The information found on this page is provided to help the scouts and their parents/ guardians and carers answer any questions that you may have. We hope that you and your child will enjoy their adventures with us.
When can my child join Scouting? – Starting age for Beavers is usually 6, but we may have a waiting list. Looking ahead, children can join Cubs from around the age of 8 and Scouts from 10 and a half. Explorer Scouting starts at 14 and runs until Scouts are 18.
How will my child benefit from joining Scouts? – Parents tell us their children benefit hugely from the adventures, fun and friendships they experience. It can help develop your child’s social skills and independence, and give them access to some amazing and memorable opportunities
Where
& When?
See the section pages for times and programmes, including where meetings are
outside the normal times or away from Barton Village Hall
How Much?
All sections pay subs which are due in the first week of each term. Currently, Beavers are £25 per term, Cubs and Scouts are £30 per Term. Online payments or Go Cardless are best for us and for you as it is clear to see when you paid. We discourage the use of cash for obvious reasons but if necessary hand directly to a Leader rather than placing it on the table in the open room.
Running a Scout Group is very expensive and subs do not even cover our basic costs. It goes towards costs of activities, resources, badges, hall running costs, insurance and our annual scout group membership. Our objective is always to keep our subs as low as possible whilst ensuring that we are able to provide the leaders with the facilities and equipment to offer exciting Scouting. To help balance our books, we encourage parents to sign up for Gift Aid and EasyFundraising (see below).
Camps and Visits are usually charged separately to this, on a case by case basis. Again, online payments are best.
Gift Aid
Donating through Gift Aid means that Barton St David Scout Group can claim an extra 25p for every £1 you give. It won’t cost you any extra. You need to make a Gift Aid declaration for us to claim. You can include all donations from the last 4 years. Please tell us about any tax years where you didn’t pay enough tax.
Your donations will qualify as long as they’re not more than 4 times what you have paid in tax in that tax year (6 April to 5 April). The tax could have been paid on income or capital gains. You must tell us if you stop paying enough tax. Please follow the link below to find the Gift Aid declaration which needs to be filled in and returned to us.
Easy Fundraising
Please help support Barton St. David Scout Group by shopping online. Use easyfundraising to shop with over 3,600 retailers including Amazon, Argos, John Lewis, ASOS, Booking.com, eBay, Boden, and M&S.
Every time you shop, you’ll raise a free donation for Barton St David Scout Group, it’s that easy! Find out more here.
It’s as easy as 1,2,3.
Permissions:
All members are required to fill in a membership form upon joining.
Uniform.
We expect our Scouts to wear their uniform each week (including
their necker – and the all too frequently lost woggle) with trainers or
sensible shoes and a coat. Please make sure all uniform is labelled with your
child’s name. It’s hard to identify 20
identical lost neckers. We let
parents know if special kit is required (waterproofs, walking boots,
torches etc).
We let new Scouts settle in to the Colony, Pack or Troop for a few weeks before investing them – Scouting doesn’t appeal to everyone and it’s better to find this out before parents have committed to buying the uniform and paying subs. Once a child has made the decision to formally join Scouts and they (and their parents) understand the commitment involved, we invest them into the Group.
When you move up to another sections the Membership, District, County and Group badges (see below) should all be transferred to the new uniform. Also any progressive / staged badges earned should be transferred too (e.g. Computer, Night away) these will always be blue).
See thesection pages for more information.
Group Necker
This is our Group Necker (green with an orange edge).
Mobile Phones
We prefer youngsters not to bring phones to any section meeting or camp in our Scout Group. Please do not send your child with a phone. If they need a phone (eg to arrange a lift home) please leave it with a leader at the start of the meeting and collect it at the end.
Parent Rota
We do ask all parents to help us at least once a term, and are more than happy if anyone wants to come down and help if they are particularly interested in a specific activity. If parents decide to help out more regularly, we have the necessary forms ready to be completed and are always delighted to have another DBS’d adult ready, willing and able to help. Contact the Group Scout Leader, Vega, for more details.P
Camping & Outdoor Activities
Camping and outdoor activities are a fundamental part of the scouting programme and often require your child to bring some clothing or equipment that you may not normally have. A formal kit list will be provided before every camp and any exceptional activities that require special clothing.
Ways you can help?
We know not every parent has the time or inclination to become a scout leader. However, you can help in a variety of ways including:
- Becoming a member of our executive committee.
- Assistance with fundraising
- Participating in group social events.
- Helping to run an evening using your skills or vocation.
- Lending a hand in DIY and scouting equipment
Contact the Group Scout Leader, Vega, for more details.
Leaders
100% volunteers. The leaders are all members of our local community who volunteer their spare time to help with the Scout Group. They all have DBS clearance and have up-to-date training in first aid, safeguarding children and scouting skills. They are supported by Team members and Occasional Helpers who are also DBS cleared and have training appropriate to their roles. You should be given the contact details of your section leader when you sign up. Alternatively, fill use the contact form on this website and your message will be forwarded to the correct person