1 of 9 Clyde Regional Scout Council 21 Elmbank Street Glasgow G2 4PB tel 0845 094 4391 email [email protected]www.clydescouts.org.uk Regional Commissioner (Scotland): Stuart J. Imrie Regional President: Alex M. Hamilton Chief Scout: Peter Duncan Registered Scottish Charity SCO010415 The Newsletter of Clyde Region No. 2 Jan 2009 The Regional Commissioner... Happy New Year to you. A new year brings new challenges for us all. With Clyde Region now nine months old, plans are progressing for the development of Scouting in the Region. For most of you reading this newsletter you will probably have little direct contact with the Regional Team. Your first contact will be with your District Commissioner and their team which is why the first months have concentrated on developing the support for these teams. Working with DCs and others on training communication and development needs has allowed us to measure what is required. There is much still to be done but we have a better idea of where to start. In the months to come, SHQ will be meeting with Assistant District Commissioners/DESCs and DSNL‟s at Tulliallan during February to discuss programme support for the sections. DCs, have been encouraged to ensure that all sections and Districts are represented at this event which will provide an invaluable opportunity to learn of plans for sectional support, and indeed to influence future plans. Plans are also well underway for our own local Regional get together for GSLs/AGSLs, Group Contacts lay members of Group Executives, District teams and lay members of District Executives to discuss local needs. This event will happen at the end of March and those involved will receive direct communication inviting them to the day to help develop Scouting in Clyde. I am pleased to advise that the Regional Team is now complete. Contact details for all of the team will appear on the Regional website (www.clydescouts.org.uk ) along with other useful information and support details. Regional Advisers are on hand to support Adventurous Activities, Child Protection, DofE, Faiths and Beliefs, Fellowships, International, Gang Shows, and Special Needs. The team is here to support you. The Regional Office, based at 21 Elmbank Street also works to support Scouting throughout Clyde. As well as providing a valuable source of information and advice, the Office has a range of resources such as laptops, projectors, screens and banners (indoor and outdoor) that can be borrowed for little or in most cases no cost, to help with Group or District events. Further details are available from the Regional website. The Glasgow Scout Shop has supplies of the new Regional badge available for sale. These badges replace the Lanarkshire/Greater Glasgow Area badges on uniforms. For Groups that did not choose to pre-order badges, these can be purchased directly from the shop, by mail order and through secure internet shopping (see website for details www.glasgowscoutshop.com ). The Scout shop provides a wide range of uniform, badges, resources and outdoor wear all at competitive prices and Ally Bower and his staff are on hand to discuss your needs. Profits from the Glasgow Scout Shop are used to support Scouting throughout Clyde Region. Just last week I visited a Group in South East District to present an Award of Merit to a member of the Group Executive for her outstanding work for local Scouting. At the same evening, six former Scouts now in their 80‟s and 90‟s were present to help the Group celebrate its centenary. They had already spent time talking to the Beavers and Cubs answering questions about what Scouting had been like in their day. I also had a chance to speak for a short time with a few of these gentlemen who all said that they realised with hindsight, how much Scouting had prepared them for the challenges that had been ahead of them. Seventy years on, life has changed significantly however we are still helping to shape lives in a positive way, preparing young people for what may lie ahead for them. Thank you for all that you do. Stuart J. Imrie Regional Commissioner
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
1 of 9
Clyde Regional Scout Council 21 Elmbank Street Glasgow G2 4PB
Awards... Congratulations to the following adults whose contribution to Scouting has recently been recognised by the Chief Scout: Award for Merit:
Sandra Boyle, Deputy District Commissioner (Youth Programme), South East & CSL, 185th Glasgow
Aileen Chambers, BSL, 38th Glasgow
John Cunningham, SL & Group Contact, 50th Glasgow, District Nights Away Adviser, South Western District
Josephine Gorman, Group Executive Committee Member, 113th Glasgow
Brendan Harris, GSL, 145th Glasgow
Robert Howieson, District Appointments Secretary, South East District
Angus Johnston, SL, 38th Glasgow
Karen Johnston, ABSL, 38th Glasgow
Janet McCabe, BSL, 116th Glasgow
Philip Moseley, CSL, 79th Glasgow
Marion Rankin, District Commissioner, Kelvin Valley District
Victoria Rowan, ABSL, 38th Glasgow
Lindsay Sharp, CSL, 145th Glasgow, District Nights Away Adviser, Eastwood District
Chief Scout‟s Commendation for Good Service:
David McCabe, ASL, 116th Glasgow, Explorer Scout Leader (Young Leader) & District Nights Away Adviser, Eastwood District
Thomas McCabe, SL, 116th Glasgow
Kenneth Milton, ASL, 116th Glasgow
Eileen Leahy, ACSL, 116th Glasgow
Annual General Meeting... The Region‟s first AGM will be held on Wednesday 9th September 2009. Watch the Regional Diary at clydescouts.org.uk for further information.
Auchengillan Jamboree 2009...
Some Groups who are travelling to AJ09 from afar have
enquired about the possibility of hiring or borrowing
camping equipment from local Groups. If you would be
willing to lend or hire your camping equipment to someone
else for the duration of AJ09, please contact Gary
Bainbridge in the Regional Office.
Have Your Say!... This exciting event will take place on Saturday 28th March 2009 at Hampden Park. Information about this event for GSLs, AGSLs, Groups Contacts, District Teams and lay members of Group and District executives is now available at clydescouts.org.uk. A copy has also been posted to everyone. An inspirational day that will give key managers in Scouting a chance to discuss current issues, contribute to plans for the future and update themselves; this promises to be an event not to be missed.
Annual Census & Membership Subs... District Commissioners and District Secretaries should by now, have passed information about Census 2009 to all Group Scout Leaders and Group Contacts. Statistical data about the young people and adults who are a member of your Scout Group should be entered onto the Census website by 2 February 2009. The HQ membership subscription for 2009 is £19.10 per person, less a prompt payment rebate of 50p per person for each full multiple of £19.10 which is paid on time. To qualify for the rebate, you must ensure that your subs are paid to your District Treasurer by no later than 2 March 2009.
3 of 9
Mary Boland... The Region was sorry to learn of the untimely passing of Mary Boland in December. A stalwart of Scouting in Glasgow‟s East End; Mary provided thousands of young people with adventure and enjoyment in her programmes as well as being a source of support and inspiration to adults around South East and the former Easthill Districts. Not content with her roles in her Group and District, Mary was also involved with the Personnel team of Glasgow Gang Show for many years where she turned her hand to many tasks and was held in high regard by the many young people and adults that she worked with. Mary did not enjoy the best of health latterly and she was called to higher service on December 14th. We give thanks for her life and all that she did for many of us. Our thoughts are with her family at this sad time.
South East District... From Carslaw Purdie, District Commissioner
Hi, and can I wish you all a very Happy New Year and trust
you will have a great fun packed program with your
sections over the coming months. Can I thank you all for
the commitment you have to Scouting at your Group and
your District team are ready to support in whatever way
they can.
We were all saddened to learn of the death of Mary Boland
in December. Mary„s role was to work with Bob Howieson
on the appointments within the District. There was a good
turn-out of leaders at her funeral showing their respect for
her 28 years of loyal service to Scouting and to support
Mary‟s husband John and the family. We also were
advised that our District President; Alastair Hamilton was
taken into hospital just before Christmas and we wish him
a speedy recovery.
At our recent AGM we focused on “fast forward to
November 2009” and that with support from within the
sections and Group, further supported by District, we
should be in good shape to offer the best Scouting to our
members.
As the TV ads say “our best ever” and there is no reason
why we cannot stand up and say this about Scouting in our
Groups. Remember to use the Clyde Regional, Scottish
and UKHQ web sites for info and support material.
We have just completed a full review of all leaders in the
District and all are now up to date with Disclosure Scotland
checks and all have had an appointment review update.
Progress is now being made on updating the first aid
position with each leader. District Training opportunities
will be offered.
Sandra Boyle (Depute District Commissioner, Youth
Support) is holding a meeting of all the ADC‟s and other
section leaders to draw up a program of events for all
sections over the next 6 months. We shall be using the
data base info held by UKHQ through the scouts.org.uk
website to advise leaders of up and coming events, so
please make sure your details are up to date – not sure,
then ask your GSL/SIC/GC for help.
The District has set a number of objectives for 2009 and I
am pleased to say that we have made good progress on
these. Development, training, appointments and sectional
support all feature and in some cases overlap. I hope that
in the coming months these will become evident to you as
you work within your sections.
Can I just finish by saying “good scouting” to you all.
Archives... For many years now, Robin Hunter has served as Archivist for Greater Glasgow Area then Clyde Region. Robin has stepped down from that role and passed all of the Region‟s archives to us. We are very grateful to Robin for his work in looking after the archives, cataloguing information and responding to enquiries during his time in post. All enquiries relating to the Region‟s Archives should now be made to Gary Bainbridge in the Regional Office.
Congratulations to the following young people who have all
completed their DofE Award in recent months:
Bronze Awards:
Paul Cruikshank, 80th Glasgow
Emma Mills, 29th Glasgow
Silver Award:
Tom Aitken, 72nd Glasgow
Gold Award:
Stewart Cunningham, 29th Glasgow
Euan Elliot, 29th Glasgow
Graeme Stewart, 29th Glasgow
I have now issued 14 Gold Record Books, 13 Silver
Record Books and 12 Bronze Record Books to the 21st
Glasgow, 29th Glasgow, 72nd Glasgow, 80th Glasgow
and 204th Glasgow as well as Clydesdale District Explorer
Scouts and Uddingston Explorer Scouts.
Expeditions have been carried out at all levels by the
21st/121st Glasgow, 29th Glasgow, 72nd Glasgow and
80th Glasgow.
I was invited along to hear the Bronze report by two
Groups; 80th Glasgow and the 21st/121st Glasgow. Both
were well produced and presented to both parents and
leaders. Well done to the three units.
My Records shows that we have a total 182 Participants
who are currently working tgheir way through the Award;
Bronze = 97, Silver = 54 and Gold = 46. Some young
people have been on Bronze for well over a year. Surely
some must be complete and only need a leader to help
complete the books and get them to me for issue of
certificates?
Two units have asked for a visit from Harry Kilgour (DofE
Adviser) and these are in the process of being organised,
the meeting before the New Year had to be cancelled due
to illness. The Duke of Edinburgh‟s Award will require all DofE Expedition Assessors at Bronze, Silver and Gold level, to be accredited from December 2009. The majority of existing Assessors are currently being brought into the scheme through the accreditation of their existing experience and knowledge. However, for any new Assessors at Bronze and Silver level who are not accredited the process requires completion of a pre-course learning module (available online), attendance on a one day Bronze and Silver Accreditation course and a check of their knowledge of the DofE, usually through attendance on an Introduction to the DofE course. Accreditation costs £5 and lasts for 5 years. Applications to these courses need to be endorsed by DofE Managers (new title for Award Officer) or Wild Country Panel Secretaries. The accreditation is geared towards people intending to assess groups at Bronze and Silver levels. Bronze and Silver Assessors may also wish to go on to become accredited at Gold level and for expeditions abroad, both of which are achieved through online learning modules.
These new requirements are not designed to put more pressure on already busy Assessors but to enhance the consistency of assessment to offer participants the best possible experience during their expedition. Assessment courses will be available in Scotland. The number of available courses will increase in response to demand and with the development of a tutor team. All the courses have registration from 9.30am and will finish around 4pm. The course fee will be £30.00 and course application forms are available from the Scottish DofE Office. Further information on Assessor accreditation is available from the website: www.DofE.org/training Now is the time to start planning Bronze, Silver and Gold Expeditions to allow sufficient time for practice journeys and training. Remember it is not the leader‟s job to plan the journey; it is the participants as a group who should do this. Leaders should only give advice. Bronze is required to be in Normal Rural Countryside which can be familiar to the participants. Silver should be in normal rural, open countryside or forest which is unfamiliar to the participants. Gold should be in Wild Country, remote from habitation and it should be unfamiliar to the participants. If the journey is to be in Wild Country, the Panel Secretary requires to be informed by using a Green Form. This form has to be with the Panel Secretary four weeks before the journey if no assessor required and six weeks if an assessor is required. Unaccompanied practice journeys need to be on a green form. Note this requires the route plans, times, camp sites, names in party etc. Supervisors for expeditions in areas classed as Terrain 1 or 2 require to hold the relevant Scout Authorisation. This is not the case in Terrain “0” but they do require to have their own Nights Away permit to be able to give
permission to Camp to one of the party as a leader.
Forms and other information can be downloaded from the
Happy New Year from all at Auchengillan! Wow, what a year 2008 was! May I firstly say a very sincere thank you to everyone who sent good wishes and the dozens of cards I received throughout the year whilst I was ill and off work? It has been a very humbling experience and has again shown the warmth and friendship that Scouting is all about. Thanks must also go to Scott, Claire and the team at the Centre for doing such a great job in keeping the place thriving (I wasn‟t missed at all!). So many new things have happened here that if you haven‟t been for a while (or heaven forbid, haven‟t been at all – surely not!), now is the perfect time to come and see for yourselves. Don‟t forget that Clyde Region Scouts get discounted rates making it even more of a bargain! Also, as an AALS licensed Centre, you can be sure safety, your comfort and excitement for all are at the top of our priority list. New activities – have you tried the pedal karts, or the gyro cars? How about the indoor climbing wall in the barn, or the sports barn itself (everything from badminton to uni hoc)? OK tried those, how about on-site mountain biking on the new track or parachute games? The pond is proving to be spectacularly popular with kayaking, canoeing and raft building (brrr just now, but got to get better –hasn‟t it)? With over 30 activities to choose from, you‟re definitely going to need more than one visit!
Ok, you’ve been to Auchengillan loads of times (and who wouldn’t with so much to do!) and tried most of these – now try walking on water! Seriously, not joking, try it in 2009!
Watch this space for even more new activities planned for 2009! New additions to buildings – The Kyle Cabin now has additional showers and super new toilet facilities - very swish indeed! The Providore Building also has new showers and smaller bedrooms – much more comfortable and a lot more flexible for mixed groups. Two new cookers and a new hot water boiler will be in the Allander Chalet by the time you read this. Our centrally heated buildings will accommodate groups of 30, 38 or 60 in a variety of dormitory layouts, so every group will find one to suit their needs. We still have a few vacancies between now and the summer and are taking bookings right up to the end of the year and beyond if you like to plan ahead. Camping – is available throughout the year in our extensive camping grounds, with unrivalled views of the surrounding hills and countryside. Drinking water taps are available in every field and toilet blocks and hot washing facilities are never far away. Don’t know how to go about a visit? Don‟t worry, start by going to our website www.auchengillan.com or getting us to post or email a brochure ( [email protected] ) – information and booking forms can be with you in minutes – or just give us a call (01360 770256)and we will guide you through the process. We‟ll even plan your programme of activities for you if you tell us what you want to do and how many of you there are.
Auchengillan Jamboree (AJ09) This fabulous, exciting event takes place from 1st-8th August and details can be found elsewhere in this issue of Clyde Connections. AUCHENGILLAN – It’s definitely where the action is!