Q. I’m not really needed, aren’t there enough people helping already?
Scouting is a growing Movement with over 638,000 scouts in the UK. At Barton St David we currently have young people on our waiting lists simply because we do not have enough adults to help out, the waiting list is such for Beavers that in some cases we are not able to offer them a space until they are nearly the age for cubs. If we can increase the number of Adults Leaders and/or Helpers then we can eliminate our waiting list and these young people will be able to enjoy the adventure that much sooner.
Q Do I really have the skills you need?
You don’t have to be an adventurer like Bear Grylls to get involved with Scouting. Do you have first aid knowledge? Are you good with numbers? Handy in the kitchen? Or are you a DIY whizz? We all have useful skills and you can volunteer and help in many ways.
Q I don’t have that much spare time.
Volunteering with us is easy, fun and flexible – how much time you give is completely up to you. Whether you help out once a fortnight, month or term or just at special events or camps, there is bound to be a role you can play, and no matter how you get involved, we’ll make sure you’re properly trained and supported.
Q What will I get out of volunteering?
As well as gaining externally recognised skills and having a brilliant time, Scouting also offers the chance to build on personal skills, like teamwork, confidence and leadership. A study found that over 90% of our volunteers believe that the skills and experiences they have gained through Scouting have been of relevance to their working or personal lives
Q I really don’t know anything about Scouting.
Don’t worry you don’t need to. When many of our leaders started they had no experience at all, they learnt through training, support of other leaders in the group and common sense.
Q There are some things I really prefer not to do.
We can’t be good or enjoy everything and no one is expected to do things they don’t enjoy. If you are not the outdoors type or do not like craft or noise then that’s fine there is still plenty to do or keeping things organised in the background.
Q I don’t think I could run a whole session.
No one is expecting you to do so. we hope you will learn on the job by seeing what other established leaders do.
Q What about all the rules and regulations?
There are rules and regulations which you will become familiar with over time, if you are uncertain about something the other leaders and myself are there to help.
Q There must be lots of training?
Occasional helpers do no training, Section Assistants only do a small amount of mandatory training and Leaders (such as Cub Leaders, Assistant Scout Leaders etc) do modules of training over 3 years. This can be done as distance learning/online or in group training sessions. You may be surprised that you don’t need to do some modules as you may have done them through work or other external experiences like first aid, working with children.
‘One of my big missions is to encourage people across the UK who have the time, enthusiasm and ability, whatever it is, to put something back into their communities. It’s about a lot of people doing a little. I don’t want to hear anymore about kids who can’t join because of a lack of leaders. We’ve got a brilliant, talented nation and I want some of that talent to be used to support young people.’ Chief Scout, Bear Grylls.
Contact one of our leaders or our GSL and make a difference!