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Warwickshire Scouts WISPA May 2010
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Warwickshire Scouts Issue 86 - May 2010www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk
INTouch | Welcome to WISPA | Active Support Launches | Explorers & Scouts Working Together
...Stratford rockets away!Beavers & Cub Scouts from across Stratford District
visited the Space Centre (Leicester) recently. Much
fun was had by youngsters, parents and leaders
plus we received a letter congratulating everyone
on their excellent behaviour!
Congratulations to all St.
George's Day Award recipients.
Please see the County website for details.
Early March saw WAGS
deliver a brilliant week of
entertainment, not only did
they sell more tickets than
ever before, they raised
£2,500 for charity. Well
Done!
Last month saw the first planning meeting
for the County Camp in 2011. Although still
in its early stages, this will be a fantastic
event. Motivat10n is also moving fast, with
over 200 Explorers already booked to
attend.
Our thanks to WCVYS and John Sharp for
their help with our successful grant
application to Warwickshire County
Council. This annual grant is most welcome,
although not guaranteed.
Having served 5 years as your County
Commissioner, I recently accepted the post of
Regional Commissioner (West Midlands).
Before launching into this new challenge I will
ensure Warwickshire is left in good hands.
I am happy to talk to anyone who wishes to
explore the position and I am also happy to
arrange a confidential chat with any other
County Commissioners who may be of help.
Warwickshire is a fun and exciting place to
do Scouting, so I hope as you read about the
search for my replacement you will think
about whether this is a job you can do or
you can nominate someone else for. We are
looking for someone who will be an asset in
managing Warwickshire's winning team to
provide exciting, safe Scouting for more and
more young people.
Have fun!
Dave
County Outlook
The number of Scouts in the UK has increased by 16,500 since 2009, biggest rise in 38 years
Chairman's CornerIn past reports I have mentioned that 2010
would involve changes in the structure of the
County Executive Committee; even I was
unaware of how radical these changes would be.
Dave Bramston has been appointed Regional
Commissioner. This means we are searching for
his replacement. Anyone interested in taking on
the role of County Commissioner is encouraged
to apply. Whether you nominate yourself or
someone else, we shall be happy to receive all
applications.
Whoever is successful will have the backing of
the whole Executive Committee and County
Scout Members and the transition will be made
as painless as possible.
Dave has been instrumental in developing
Warwickshire into one of the most forward
thinking and innovative counties in the Country,
whilst not losing site of basic Scouting values.
Typically he has stated he is happy to support his
successor in the transition period. Dave will be a
hard act to follow; working as a team we will
continue to develop and look forward to
embracing new ideas from his successor which
will without doubt benefit the County as a whole.
On behalf of the Exec' and County Scouting
Members I should like to congratulate David on
his appointment and inform Headquarters that
our loss is definitely their gain (although I'm not
sure they know what they have let themselves in
for!)
Sid Russell
Capitation ThanksThank you to all District Treasurers for their very
prompt response to this year's request for
capitation payments. I am pleased to say all
payments were received by the 7 April deadline
and our County payment was made to the Scout
Association in time to claim the 50p early
payment discount.
Hazel Prescott | County Treasurer
STOP PRESS: We have the date and venue for the County Camp
20th - 22nd May 2011 at Stoneleigh Park (home of what was The Royal Show)
If this is the first issue of WISPA you have
receive then we hope you enjoy it. WISPA is
now sent to every adult who is a registered
member of Warwickshire Scouting.
We aim to make each issue of WISPA as
interesting as possible. The County team use
it to publicise forthcoming programme events
and promote good practice and District teams
use it for idea sharing and to shout about local
success stories.
Anyone can contribute WISPA and we like to
receive good quality photos showing local
Scouting in action. WISPA is issued quarterly
on the first of February, May, August and
November. The deadline for submissions is
the 14th of the month before publication.
WISPA is also published online at
www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk We will
continue to send you our newsletter unless
you tell us not to. To opt-out of receiving
WISPA by post please either contact Andy
Walker at [email protected] or
click on the 'opt-out' button on the WISPA
page of the website.
Communication Team
Welcome to .....Warwickshire Scout County's
newsletter for those supporting
Scouting
Please help us to find a new County
Commissioner for Warwickshire by
nominating any people you think should be
considered for this important appointment.
Use the form available at
www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk (click on
the advert). There is also a copy of the role
description and other information. Paper
copies can be obtained by calling the County
Secretary, Andy Walker, on 01926 774277.
To keep the process confidential, and to avoid
building up false hopes, please submit
nominations without approaching the
individuals concerned. It is perfectly
acceptable to nominate yourself using the
same form, but again to maintain
confidentiality do not tell
others that you have done
so.
Please think carefully about people you know,
whether in Scouting, at work, or in the wider
community, to identify anyone who you
believe would be a good County
Commissioner. Don't compare them with the
current or any previous CCs because at this
stage it is important to draw up a list with the
widest possible cross section of people.
Nomination forms must be returned by 28th
May. Thank you in anticipation of your
support.
Sid Russell | County & Search Team Chairman
Nominations for a new County Commissioner?
Nuneaton Cub Scouts held their
annual Ghost Hunt recently at
Ullesthorpe. By the light of the moon
this was a scary place!
Fifty Cubs took part in a variety
of activities from lightweight
tent pitching to camp cooking,
and woodcraft to chivalry. A
great time was had by all.
Under the leadership of Phil Houghton & Jo-ann
Bramston (ACC Scouts & Explorers) the County is
currently looking at how to improve retention between
Scouts and Explorers.
The project so far has looked at the following:
Scouts and Explorer Scout membership over the past 5
years and see if we can see any pattern on when we lose
them. Data is currently being collect to identify where &
when we are loosing people.
What is happening in the 'life' of a 14-18 year old? Exams,
relationships, driving, earning money, DofE (Scouts or
school) plus lots of other stuff they want to get involved in;
camps, gang shows, etc. In fact there are huge demands on
this age range.
How Districts communicate and engage with the older
Scouts to aid transition. Having looked at this we recently
shared best practice with the Explorer leadership across
Warwickshire. Plus all Districts are encouraged to carry out
joint activities with the older Scout age range, as we believe
this will aid successful transition.
Is Explore Scout provision in the right place within Districts?
Longer term we plan to map Scout Troop locations overlaid
with Explorer Units. This will be published so young people
can see the choices available to them.
Is the Explore programme sufficiently flexible to allow for the
many life challenges this age group encounters? We are
working with DESC's & Explorer Leaders to see if too much
or too little is expected from this age group bearing in mind
their full lives. We will also be working with the Training Team
to promote key message to Explorer leaders about flexibility
of membership and commitment for this age group.
Explorers & Scouts Working TogetherExplorer Scout agerange changes:The Vetting & Barring Scheme will
start to be implemented from July
2010. Most people in Scouting
aged 18 or over will need to be
registered with the Independent
Safeguarding Authority (ISA).
Feedback to HQ suggests having
both Leaders and young people
over the age of 18 years old can
cause some confusion with regard
to making correct arrangements for
residential experiences, CRB /
disclosure checking, permits etc.
To clarify the distinction between
young people and adults in the
Association, the Explorer Scout
section age flexibility will change
with effect from July 2010.
Currently Explorer Scouts have
until they are 18 years old to move
on. From July 2010 Explorer Scouts
will be required to move on from
the Explorer Scout Section by their
18th birthday.
Explorer Scouts can move on to
any or all of:
The Scout Network section (from
17 1/2 years of age)
To a role in Scout Active Support
(from 18 years of age)
To any other adult role in Scouting
(from 18 years of age)
Jo-ann Bramston (01926 498168) | ACC Explorers
Scout Active Support is an opportunity for
adults to volunteer time to support Scouting
in Warwickshire. As an adult you can
volunteer time flexibly to suit you. Groups of
people who join together to provide support
are known as Active Support Units. Units
provide a resource pool for managers of local
Scouting.
Scout Active Support welcomes men &
women aged 18 and over of all interests,
abilities and backgrounds. All that is required
is a willingness to volunteer some time to
support Scouting. To be a member of a Scout
Active Support Unit you must become a
member or associate member of The Scout
Association.
In Warwickshire there will be Units for all
interests including Activity Centre,
Warwickshire Gang Show, County Events and
County Commissioners Support.
To find out more, come along to one of our
open meetings, (without commitment).
www.scouts.org.uk/activesupport
Tony Guy | County Active Support Manager -
[email protected] | 0777 416 2222
Wednesday 12th May, 7.30-9.00pm
Alfrey Activity Centre, Maxstoke Lane,
Meriden CV7 7HR
or
Sunday 16th May, 2.00-3.30pm
Dale Street Church, Leamington Spa
CV32 5HL
Nuneaton LeaderScores a Treble!
Andrea Dunn, ASL 1st Bulkington at a
recent awards evening received her Duke
of Edinburgh Gold Award from Helen
Heenan, Adult Training Wood-beads from
Sam Marshall and the Queen Scout Award
from Dave Bramston.
Andrea travelled to St James Palace in early
April to receive her certificate from Prince
Edward and was on Parade at Windsor
Castle for the Queens Scout Parade,
attended this year by HRH Prince of Wales.
Congratulations to Andrea on this
fantastic achievement!
Shelterbox ChallengeOver 18,000 young people from all sections
of Scouting have now registered to take part
in the ShelterBox Challenge. The
ShelterBox Challenge is a brilliant
opportunity for Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and
Explorers to take part in fun activities whilst
exploring the international disaster relief
work of ShelterBox.
Skills Training Day - 5th June 2010
STOP PRESS: The Warwickshire Unit have agreed on their unit name...BRITISH BEARWAYS...stand forward and take a bow! We look forward to seeing their Unit badge soon.
HQ have recently become aware of some confusion and
concerns at the implications of the revised swimming rules
contained in the recently updated edition of POR. As a result
the HQ Activities Team is carrying out an urgent review of our swimming rules.
Please note that whilst this review will be undertaken, the rules as written in POR remain
in place and must be followed.
Swimming Rules
It's been a crazy nine months in the world of
Jamboree preparations! Road shows,
recruitment and some of the toughest
decisions we've had to make in our Scouting
lives. Finally Unit 79 was created with 36
young people who will represent
Warwickshire in 18 months time.
Our training programme started in February
with our 'get to know you' day. Inspired by the
words 'Strangers are just friends you have not
met yet', the Unit was engaged in a variety of
tasks designed to encourage interaction.
Challenged to force themselves into different
shapes to mimic vehicles, chairs and even a
toilet, we were soon surrounded by much
laughter! During the day they embarked upon
a 4 (yes 4!) legged assault course, rivalled
each other at blindfolded egg & spoon racing
and even tested origami skills.
A fantastic day setting a great tone for events
to come!
This signalled a light-hearted start to our
training programme. Over the next year our
Unit will attend training camps designed to
help build the skills necessary to get the most
from the Jamboree; teamwork, Scouting skills
& working in the community. It's going to be a
fantastic journey!
Andy Shorter | Unit 79 Contingent Leader
News:Alfrey Centre: Over 140 scouts from across
the county enjoyed a weekend of challenges
for the bi-annual Olympics trophy at Alfrey
Activity Centre Broadwater. Congratulations
to Hampton Magna's 'M.I.T.' who won the
trophy and were declared true Olympians.
Bookings for our Cub 'Fun in the Sun' camp,
11-13 June are being taken. Visit
www.broadwatersc.co.uk for details.
ACC International Vacancy: Graham Martin
is stepping down as ACC International. Our
sincere thanks go to Graham for carrying out
the role with such dedication over many
years.
For full details of the role & responsibilities
go to www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk and
click on the home page news item.
Nominations and applications should be sent
to the County Commissioner.
Anyone interested in taking up this role is
welcome to contact David, in confidence,
01926 498168|[email protected]
New Resources! The following are now
available from Scout Shops: Colony
Programmes Plus II, Pack Programmes Plus
II, Troop Programmers Plus II, Unit
Programmes Plus II, Beaver Scout Games,
Cub Scout Games, Scout Games and Nights
Away
(new
edition).
Nuneaton GangshowMembers of Nuneaton
Gang Show were visited
by the Mayor &
Mayoress of Nuneaton &
Bedworth. Afterwards,
the Mayor talked to the
cast and said how much
he had enjoyed the show. Indeed he was seen virtually
jumping up and down in his seat. Also visiting the show
was CC, Dave Bramston
who after visiting the
cast left the theatre still
humming some of the
songs!
Geoff Russell
Motivat10n - Explorer Camp - 17/19 Sept 2010
...The NEW Home Contact System
Scouting has reviewed Home Contacts.
The new system is called InTouch. DCs
have passed information to all Groups
so that across Warwickshire we will all
use the new system from 1st May 2010.
InTouch is designed to give you more flexibility to put
together the most effective communication process for
all events & activities you run, including recognising the
different communication methods available.
InTouch needs to be in place for every event or activity
within Scouting. Whether regular weekly meetings or
international expeditions and for all sections and groups
(young people and adults).
The InTouch process asks the leader in charge of the
activity to think about a series of key questions about
how contact information will be held and accessed, how
leaders, young people and parents will communicate
and how communication will be handled in an
emergency.
To help you implement InTouch several resources have
been created and can be found at
www.scouts.org.uk/intouch. These include factsheets,
frequent questions & answers and other useful
information. There was also information in the
December/January edition of Scouting Magazine.
Sam Marshall | County Training Manager
INtouch
Cub Leaders & HelpersTraining Weekendfor all adults at
Alfrey Activity Centre9th-10th October 2010
FREEFREE
www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk/cubs/
for moreinformationcall Graham
on 01926 431384
County useful numbers:See County website.
Diary Dates:16 May: Scout Fishing Competition
5 June: County Basic Skills Day - Horley
11-13 June: Cub Beach Party - Alfrey
Centre
27 June: Beaver Fun Day - Alfrey Centre
17-19 Sept: Motivat10n - Explorer Camp
2 Oct: Frank Latcham
9-10 Oct: Cub Leader Training Weekend
For more information & specific training
details please consult the County website
calendar.
Next WISPA deadline:
14th July 2010 - all articles & adverts. If your Group needs a website.
Contact: Alan Peedle - 5 Broomybank, Kenilworth CV8 2SF | 01926 851195 | [email protected]
Limebridge Scout Camp,
Nr Alcester
17 to 19 September 2010
Contact Unit Leader for more infoCamp deposits to be paid ASAP
Final balances by 19 July 2010
MOTIVATMOTIVAT1010Nm o t i v 8 - 2 0 1 0
MOTIVAT10N
Leamington Commissioner makes newfriends in MauritiusTim Thorpe (Leamington DC) and his wife Cathy
recently holidayed in Mauritius. Cathy, a Brownie
Guider, had made contact with the Chief Commissioner
of Mauritius, for the Guiding Centenary.
Tim says: “At the meeting place in Curepipe, we
discovered the Brownies (known as Bluebirds) meet at
the same time as the other uniformed groups. We
found Cubs, Scouts and Ventures in the Scout hut
behind an adjacent building.
This became a great opportunity for us to mix with Scouts and leaders from another country. They were
very friendly and made us feel very welcome. It was amazing to travel so far and discover the same bond
with Scouts from other sides of the world, and to realise that we operate in very much the same way.
It was an amazing experience and hopefully we can develop the friendship link in the future.”
Tim Thorpe | Leamington DC