T U S O C S . K
23rd - 25th Oct 2015, Drum Hill
Derbyshire County Scout Council Newsletter - Spring 2015 Get In To u
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N R U T S ’ M O T Hello and I must Start this by saying a very sincere thank you to all who have been dealing with the frustration of Compass. The last time I wrote I said that I expected there to be further “bumps” in the road before we were all comfortable and appreciating the benefits that we know it will bring in the future. Obviously I did not envisage the current situation. All I can say is that obviously the Scout association have not set out to cause such difficulties / frustrations as many of you, but by no means all have faced. It has been especially difficult around Census so to District secretaries Dc’s and Ann Thornton a special thank you. I am pleased to say Ann has been telling me how good you are all with the census. As ever the good news and great atmosphere in the County puts all the problems into perspective. Be it the recent Queen Scouts being presented with their Certificates by the High Sherriff David Coleman and the Vice lord Lieutenant Gen John S Wilso OBE DL a very proud moment for all involved. The news that the flagship Camp of Peak 2015 is Full although there are some adult roles to be filled. As ever there is so much more to be pleased about in all our districts.
meet someone re ACC cubs in the next week or so. As for myself the Search committee made up of the Regional Commissioner A member off the Cty Exec, a Cty DC, a CC from another County an 1825 year old and the regional development manager. Will shortly be putting the wheels in motion. Again as for the DC positions please give some thought to who you may wish to nominate. I of course realise that Peak is not far away hence me staying in position a little longer than the 5 years I intended. I think it would be good if we have a person named by Peak so that they can meet people as CC, CC designate, can have that brilliant feeling of welcoming people from the stage and all the pleasure and pride in being CC at such a prestigious event. The actual handover being to suit the new CC. In any event by September the 1stOur second conference # conference will soon be with us with Vision 2018 forming the backdrop to the sessions. We are Fortunate in Having Mark Tarry Chief Commissioner for England giving us his insight. Thanks to Sue, James and Nick for the time they have put in so far
Within the County we are still looking for District Commissioners in three of our Districts Derwent and Dove, Ilkeston and East Scarsdale. Adverts will be out in the next week or so. These are real opportunities for people to have a very positive impact on local Scouting and at such a good time in our history. So please consider them seriously and as important please think of others you know who you think could fill the role. Sometimes all that is needed is for other to show support or confidence in someone so if you think of people please send in a nomination. It could be your group has a great Chairman or treasurer who with support would take on the role.
I hope that Groups & Districts have been looking at Vision 2015 and how they can incorporate its objectives into their everyday Scouting.
Other vacancies are for County training manager we are looking at ways to fill this very important role shortly. I do not want the momentum that Sue has built up to be lost. Dave Mitchell is due to
Wishing you a great time Scouting in Derbyshire and again many thanks to you all
Whilst conferencing November the1st will see the second County youth conference. This will involve all youth sections and again be based at Trent College Long Eaton. This is something that has been discussed at the recent County Youth Conference so is starting off with youth input. I believe Hanna Kentish the new Youth Commissioner is attending and there is a possibility of Matt Hyde the CEO of the Scout Association attending. Look out for more to come.
Tom
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all.safe Helen Crampton
DofE Gold Award Presentations St James’s Palace, London
County Safety Advisor You’ll find the all.safe page on the county website click support click safety. I will be adding information to it as time goes by. So far, you’ll find a risk assessment form, near miss form and basic information on what these are about. Remember, health and safety is not an excuse to stop fun, nor to prevent activities from going ahead. It’s simply a set of rules and advice to make sure activities can be carried out without unnecessary risk and therefore minimize injuries or damage. There are a lot of resources to help you achieve this and when I find something that may be of interest I will add it to the all.safe page. This will include information on any accidents that have happened in Derbyshire, or near misses (things that nearly happened and might end up as an injury if it happened again) so we can all learn from the experience and prevent repetition elsewhere. If you need help applying health and safety, or if you have a specific health and safety issue you need a hand with, please get in touch. You can do this by using the contact form.
Lets make sure we are all.safe
Gold Award Presentations are held throughout the year at various venues, the main one being ST James’s Palace. Presentations are held here in the Spring and Autumn. Each one is attended by approximately 700 young people, one personal guest of each the young people and specially invite d guest, including representatives of the adult volunteers who help young people to achieve their Award. On Wednesday 11th March there were over 200 young people who are members of The Scout Association receiving the Gold Award from HRH The Duke of Edinburgh. Members of The Scout Assoication were presented with their awards in the Queen Anne Room by Dr Edward Coats in the morning who took part in the expedition to the South Pole with Ben Fogle and James Cracknell in 2009 and Major Phil Packer in the afternoon who is a Scout Ambassador. Derbyshire Scout members were able to hear from Phil’s about his live. Despite a severe spinal injury while serving on active duty as a serviceman, Phil continues to push himself to the limit and be an inspiration to others. Overcoming adversity and demonstrating adventurous Scouting spirit, Phil has taken on some inspiring personal challenges including parachuting, rowing, mountain climbing and several marathons.
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Golden Duck Awards! Saturday Night (24th January) saw the annual ‘Golden Duck Awards’ for Explorers in Chesterfield District take place at Loundsley Green Community Centre. This night in the District Calendar allows Explorers to look back on their year of Scouting, the adventures they have and the challenges they faced and overcame. The group who the VIP Judges believe has done the most exciting or adventurous activities over the past 12 months win the prestigious Golden Duck for that year. This year’s winners were Canotila Explorers (Calow) with 19 votes to 11. ‘Geoff’, as named by Canotila, will take residence with the group going on all their activities and having lots of fun! Individual Award Winners 2015 • Camp Fashionista – Tom Hoddinot (Draco) • Most Dedicated – Matt Swain (Canotila) • Eager Beaver – Hannah Williams (Draco) • Baggage Handling Problem – Ben Groom (Draco) • Most Enthusiastic – Poppy Tomkinson (Canotila) • Class Clown – Paddy Wardell (Draco) • Most Adventurous – Reece Cooper (Canotila) • Most likely to be the next Bear Grylls – Sam Walker (Canotila) • Worst Camp Cook – Alex Holman
(Draco) • Most likely to win this award – Tammy Baldwin (Centaurus) • Best Dressed Male – Adam Iskip (Draco) • Best Dressed Female – Kate Redding (Canotila) Well done and congratulations to everyone who was nominated and to every Explorer for being part of an amazing movement in Chesterfield District. Thank you to Inspire Network for organising and hosting an amazing evening, Three Day Weekend and Supreme Sound & Vision for providing entertainment and DSP Event Photography for providing the Photography Studio. For more information about Explorers (14-18) in Chesterfield email Glyn Jones (District Commissioner) dc@chesterfielddistrictscouts.org.uk To find out more about Network (18-25) follow Inspire Network on Twitter (@iNet_Scouts) or visit chesterfielddistrictscouts.org.uk/network/
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A photo of the 2nd Brampton Cubs - winners of the Cub Scout Ready Steady Cook Competition. This was a brilliant competition for a very high standard. Thanks to all for taking part and to Tracy Lugg for sorting out. The hope is that all districts will be represented next year. The provisional date is 5th March so plenty of time to practice! The winning recipe: Black Bean Chilli with Guacamole Serves 2
Chilli: 1 tbsp vegetable oil 1 small onion ½ stick celery ½ red and ½ green pepper 2 cloves garlic 2 tsp ground cumin ½ tsp sweet smoked paprika ¼ teaspoon chilli powder 1 tbsp tomato puree 1 tsp dried oregano
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230g tinned black (turtle) beans (or use kidney beans) 165g tinned sweetcorn 400g tinned chopped tomatoes ¼ tsp salt black pepper few sprigs fresh coriander
Equipment: chopping board knife 2 wooden spoons large spoon large saucepan garlic crusher medium saucepan measuring jug Rice: One 125g bag of boil-in-the bag rice lemon squeezer grater 1 litre water shallow bowl ¼ tsp salt fork teaspoon Guacamole: 1 avocado 3 serving spoons ½ lime 4 serving dishes timer measuring spoons To serve: 75g cheddar cheese 2 serving plates 100ml sour cream tortilla chips
Finely chop the onion, finely slice the celery and roughly chop the peppers. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large saucepan over a low heat. Add the onion and fry gently for 3 minutes. (Don’t let the onion burn.) Add the celery and peppers and fry gently for another 3 minutes. Crush the garlic into the pan. Add the cumin, paprika and chilli powder and fry, stirring with a wooden spoon for one minute. Add the tomato puree and stir in. Add the oregano, tinned tomatoes, beans and sweetcorn and simmer (bubbling slightly) for 25 minutes stirring occasionally. If the chilli starts to get too dry, put a lid on the pan and turn down the heat a little. Add a little water if necessary. While the chilli is cooking, prepare the rice. Bring a pan with about 1 litre of water to the boil. Add the salt and bag of rice. Let it boil gently for 15 minutes. Grate the cheese, transfer to a serving bowl and take to the table.
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Halve the avocado and use a teaspoon to scoop out the flesh into a shallow bowl. Squeeze the juice out of the lime and pour it over the avocado. Mash the avocado with a fork, transfer to a serving bowl and take to the table. Transfer the tortilla chips to a serving bowl and take to the table. When the rice is cooked, use the long handled fork to hook the bag of rice by its loop and slowly lift it out of the water, letting the water drain away. Leave to cool slightly in a large bowl. When the chilli is cooked, stir in the salt, grind over some black pepper and taste to check for seasoning. Use scissors to open the bag of rice and use a spoon to arrange a ring of rice on each plate. Use the large spoon to carefully put some chilli in the centre. Sprinkle with coriander leaves. Take carefully to the table.
date p U n o i t c e Scout S ister l A c a M e v Da Chilly Challenge another fantastic response to the 2015 challenge with 1500 badges going out right across the County. A bit warmer than last year but still quite a few camping out in the snow – the County Team gathered at Drum Hill and were joined at a camp fire by our young ambassadors.
Belt” – this could not have failed to inspire those thinking about this for the future. It was really good to see so many of our Scouts from right across the County gain their awards – well done to all – they are a credit to their Troops. My thanks are extended to Chesterfield SASu who provided a super buffet after the presentations. We are planning the next presentation of awards at Peak 2015. “Ready Steady Cook” March 2015 saw our third Ready Cook competition with 9 Districts entering the competition. The standard was once again incredibly high with teams of 3 Scouts cooking up amazing meals on the theme of the Derbyshire. Whilst some of thought that the theme chosen would be difficult, the Scouts came up with some ingenious concoctions and showed a real flair and imagination. The four judges certainly had a hard job in deciding the winners. Winners Derby East – 86th Derby 265 points Runners Up Derby South – 118th Derby 257 points Third Place High Peak – 1st Chapel 253 points
Chief Scout’s Gold Awards The Winding Wheel at Chesterfield saw the largest number yet of Chief Scouts Gold Award holders assembled. The first glimpse of nearly 500 assembled in the hall was a real wow factor! Certificates were presented this year by Mr David Coleman, Derbyshire’s High Sheriff, he spoke of the importance of this achievement in gaining the award and how highly this is recognised in the world of future employment.
We had a fascinating presentation by Explorer Scouts who had taken part in last year’s “Explorer
John
head A s e g n a h Bush On C
For As I’m sure you are all aware this year marks some amazing events. Peak, the Jamboree in Japan and the changes to the programmes and branding of the other sections and Network is not to be left out. Between May and November Scout Network as we know it is going to see the biggest change since its creation with a change to the leadership, structure, programme and some cases the awards. Luckily Derbyshire has been implementing some of the changes already with most networks now being district based. Under the new changes the DC will look after the development of the district network with either a network or provision within all districts by the end of November 2015. What the changes are meant to inspire is an increasingly important and integral fifth section, meeting the needs of young adults, local Scouting and local communities more generally. What the refreshed Scout Network we can look forward to is: • • • • • • • • •
A reinvigorated sense of purpose for Scout Network A genuinely compelling 18-25 programme proposition More young adults transitioning from Explorer Scouts to Scout Network More young adults joining the UK Scout Network from outside Scouting More young adults transitioning from Scout Network into other roles in Scouting Increased participation in the programme through peer led and peer supported projects Improved numbers of Queen’s Scout Award recipients A broader talent pool from which future leaders may be identified A greater understanding and appreciation of the role that young adults aged 18 to 25 can make in the development and growth of local Scouting
Also under the new changes the programme will also change to engage and enable young adults to participate in personal development opportunities at a time and place to suit them. Under the changes there will be three main Programme Areas: Adventure, International and Community. The objectives for the three new areas should be: Adventure: • Engage in adventurous and other activities that will enable members to: • Develop skills and pursue their interests. • Develop and use skills to make a difference in their local and scouting communities.
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highlight our interdependence as citizens of the world. Make a positive contribution to address global issues.
Community: • Take practical action in the service of others that will enable members to: • Create positive social change that is of benefit to a wider community. • Develops the individual in taking action. • Build strong links and appreciation for difference between Scouts and between others in the Community.
The changes will also see • All 18-25 year olds associated with a District will automatically become a member of the District Scout Network. 18-25 year olds can be members of multiple District Networks simultaneously. • All 18-25 year olds who are members of a District Scout Network, as well as those who are not associated with a District, are also automatically members of the UK Scout Network. • If a member of the UK Scout Network takes an appointment within one or more Districts, they will automatically become a member of the District Scout Networks associated with those Districts. • All Explorer Scouts will be advised of the options to continue in Scouting as they approach 18 years of age, including adult volunteer roles. They will be made aware that they will become a Member of the District Scout Network automatically, in addition to any other roles, so that they maintain the option to participate in the programme and attain awards. • As Members of the Scout Network approach 25 years of age, they will be encouraged to consider continuing with or starting new roles in Scouting. This will not preclude them being made aware of other volunteering opportunities in Scouting during their time as a Member of the Scout Network.4 As explained earlier understand this is already a very busy year and I appreciate that everyone already spends a huge amount of time being involved in scouting but with your support and the work that has already been completed regarding Network in Derbyshire I can see this being a very exciting time in the development and growth of Network. This article is just an overview of the changes that are if anyone has any questions or queries or requires any other information about structure please do not hesitate to contact me. Yours in Scouting
International: • Participate in life-changing international activities or experiences that will enable members to: • Develop an understanding of global issues that
John Bush County Scout Network Commissioner