June News from the DC Team – Ben, Simon & Heather
Hello,
Preparing Young People with skills for life is the new vision for the Scout Association, but it may not feel like new news in Ealing and Hanwell. For 107 years in our patch of West London we have been committed to just that – supported by a legacy of amazing leaders.
However it is new – because we want to prepare more young people with skills for life, supported by more amazing leaders delivering inspiring programmes across the District. In the future – in Ealing and Hanwell – we will be growing, more inclusive, shaped by young people and making a bigger impact in our community.
It’s an exciting challenge – to change more lives with the collective power of our scouting movement. A big step on this journey is the Grow Your Group initiative launching later this year across the district with the aim of having “more adults, doing less but having more fun” – we would encourage everyone to get involved – do talk to your GSL or any of us to hear more.
Lots more on the new vision and brand is available on the Scout Association website.
The bookings for the District Camp 29th June – 1st July are now confirmed, and all of us involved are really looking forward to welcoming young people, across all the sections, who will be getting to participate in a fantastic range of activities, including our new archery range, rifle shooting, climbing and a load of inflatables.
District News
GDPR
GDPR formally went live on Thursday 25th May and I’m sure we were all overwhelmed by ‘opt in’ or ‘don’t leave’ us emails from every company we have ever contacted. The District is still working to be compliant and we are holding a GDPR Evening on Thursday 21st June to support any groups that may need it. John Arnold, Deputy County Chair, will coming along to talk to us. All GSLs and Chairs are invited or any other Group representatives. The meeting is at the 7th Hanwell’s HQ in Trumpers Way at 8pm. Please RSVP to District Chair, David Thurston, on chair@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk.
Jack Petchey on 16th May
Congratulations to Karima Stockwell, Oscar Newell, Dylan Grant and Alejandra Branley for their awards. Thank you to John Matthews for representing Ealing & Hanwell at the awards ceremony.
It’s the District Paintball next Thursday. Good luck to all those involved, especially the leaders with the extra large targets on their back.
The District Beaver team has been busy planning for 2019 and dates have been set for the following: Beaver Party (26th January), Sleepover (22-24th March)
The District Swimming Gala is on Saturday 13th October and Stuart Flaye will be running the show.
The final Fun Camp planning meeting is on Monday 11th June at Dave Folkerd’s house.
A huge thanks to the whole team that has put in the incredible work to design and build our new archery range at Stoke Poges. In particular to Dave Folkerd, our ADC (Campsite), and Pete, Mark, Ali and others that have worked so hard to ensure it is ready for the District Fun Camp. It’s a great addition to the activities we can offer onsite. We always need more support on the campsite to help maintain and improve a resource we’re very lucky to have, if you want to get involved, do give Dave a shout (d.folkerd@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk). We need more adults to get archery permits so please get in touch if you are interested..the next course is at Great Tower (Lake District) in November and all the details are here https://www.scoutadventures.org.uk/training. Speak to your GSL or the DC Team if you are interested and don’t worry, the costs will be covered.
New District Appointments
Young Leader Training
We are delighted to announce the formation of a Young Leader training team from September. Dominic and Sharon Lunney, cub leaders at 1st Ealing North, are stepping down from their cub roles in July and accepted our invite to join the District Explorer Scout Team in September as Explorer Scout Leaders (Young Leaders). They will be leading our YL training scheme and working to develop the amazing young leaders we already have. Huge thanks to Sharon and Dominic..more news to follow.
It’s great to also welcome Mandy, Tash and Martin to the district team as District Beaver Leaders to support Laura, our Assistant District Commissioner (Beavers).
Other News from the Groups: DC Visits this month
Ben attended 5th Hanwell’s Family Camp on 20th May, Heather attended a 1st Hanwell Executive Committee Meeting on 22nd May and – the very same evening – Simon attended 8th Hanwell’s AGM.
At 8th Hanwell AGM it was great to see the large number of awards handed out to the young people. In particular congratulations to Edward, Kaelan and Rayn who were awarded the Henry Bowron Award for Best Example Overall in each section. The award is in memory of Henry, a very special part of the history of 8th Hanwell who sadly passed away early last year. Well done to Laura, and her amazing leadership team on delivering another great year of scouting.
Having fun, while staying safe
As we approach the excitement of the summer camping season, a few reminders to ensure that as we dial up the fun and adventure we look out for our young people and keep them safe.
- Nights Away Notifications (NANs) need to be completed for all overnight activities, and should be with Steve at least 7 days before the event. This also applies for District events at Stoke Poges (s.douglas@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk).
- The Scout Association Green Card outlines the rules regarding Alcohol in scouting. Under 18s must not consume alcohol under any circumstances.
- The Purple Card provides support for safe scouting and guidance for the procedures for dealing with an emergency.
It’s also worth taking the the time to put the contact details of the Scout Information Centre in your phone on 0345 300 1818.
Do get in touch with any of us if you ever have any questions or concerns.
See you soon,
Heather, Ben and Simon.
DC team, Ealing & Hanwell
dc@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk
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USEFUL INFORMATION
Scout Association Corporate Partners
Did you know that The Scout Association has lots of partners that it has linked up with to both give you retail discounts or more importantly, provide you with programme resources. These include 20% off at Cotswold Outdoor (flyer attached) or the Air Activities Staged Activity Badge which is supported by Heathrow or the Scout Electronics Activity Badge which is supported by the Institution of Engineering and Technology or the Beaver Animal Friend and Cubs Animal Animal Carer Activity Badge supported by Pets at Home…and more. Visit https://fundraising.scouts.org.uk/Pages/Category/current-partners for all the information.
OSM – County provision
OSM code is now ‘live’ – so every Group can have this, paid for by GLMW; all GSLs have been given the code for FREE, so please update your account and get in touch if you need any help.
District Contacts
Some of your regular District contacts now have new email addresses. Please see below:
Ben Farmer – District Youth Commissioner- b.farmer@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk
Laura Belmostefaoui – ADC Beavers – l.belmostefaoui@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk
John Stanton – ADC Cubs – j.stanton@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk
Kathy Paddison – Jack Petchey Coordinator – jackpetchey@ealingandhanwellscouts.org.uk
Please update your contact lists for these as it’s really important that we reduce the number of ‘business’ emails going to people’s personal email accounts.