Warwickshire Scouts WISPA May 2012

Warwickshire Scouts

www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk

Issue 94 - May 2012

Nuneaton Gang Show Success

Nuneaton & District Scout & Guide Gang Show once again went with a bang at the Nuneaton Arts Centre with a full house at most performances. At the end of their performance one night they were honoured with a visit backstage by the County Commissioner Andy Shorter who, together with DC Clive Dunn joined in with the gang for the never to be forgotten photograph.

Bear Day | 80th Anniversary Gang Show | National Regatta | Let’s Grow

Well hello there!

Happy St Georges Day! Ok ok, so this isn’t exactly the day itself but it’s the thought that counts! I hope across the County you have taken the opportunity to celebrate our patron in the appropriate way; be it as part of a larger district event or within your group, the important thing is that we take the opportunity to celebrate scouting. Well done too to all those picking up St Georges Day Awards, and to those attending the National Scout Service in Windsor this year – great stuff!

Also in case you’ve not heard, census once again showed an increase! That’s right more young people than ever before are enjoying the Scouting adventure in Warwickshire. It’s fantastic that we’ve built up such momentum for growth, let’s work together to keep it going!

And what could we introduce them to? Well coming up in Warwickshire we have a jam packed agenda of events; we’ve the County Beaver fun day, Motiv8-12, and of course the main County event of the year, open to everyone: Bear Day! I hope you’re all getting ready, it’ll be a corker!

On to WISPA and we’ve a new Editor! Welcome to Steph Sanderson and thank you for taking on the reigns, Kerrie will be a hard act to follow but I know that Steph will be more than up to the challenge, and I can’t wait to see how WISPA evolves! For now though I hope you all enjoy this jam-packed update on all things Scouting in Warwickshire!

Andy

County Chairman At a recent Regional meeting for CCs & Chairpersons, we were introduced to Damian Fell, Diversity Ambassador, who presented an informative session about the Diversity Framework. This was set up 2 years ago and is now moving up the agenda as a key issue to be targeted within Scouting.

Damian promoted the expertise and support available through the Diversity team and spoke about their availability to travel to counties to support and discuss diversity issues within those areas. Workshops can also be arranged to address specific issues. Obviously the content of any Diversity training may include discussion of uncomfortable topics but Damian is confident that this can be accomplished in a relaxed manner with a satisfactory outcome for all who attend.

As I’m sure we are all aware, there is no quick fix, but it is important to recognise that Scouting needs to be seen to be welcoming and we want to encourage all types of people to join us. To accomplish this the feeling is that long term changes are needed, including recognising that diversity is everyone’s responsibility.

One of the most important conclusions reached was that Scouting needs to mirror the surrounding community, something I’m sure you are all aware of, effectively one size doesn’t fit all. Therefore it is accepted requirements will differ around the Region dependent on the county and also in the districts within that county.

Should you wish to contact Damian and take advantage of his offer I can supply the necessary contact details on request.

Sid Russell | County Chairman

Bear Day - Saturday 6th October 2012

Clopton Beavers dedicate new flag Clopton Beavers attended Stratford High School on Sunday 19th February to celebrate the dedication of their new Beaver Colony flag with the local community. The ceremony was attended by five Beavers and their Leaders from the colony and representatives from the Cub and Scout Sections. Other members from Stratford District and Clopton Scout Group also attended, including District Commissioner Simon Brown, ADC Beavers Angie Dexter and ACC Beavers Kim Marston.

Well done to all the Leaders who organised the event!

Atherstone’s promotion success

Atherstone District recently turned one high street shop closure into a positive opportunity for local Scouting.

Using the print centre on scouts.org.uk and a contact with a large scale map printer, they designed and dressed the closed Millets store windows in the Abbeygate Shopping Centre with posters promoting Scouting locally.

The print centre is a simple and relatively cheap resource for getting recruitment messages across and shows innovative thinking by the District team.

National 80th Anniversary Gang Show The National 80th Anniversary Gang Show will be at The Birmingham Hippodrome on Sunday 10th June 2012, celebrating 80 years since the first London Gang Show produced by Ralph Reader. The Gang includes members from 28 Gang Shows nationwide including WAGS, Solihull, Kenilworth, Nuneaton and Coventry. Many members of the organising and production teams and two items in the show are from WAGS. The Anniversary Gang Show only happens once every ten years and up to now has been staged in London.

Visit www.gs80.org.uk for details and tickets.

Tickets are also available to buy directly from the Birmingham Hippodrome.

1st Atherstone work together on Environment Award 1st Atherstone Group held an activity day at Hartshill Hayes Country Park, working with the Park Rangers to achieve their Environment Award. Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers all took part in ground clearing, coppicing and tree cutting, pond clearing and woodland walking, and they all helped to plant around 60 new trees from the Woodland Trust that the Group earned through collecting Sainsbury’s Active Kids vouchers. All the Sections had a fabulous day working together as a team to achieve their goals.

Nuneaton Cubs look for saints in the dark On a cold, dark, but dry St Patrick’s Day evening, ten teams of Nuneaton District Cub Scouts took part in their annual Alan Flavel Trophy event, held this year at Mancetter Scout HQ. The theme was ‘saints’ and a variety of saints were represented, from St Christopher (Travel) and St George (Dragons) to St Sebastion (Golf – Athletes) and St Peter (Fish Quiz). The bases ranged from a leprechaun race (St Patrick) to building (St Boniface Jenko).

The event was made even more challenging as most of the bases were held outside in the dark!

Congratulations go to1st Wolvey A team for winning the trophy for their group a second year running, with their B team runners up followed by the 1st Bedworth Hopkins.

Explorers on the road to success Nuneaton North Explorers were given an insight into learning to drive by British School of Motoring instructor Ian Maycock, who was a Nuneaton District Scout Leader.

Two of North’s members took their lessons with BSM and both passed their test first time.

Contact number for more details: 07508 846766

Cub Leaders Weekend - 17-18 November 2012

Saturday 6th October – a day to remember?

What will the day hold?

Youth activities will be split between 6 programme zones: creative, global, community, outdoor & adventure, beliefs and fitness. Young people will be encouraged to participate in activities in all zones and as a reward will be able to earn the Bear Day badge. Adults will also be able to earn the badge by visiting the adult zone, where you can find out more about recruitment, training, diversity or just take a break with a free cup of coffee!

What about us adults?

6th October 2012 is set to be a day to remember for Warwickshire and Solihull Scout counties when young people from across the two counties will come together to share a day full of fun and adventure.

A team of volunteers from both counties have joined up and are working hard to put on an activity day aimed at all sections and adult members.

Stoneleigh Park (where Get In was held) is again the venue, although this time the event will mainly take place inside two large halls. The event will run between 10am and 4pm and we will all join together in the middle of the day to share a picnic lunch whilst being entertained by some live entertainment!

As most activities are inside we expect the majority of our young members will be able to go around in small groups without supervision (all bases and activities will be supervised). We are also encouraging leaders of our younger members (who need more supervision) to work with other leaders in their Group to share this responsibility. You could also think about recruiting parents to come along (as occasional helpers) to provide support so that all adults can take time to visit the adult zone.

Bear’s Challenge Not only is this day set to be great fun but there is also a possibility that our Chief Scout, Bear Grylls, may also drop in by helicopter during day. In anticipation, we will be holding ‘Bear’s Fire-lighting Challenge’ when both young people and adults can try to beat Bear’s time at burning through a piece of string by lighting a fire with some basic materials.

How do I book?

Bookings are being collated by District teams so if you haven’t reserved your Group’s place yet please do get in touch with your DC. How do I find out more?

For more information please go to the county website www.warwickshirescouts.org. uk click on the Activities drop down menu and select Bear Day. There you will find pages holding booking information, frequently asked questions and our monthly event newsletter PawPrints. All this information will be regularly updated so do please keep checking back.

Make sure you have booked with your DC by end of June.

National Scout Sailing Regatta comes to the Midlands The National Scout Sailing Regatta is being held by 2nd Warwick Sea Scouts over the weekend of 1st-2nd September at Draycote Water, near Rugby. They have attended the event in South Shields many times before and are looking forward to this rare opportunity to host the Regatta in the Midlands.

All invested Scouts, Explorers, Networks and Leaders are welcome to take part, and all classes are welcome. The event will be fully catered and camping facilities will be available nearby.

Anyone interested can register at www.2wk.org. uk for an information pack. Adults and Explorers are welcome to volunteer to help run the event, also via the website.

Let’s Grow!

Two new Groups opened in Warwickshire after Easter. 1st Sydenham in Leamington opened with Beaver and Cub Sections and 9th Warwick (Emscote) opened with Beavers and a Cub Section soon to follow. Both Groups began with a small number of adults wanting to start Scouting and, with support from their Districts and from the County Development Team, they’re now up and running.

New Group Scout Leader Jo Taylor said, “This isn’t what I thought I would be doing when I first volunteered but this is really exciting and I’ve met some super people to work with, in the Group and on the training events I’ve been on.”

Both groups have been supported with start up grants from National HQ and County funds, and the same support is available for all new Sections.

Meanwhile, in Meriden, the Cub pack has been going through a process of renewal. You can read the story at www.warwickshirescouts.org.uk. Cub Scout Leader Jon Rogers said, “The increased profile has increased the number of people involved in local Scouting and I hope it will generate even more members and support in the future.”

Do you have a story like this to tell? If so I’d love to hear from you, and maybe we can help you too.

Dave Barclay, County Development Manager david.barclay2@ntlworld.com

Cub General Knowledge Quiz - 25th November 2012

County News: > The County Active Support Unit (Previously County Fellowship), have just completed their 25 years and still have over twenty members, including two of the founder members Dorothy Thomas and Geoff Russell.

To celebrate their birthday, one of the group made a cake which was cut by the two founders.

Leamington Scouts celebrate Jubilee in the sun!

600 Scouts from Leamington District converged on Stoneleigh Park in mid-May to enjoy a Jubilee celebration weekend packed with fun and activities.

The sun came out to shine on the weekend of adventure which saw Scouts from all sections camping in the unexpected warmth.

Activities for the weekend were split into three zones; water fun, scouting skills and challenge.

Activities on offer ranged from canoeing and rafting to crafts and rock climbing and stilt walking to archery. For the older members there was even a chance to try scuba diving, although the sun didn’t manage to warm up the water!

Zorbing was a particular highlight although one Scout got very wet when the zip broke on his sphere and water poured in! It was even warm enough for the water slide to be popular.

Jubilate was the largest camp that Leamington District Scouts have run in recent years, and was a year in the planning. Mike Barratt, who led much of the planning said “This has been a team effort, a group of Scouters from across Leamington came together to make sure we gave the many hundreds of young people attending a fantastic adventure.

As well as experiencing a brilliant range of activities they have celebrated the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in style.”

Tim Thorpe, whose five year tenure as DC of Leamington came to an end at the camp, said: “Attending this camp has been a great adventure and one that I and many of the young people attending will not forget!”

At Sunday’s closing ceremony Tim was presented with a ‘thank you’ gift from the District before new DC, Ann Howe, thanked everyone for attending.

Motivate 2012 - 21-23 September | Beaver Fun Day - 16 June 2012

County useful numbers:

Dairy Dates:

See website for info

26/27 May - Scout Leader weekend 16 Jun - County Beaver Fun Day 21/23 Sep - Motivate 2012 6 Oct - County Activity Day 17/18 Nov - Bear Trek For more information & specific training details please consult the County website calendar.

MOTIVATION 21-23 September 2012

Diamond Jubilee Pageant A group of Warwickshire Scouts and Guides have a special reason to look forward to the Queen’s Jubilee at the beginning of June. Recently the Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire, Phillip Dunn, invited them to crew the Warwickshire Centenary Barge which will be one of 1,000 boats accompanying the Queen’s barge sailing up the Thames in the Diamond Jubilee pageant. The Warwickshire Scout crew will be led by Tony Marsella; who will be accompanied by 3 Scouts and 3 Warwickshire Guides.

Next Issue August 2012 - submissions by 7th July 2012 - all articles & adverts. Contact: Alan Peedle 5 Broomybank, Kenilworth. CV8 2SF | 01926 851195 | alan@acstededesign.co.uk