, says hello...
Getting started

It’s extremely exciting to finally be able to announce my new role on the National Team, working closely with Wayne Bulpitt, Matt Hyde and Sir Alan Craft. The past month has been an absolute whirlwind of learning for me as I’ve met with Association Trustees, Wayne’s team and a whole host of staff members at HQ to prepare for the launch today. I’m particularly looking forward to getting started with my deputies, Jay and Jagz (pictured above with me), as we embark on this awesome journey, working towards a Movement shaped even further by young people in partnership with adults.

 

My first official visit
It was also a great pleasure to join the Welsh Youth Council at the ScoutsWales AGM this weekend, in my first official visit as the UK Youth Commissioner (see if you can spot Wayne in our selfie below!). It was the first of many visits I will be making around the UK to meet as many young people (and adults too!) as possible, who are striving to make an impact on Scouting in their local areas, as well as for me to learn a bit more about some of the great youth involvement projects and events which are out there already.


Stay in touch
As it’s my first blog, now is the perfect opportunity to share with you the best ways to keep up to date with what I’m getting involved in as your UK Youth Commissioner. You can follow me on Twitter @hpkentish and like my Facebook page at facebook.com/HannahKentishUKYC – both of which I will be updating regularly.
I hope you’re as excited as I am about what’s to come in the near future; I’m thrilled to be playing a leading role in a movement that provides 450,000 young people across the UK the opportunity for everyday adventure that, even if they don’t know it yet, will change their lives forever.

Beaver Camp 30th and 31st August (10th Romsey)

The group are now very lucky to own 2 new tents for beavers so Maple leaders decided to make use of them during the holidays, and held an overnight camp at our HQ .

 

After some rainy days that week the weather improved and couldn’t have been better for us.

Leaders spent the morning erecting tents before the beavers arrived at 2pm – they were all very excited.

Kit was temporarily stowed in the hall. Beavers said goodbye to their parents and went outside to be welcomed and briefly told what to expect and a few necessary rules for their safety.

We began the afternoon activities by meeting Steve Woodrow who had come to teach the boys about building and lighting camp fires. I am pleased to say the boys listened very intently and collected kindling and had a go at lighting a fire. They were then able to make S’mores. For those not in the know these are toasted marshmallows that are so delicious that everyone wants ‘some more’.

The next base was Knotting. Scouters Jacky and Pete were there to teach the boys lots of different knots and their uses including sheet bend, sheep shank, and reef knot. Not easy for some but ask your son to show you if he can remember.

After a break for squash and biscuits, prepared by mum Aimee, beavers met our Group Scout Leader Ian who showed the boys how to make a ballista from garden canes and elastic bands. Once completed they had to fire a ping pong ball from a hoist and see how far it would travel. The beavers worked very well in twos building and taking turns at firing – sometimes having to make adjustments but very successful. I think trying to aim at the GSL was a good incentive!

The next base run by Sika was to make Armpit Fudge. Ingredients were measured out into a sealable sandwich bag and then (the clue is in the name) held under the armpit to melt the ingredients before gently kneading them until well mixed. We did have a quick taste (yummy) before popping them into the fridge to set overnight.

During this base Otter and Eagle were preparing the next activity which was a flour trail. Beavers had to follow a trail of flour signs around the grounds and spot the strange things that were hanging in the trees and bushes. Some beavers were very observant and managed to spot them all.

I am pleased to say that Beavers remembered their manners and thanked all the visitors for coming and teaching them some new skills.

Beavers washed for dinner which we ate outside under the event shelter. We had some very hungry beavers and leaders and we made short work of pizzas and chips followed by ice-cream with sprinkles and teddy wafers.

Eagle then took the beavers out onto the field to play a compass game. It taught them the points of a compass and If they followed the instructions correctly they would end up at a designated spot.

Otter and Sika helped beavers to collect their kit and take out to their tent. Sleeping bags were got ready with pyjamas and teddies ready for bedtime. Then beavers went back inside to make their own mugs of hot chocolate before going to the camp fire circle where Eagle had prepared a great campfire and we were all able to enjoy some singing and our hot chocolate.

Some very tired beavers then washed and cleaned teeth before settling into bed. After a few trips to the toilet they were all asleep by 9.30 quickly followed by the leaders. Despite what your sons might tell you they did all sleep all night not waking till about 7am and stayed in their sleeping bags reading books until about 7.30am

Then it was time to pack up bags and have breakfast.

We enjoyed an ‘al fresco’ Full English breakfast in the sunshine cooked by Otter and Mum Andrea. Then after washing and cleaning teeth they went once more onto the field to play some games.

Until recently Beaver Scouts have only been allowed to have sleepovers indoors but under the rules of scouting they are now allowed to camp outside. Following our very successful first attempt last year when we had to borrow a tent, we approached Romsey Extra Parish Council earlier this year, who very kindly offered us a grant enabling us to purchase our own tent with a further one funded by the group.