Having run a group of Beavers for seven years until my eldest daughter was six months old, and now that she is a Rainbow agreed to help at the Brownies I thought I would share with you my experience and recommendation for getting involved with the scout movement.
Let me start by saying why more people need to get involved. My youngest daughter has been on the waiting list for Rainbows since she was less than three months old. Although age wise she could have started in the summer there are not enough places available and priority is being given to older children so that they can at least experience this wonderful group. Even our guides have a waiting list and are about to split into two groups to try and accommodate more than the 35 girls who currently attend the weekly meetings. Several Beaver Colonies as they are called have closed due to lackof leaders and it has proved impossible to find people to set up new ones.
The great thing about the scout and guide movement is that there is such a range of activities on offer. It really does not matter what your strengths and weakness are. Some weeks there is a focus on sporting activities, other weeks you will be outside building camps, on other occasions it is playing games in the hall and of course there will always be craft activities often specific to the time of year.
It is a great chance for children to meet children from other local schools and, for younger ones, an opportunity to meet those who they may well attend secondary school with in future.
When I ran the Beavers I saw boys gain confidence and skills. I remember one six year old whose mother said he would not want to join in any of the sports games choosing to abseil down from the top of the tower at Adamswell. On getting to the bottom he asked whether the photograph could be developed in time for him to show his friends at school on Monday morning as they would not believe he had done it otherwise.
Although we were not allowed to camp outside with the cubs we did take part in sleepovers in the local school hall and for many this was their first night away from mum and dad. The fact that they were with so many other boys and leaders who they knew meant none of them got upset or scared and all really enjoyed. I am not sure how much fun they were for their families the next day but that wasn’t my problem.
It is impossible in just a few words to do justice to what the children do get out of this movement but I am often asked why I volunteer and what I get out of it?
Those who know Tunbridge Wells will know how bad the traffic is on a Friday evening. Why would I choose to spend an hour and a quarter sitting in a car driving to and from the church hall over staying and seeing what the kids are up to . If your children are in the group it is fascinating to see how they interact with their peers and how they behave away from home. How many of us do not recognise the child the teacher describes at parents’ evenings?
I think generally children do enjoy the fact that their parents are involved and that other people know who they are. This may be less so as they get older but I have heard even guides commenting on how cool X’s mum is because she “gets” how to talk to them. If you do not understand things like facebook, instant messaging or how X-Factor works what better way to get this knowledge than from your children’s friends.
Being involved in these movements also gives you access to a whole range of material that you can use for the benefit of your own children. I still have two years’ worth of term plan from when I ran the Beavers and have had recourse to these plans for a whole range of events from the school summer fair to a talent show at work.
My own children’s parties were easy to organise because I knew how to set up bases and which activities would be the most enjoyable plus which ones to ensure I was not involved with (namely the icing of biscuits and painting moon capturers). All the information you could possibly want is provided free from books on party games to balloon modelling (my husband took this one up not me).
I think for those who are separated from their children during the week and in some cases do not see them every other weekend getting involved with a group is a great distraction and a way to ensure that the time you do spend with your children is different and really enjoyable. One dad who got roped into helping with the Beavers told me years later that he was seeing his son at the weekend and taking him camping and hoping that he would remember how to not only put up a tent but also build a den and campfires as we had done at Adamswell years earlier.
There are a range of training courses available to those who get involved including first aid and some of the courses are residential over weekends giving you the opportunity to get to know others in the movement and share ideas and experiences. Note these courses not compulsory for helpers so don’t be put off if you#d rather not do.
There is an enormous shortage of people to get involved and give children these opportunities. If you can spare the time even it is fortnightly or monthly do volunteer your services to your local group. Please also bear in mind that your employer may support you if you need to leave work early to attend metings as a lot of employers now have CSR policies which encourage community involvement. A lot of people start on a trial basis and find themselves still involved 30 or 40 years later which I think says it all.
Finally if you do decide to sign up please do let me know how you get on.
