Categories
Uncategorized

Amazing Opportunity: UK Youth Commissioner Wanted

We are recruiting for our first ever UK Youth Commissioner. Working as part of UKHQ’s core leadership team, the UK Youth Commissioner will ensure that young people are at the heart of every decision that shapes their Scouting experience. 

They will have the passion and drive to champion youth-shaped Scouting, empowering young people to share their ideas and make an impact. 

The UK Youth Commissioner will work closely with the UK Chief Commissioner, Chief Executive and Chairman to achieve our ambition for Scouting to be truly youth-led. They will be responsible for helping us launch a range of exciting projects, including our first ever National Youth Council. 

Representing the views of young Scout members across the UK, they will work with young people, volunteers and staff to ensure Scouting answers the views, wishes and needs of its youth members.

It’s a fantastic opportunity for an individual aged 18-25 to gain valuable work experience and play a crucial role as we begin an exciting chapter in Scouting’s history. Having a Movement that is shaped by young people in partnership with adults is a key strand of our vision and our new strategy. 

By 2018, we want 80% of young people to be able to say they shape Scouting, feel listened to and are taken seriously. The UK Youth Commissioner will play an essential part in helping us to achieve this.

Find out more and apply for this volunteer role

Read about our new strategy, Scouting for All.

Categories
Events Uncategorized

Quiz Night Event in Aid of Jamboree 2015

Quiz Evening

Fundraising for Scout international experiences in 2015.

1947540_1396628007270511_431908685_n.jpg

 

At 11th Headquarters (Kentish Road, Shirley)

26th April 2014 7-10 pm

Cost £3 Adults, £2 Children, £10 Family (2+2)

There will also be a raffle and refreshments available for purchase.

Tickets are available from:

Owen Budd, Kieran Brackley, Rozy Toomer or Colin Floyd (DC)

Categories
Uncategorized

Grey Owl’s Goodbye

image.jpg

Well of course I don’t mean, I won’t be happy to see you all again, I just got to a point when I didn’t want the onerous task of ADC Beavers. I am very pleased that the reins have been taken over by Thelma as I know she will do a good job. I had a great time in the 7 years I was ADC. The Beavers were my Beavers and the Leaders were my Leaders. I am glad now to have retired with so many happy memories.

The Beaver Section is vital to Scouting and the children learn to accept the values and to be together happily. In my time (26 years in Beaver scouting) I have seen beavers become Queen Scouts and even become leaders in the District. Of course not all the beavers did this but I know in Beaver Scouting they have made good friends and have many happy memories to take into their adult lives.

 “Ahmeek”

A few words about my parting gift, I wanted to give the Section something they would all see and be proud of.


image.jpg

image.jpg

Ahmeek the bronze Beaver sits on top of the District Beaver Colours and will be carried proudly at the head of your own Beaver flags. Beaver scouting started in Canada and “Ahmeek” is the Native American name for the beaver. Our Beaver was made by an ex venture scout from the District. Paul Joyce has become an expert sculptor in bronze and runs his own foundry in Essex. While making our beaver he had a visit from an internationally renowned sculptor who finished off the modelling for him giving it a touch of the master. I know Paul was very happy to make something for his old district.

Why did I call myself Grey Owl? Well, early in the last century a young English man went to Canada to live a life in the wild. He made a living trapping for furs which were widely used in the fashions of the time. He learnt a great deal and made friends with the Indians who gave him the Indian name of Grey Owl. Trappers had started using explosives to blow up the Beaver dams because they could make a lot of money from their skins. Grey Owl could see that they were wiping out the animal and conducted a campaign to stop this malpractice, he became known as friend of the beavers.

Enough about me – I want to thank you all for making the Christingle such a happy occasion for me. A Christingle service started my involvement in the Section and it was so appropriate to finish in this way. I was overwhelmed by the gifts, brought to tears by the poem and the song, and totally embarrassed by being dressed up and made to sit in front of the Church. Yes you got me, all of you but what  a send off. I loved the book you had made with all the beavers writing or drawing something for me. The vase is beautiful and the flowers you gave with it. There were other gifts as well and oh you had all made such an effort to make it an occasion, finishing the following week, after the Pantomime, with a meal at the Malvern.

Thank you for 26 years of “Fun and Friends”, Grey Owl.

Categories
Uncategorized

From Colin

A very big thank you to Shaun Cassidy for an extremely well organised and successful Cub Survival camp. It was really great fun for me to pop bye and visit you all. It was encouraging to see all the groups attending this event and seeing the young people have such a great time. Thanks to the all The Leaders that made the camp happen and please pass on thanks to all the Parents who came along and helped you.

Well done to the Scout section for a successful Raft Race which on a lovely summer’s day was great fun. Thank you to Stuart Ganney ADC Scouts who helped and supported the 7th to go to the County Camp at Lyons Copse that proved to be a real success. It was also great to see the 25th Scouts at the camp ably overseen by the group’s young leaders.

Well done goes to the Beaver section for a successful Loggerhead competition. They had a great day at Wilverley.

Congratulations to Simon Pickering on gaining his Young Leader belt it is great to have these young people in our scouting. Well done and thank you to him and all our young leaders.

Well done to the 9th Shirley Warren who had a very successful 75th Birthday camp at Wilverley that was a great way to celebrate the history of this great group.
Well done and thank you to all the Leaders and Sarah Milstead for the first response training it is so important that we all keep our knowledge up to date.

Wilverley District Camp Site

A big thank you to everyone who came to the Wilverley Maintenance Weekend at the end of August. It was great to have such a good response from you all and we got such a lot done. Wilverley is now setting up a reward system for groups that help with Maintenance so you can still earn yourself points by coming out and doing some more of the jobs that we still have in hand.

The replacement generator project is on course to start very soon. With the plan of it being completed by the end of November. It will be great to just flick a switch!!

Colin2.png

Jamboree 2015

Japan We had four of our scouts and explorers put themselves forward to go to the 2015 Jamboree in Japan. They are Owen Budd, Rozy Toomer, Abi Bacon, and Kieran Brackley. The selection weekend has taken place and we are now waiting to hear if any of them have been selected. We all have our fingers crossed.

Swimming Gala

The arrangements for the District Swimming Gala are in hand. It is being held on Saturday 23rd November at 5.30pm.

Further details to follow

swim.png

District Web Site

Please rember to tell everyone about your good news, if you have been to camp recently or are planning a event SHOUT LOUD about it. The web site is a great way to promote our district and tell everyone how good we are. Everyone loves a good news story. Please send all your articles to Tony and Val Kench by the 25th of every month.

Grow your Own Scout Group, Offer the Big Adventure.

mini-Notices.jpg

Have you now all got your vacancy boards up in the entrances of your HQ? If not I take it you have every post in your group filled!!

It is so important that we SHOUT Load about how we need to grow and offer Scouting to anyone who wishes to join. We can do that if we start now to recruit more adults and get them working in our groups. That could be in the uniformed leadership teams or just as importantly in the Group Exec Committees. The more the merrier!!

A big Thank You to the 1st – 2nd – 7th – 29th who came along to the first grow your own group meeting. These meetings are being run by Thelma our ADC group Support and it proved a good opportunity for those groups to reflect where they are and what the long term plan is to be for the group to grow. I would ask that all the other groups contact The 9th, 11th and 14th and the 26th have confirmed that they will be coming to a further meeting on 2nd Oct.

The remaining groups (we now who you are!!) must attend on the 17th October, please arrange that with Thelma it will save her chasing you. Don’t forget we need to ask anyone and everyone that you meet in your groups or outside scouting to get involved. Scouting has a job for most people.

On a final note: when I was a cub many years ago we used to play a game called Chinese whispers. That involved the cubs sitting in a circle and the leader whispered a short message to the first cub and then the cubs passed that message to the person on their right until everyone had been passed the message. It was great fun but I have to say the message that came out in the end was nothing like what was said at the beginning. Surely as Adults we don’t still play that game.

If anyone wishes to talk to me and clarify anything, I am always pleased for you to contact me by email or by phone or in person just ask away.

Yours in Scouting,
Colin Floyd, District Commissioner,

Categories
Uncategorized

9th Southampton City Group Obstacle Course. Saturday 8th June

Initial feedback shows as long as all the money on the sponsor forms comes in we will raise over £900 and may even break the magic £1000. The winner of the highest sponsorship amount was Cameron Newman with £110.50. He will be attending our August group camp for free as his prize.

Many happy faces after they had finished, we followed up with a family Barbeque. What a great way to spend a sunny Saturday afternoon in June.

We couldn’t have done it without our Great team of adults. Thanks to them all

Neil

GSL

Categories
Uncategorized

Captain Ketch

Also, attached is the “Captain Ketch Challenge” – a badge that has been designed by young people and adult volunteers to support our ambassador on his bike ride as well as give leaders a simple programme 🙂 it’s available for anyone who wants to complete it!  Any questions please ask, it’s coming out in HSN this month and will be going on the County website too.
Captain_Ketch.png

Categories
Uncategorized

11th Family Quiz Night

 

News at 15 November: This event has had to be postponed due to illness!

Quiz night has been postponed to Friday 18 January, 2013.

Apologies for any inconveniences caused.

Contact Kris below for further details.

 

11th Southampton City Scout Group

Annual Family Quiz Night

Friday 16 November, 2012

7 for 7.30pm start, finish by 9.30pm.


Venue: 11th Scouts HQ on Kentish Road

(opposite Shirley Swimming Pool)


Adults £6.50 Children £5.50

Teams of up to 8 people.


Richard Cook is the Quiz Master!

 

Bring your own drinks, alcohol is permitted.


Bring your own drinking glasses and donations for the raffle.


To book your place call Kris Partridge on

01794 521 889 or 07512 034 855

by Friday 9th November at the latest.

 

 

Categories
Uncategorized

Wessex Heartbeat

At present young people with ongoing heart problems, on reaching the age of 16yrs are no longer treated on the childrens wards but are treated on adult wards. In practice this means that a patient aged 16yrs could be in a bed next to a person aged 80yrs. The aim of the appeal is to raise enough money to equip a ward specifically for young persons aged 16yrs to 24yrs including items to relieve the boredom of being regularly in hospital for long spells. You will see that young people will benefit from this ward. As an organisation for young people we in the Scout Movement are well placed to appreciate the importance of this appeal, and inevitably at some point in the future some of our young people could well need such care. Therefore during the coming year we would urge all groups to do what they can to support the cause. There are leaflets available and wrist bands for sale. If anyone wants supplies please contact me. Many Thanks.

George Longhurst.
On behalf of the District Team.

Categories
Uncategorized

Exbury Ghost Train

GTHeader.png

We have again been invited to haunt the Ghost Train this year. It will happen all over the half term holiday. Last year over 60 scouts and explorers took part and I had help from at least 10 leaders. Exbury’s donation to the District was £450 worth of climbing equipment soon to be put to use on Summit. Each scout who took part has received a thank you letter and a complimentary ticket for their family to visit the Gardens.

The notices will be going out soon and I am looking forward to another very tiring but very enjoyable week with our young people. Adult help would always be welcome.

If you want more information phone me on 023 80771121.

Geoff Johnson of Endeavour

Categories
Uncategorized

Roverang 2013

The team is now working on next year and we would like your permission to put on Roverang 2013 at the Nuffield Theatre between the 2-6 April 2013 and invite the young people and adults in your District to take part.

Due to the developing all inclusive ethos of both Scouting and Guiding it is our intention to trial opening this year’s show up to a wider age range of young people. It is, therefore our intention to open a new section in this year’s show for Guides and Scouts with an age range of 10 to 14 years.

The Children’s cast will remain open to Brownies and cubs with a maximum age limit of 10 ½ by the week of the show and Adult cast will continue to have a lower age limit of 14 as in recent years.

Roverang is an amateur production performed by members of the Guide and Scout Association.

Producer: Sam Weller, E-mail samwellerjr@googlemail.com Tel: 07885469309

Asst Producer: Sue Parker, E-mail sue@summit59.co.uk Tel: 07789681047

Asst Producer: Gary Foote, E-mail garyfoote123@o2.co.uk Tel: 07872104515

We hope that, in the spirit of both Guiding and Scouting, you will support this trial and if you have any queries or would like to discuss this further please feel free to contact either myself, Sue or Gary on the numbers or email below.

If we don’t hear from you we will assume that you are happy for us to go ahead with the show and make contact with the leaders and young people in your District or Division.

Many Thanks in anticipation of your Support.

Sam, Sue and Gary