CH Scouts

Anything that doesn't fit anywhere else, but that's still CH related.

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MW224
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by MW224 »

I did have a look at the FB page, but didn't really fancy reading the 124 comments! It looks like a letter will come our way soon, explaining all, so shall await that. My husband is a Beaver Scouts leader and there is a huge amount of work that goes on behind the scenes: planning, training, paperwork, meetings etc etc. We have the same issue here with not enough volunteers and have had to close packs down.
My DS does enjoy scouts at CH, but will probably not join the Explorer Scouts as some of the trips away are in half terms or over weekends when he could be with us instead. So I can see why numbers are low, but it has been a great continuation for my DS to join CH Scouts from his home scouts and he has made more friends through it, so it would be a real shame to see it go.
sejintenej
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by sejintenej »

MW224 wrote:I did have a look at the FB page, but didn't really fancy reading the 124 comments! It looks like a letter will come our way soon, explaining all, so shall await that. My husband is a Beaver Scouts leader and there is a huge amount of work that goes on behind the scenes: planning, training, paperwork, meetings etc etc. We have the same issue here with not enough volunteers and have had to close packs down.
My DS does enjoy scouts at CH, but will probably not join the Explorer Scouts as some of the trips away are in half terms or over weekends when he could be with us instead. So I can see why numbers are low, but it has been a great continuation for my DS to join CH Scouts from his home scouts and he has made more friends through it, so it would be a real shame to see it go.
I'm glad someone else wrote that - it is very true. I suppose I averaged 2 hours work a night after my day job for 4 days a week plus troop night plus camps plus working to maintain the Scout Hut plus fund raising fêtes etc. and always parents complaining that I was not doing enough. Oh, and on top of that the training courses; I had an attack of malaria one February camping in deep snow on the Brecon Beacons and someone complained that I hadn't finished the course (I was off work for 3 weeks and weak for 3 months!) After 15 years I was shattered. We are in a very safe area but I had one parent who required that his 13 year old son be accompanied home after meetings or he would not be allowed to attend. Parents! Another boy I was delighted to help; he had cystic fibrosis but was so full of energy that he had to be continuously constrained for the sake of his health; of course I had to learn how to clear his lungs in case of an attack. One got all sorts.

Yes - you have pointed out one of the reasons why numbers are low, and don't forget that at that time DS will be studying for exams (one hopes). It is a difficult balancing act.
CHDad
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by CHDad »

I agree with you MW224 my son was a keen Scout before he joined CH. He was sad to be leaving his home Scout group so it gave him a sense of continuity to be able to go straight into the CH troop.
loringa
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by loringa »

As a Scout and Venture Scout for all my seven years at CH I am interested in this, whatever it is. Unfortunately I am not 'on' facebook or whatever it is you do on facebook so I can't read what this is all about. If anyone would be kind enough to post a very brief summary it would be much appreciated. I am not prepared to get involved with social networking even for the CH Scouts; this forum is about as far as I'm prepared to go. Thanks.
sejintenej
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by sejintenej »

loringa wrote:As a Scout and Venture Scout for all my seven years at CH I am interested in this, whatever it is. Unfortunately I am not 'on' facebook or whatever it is you do on facebook so I can't read what this is all about. If anyone would be kind enough to post a very brief summary it would be much appreciated. I am not prepared to get involved with social networking even for the CH Scouts; this forum is about as far as I'm prepared to go. Thanks.
IF you can post here it should follow that you can access the internet freely. Try to just click the link below. If that doesn't work copy the link and paste over where you normally type www .chforum.info/...............:

http://www.facebook.com/groups/156983594370188/

There is a lot there so the original post is the first one shown but click "see more"

From there you need to go just a little bit further down and click "view all [...] comments".

You cannot post unless you "like" or so I have been told

I must advise that it will take a long time to read all the messages
What happens if a politician drowns in a river? That is pollution.
What happens if all of them drown? That is solution!!!
Katharine
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by Katharine »

David - you have to login to FB to see anything. After a nasty experience from my past I don't want to join FB, so it is impossible to see things there. I have managed to see some of Maria's Finnish photos before now, don't know how she did the link!
Katharine Dobson (Hills) 6.14, 1959 - 1965
Fjgrogan
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by Fjgrogan »

Yes Katharine, I have found the same. I do not wish to join Facebook, but Maria does sometimes manage to send me a link which gets me into her pictures. I'll ask her how she does it next time I get her on Skype, but I suspect that today she will be out with her family, including her father, celebrating Finnish Independence Day, which is a public holiday there.

I would wholeheartedly support the continuation of Scouting at CH, particularly now that girls can be Scouts. Guiding at Hertford was an important part of my education, especially as it was separate from CH - run by Guiders from outside the school. I went on as a leader in the Guide movement for many years and with various age groups - Brownies, Guides, Sea Rangers, Trefoil Guild. I can certainly vouch for the amount of effort that is put in by leaders. In many ways I found that the Guide Law (which is substantially the same as the Scout Law) was just as important to me as the Ten Commandments, and couched in more practical terms! All of my family were involved in Scouting for many years; I was the only member of the family who never took part in the local Gang Show. [In fact, at one time I was Katharine's patrol leader; she went on to become a Queen's Guide, which I never did!]
Frances Grogan (Haley) 6's 1956 - 62

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Katharine
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by Katharine »

Yes Frances - I remember Guiding with much affection. Guides had a long history at CH Hertford, there were two Companies and in earlier years there had been Rangers as well.

I wonder whether it was always run by outsiders?
Katharine Dobson (Hills) 6.14, 1959 - 1965
Fjgrogan
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by Fjgrogan »

By the time Maria was at Hertford the CH Guide companies no longer existed, but girls were allowed to go out of school to join a local company, which required a certain amount of juggling prep time - Maria didn't last long!
Frances Grogan (Haley) 6's 1956 - 62

'A clean house is a sign of a broken computer.'
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J.R.
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by J.R. »

I'm quite prepared to help, but no longer use my FB page, due to abuse.

Sorry, but I have never been involved with the scouting movement.

Maybe e-mails to the school ?
John Rutley. Prep B & Coleridge B. 1958-1963.
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NEILL THE NOTORIOUS
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by NEILL THE NOTORIOUS »

One of the difficulties with Scout Leadership. is that we were all keen Scouts, or Guides, and then we went off to Uni, or the Services, or or or !

I was re-approached, when we were in S Africa, and my boys were 7 and 12 respectively and had joined 5th Capetown.

I decided (I think wisely) that they would not appreciate Dad in charge !

I was therefore persuaded to become the "Groupie" -- with a shaving brush in my hat !

This enabled me to belong at a suitable distance !

The same difficulty of recruiting leaders in their 20s existed then.

I still have nostalgia for 10th Salisbury Wilts (Not Rhodesia !) which I was in, prior to CH.
gingerjess
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by gingerjess »

here is the first post...

Chris Brickel
Hi Everybody,

As you may know the CH Scout group is struggling, very few staff, if any, are willing or able to lead the group and the number of young people taking part in Scouty adventurous activities is falling. The demands that the modern Scout Association makes in terms of training and qualifications are often unnecessary and onerous and whether we like it or not, young people today are not drawn to the Scout brand.

The school are very keen that something is done and have asked me and my company to take over and rebrand the organization in an effort to get things back to how they should be. It is my belief that what the group is called is of secondary importance to getting kids outdoors, leading and organising each other and learning the skills they need to be confident in the outdo...or environment. Running the group as a Scout group is prohibiting participation and this needs to change.

I ran a Scout Group at a school in Cambridge for a number of years. During this time it ceased to be a Scout Group and became an Exploration Society. The number of children involved started at 60 and ended with 340, with two international expeditions and 5 weeks or residential UK trips a year. We kept the Patrol structure, Stags, Young Leaders, Flag break, Evensong, Ferrets, the bugle and Campfire songs.

Next April I will be running Exploration Society taster session for all of the CH 2nd and 3rd form, followed by two "Build Up" Sessions in May and June and a Survival type Expedition at the end of term. The existing Explorer Scouts will be assisting with the delivery and leadership of this.

From September 2012 we plan to run a Session every Thursday for 60-80 L.E. with the older pupils working as Young Leaders as well as fortnightly Sunday sessions for the 2nd/3rd form. All of the training will lead towards expeditions such as Winter Lakes trips, Broads trips and Summer Camps. Currently none of this happens.

The school are finding some money to fund this but clearly we need to keep the costs low in order to allow as many pupils as possible to get involved. I will be running the sessions on a voluntary basis but the more Ex CH Scouts who are willing to get involved the better, as it will save the school having to pay my staff to run activities. If you are close enough to CH to get to school on a Sunday or Thursday afternoon for a couple of hours, please let me know. It doesn't have to be every session - even one sunday a term would be helpful.

If you have any questions or concerns about this, please feel free to get in touch. I think it is a very positive step by the school as it shows that it values the activities which for many of us were central to our school experience. The more of us get behind it, the more likely it is to succeed.

Cheers

Chris

www.explorationsociety.co.uk
gingerjess
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by gingerjess »

Chris's second post...

Chris Brickel Hello again,
The vigorous nature of debate demands a few clarifications. Excuse the brevity - I am using a phone and going to work shortly.
- nothing has yet been decided or confirmed. I apologise if I have misled anyone on that point. We were trying to work out a proposal to present to the Scout exec. Clearly thus had to be discussed as its feasibility depends on the support of the community.
- much as I like having my good intentions or generosity bismirched I'd rather this was done by those who had met me
- some of the suggestions that have been made I think are unworkable. Whatever money the Scout Group has cannot be used to fund it's leadership. Even if the school were prepared to fund a "scout leader" and such a person could be found, this would not be sufficient to run a large group.
- membership currently runs at around 3-5% of the school. My last school had an active involvement of around 30%. If we value Scout type activities, then surely any move to increase quality participation is positive.
- in my experience children don't join up because Scouts is an international movement. They join up because they want adventure and comraderie. Scouts is normally the only way they can access it. The growth in numbers in some areas supports the fact that more children want adventure, not necessarily that they want to be Scouts.

As I understand it, there will not be anybody trained and qualified to run Scouts. I am willing to do so but in a way that I believe embraces the best of the Scout movement while leaving behind the worst of the Scout Association. Much more discussion is needed but we must have a plan to discuss. I've helped make one, and am very glad to hve had general support from two ex-CH Scout Leaders, but any other plans are welcome. But can we please keep in mind that we are all trying to find a solution to benefit the pupils present and future.Saturday at 13:05 via Mobile
gingerjess
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by gingerjess »

There are 131 comments on the facebook page; far too many to copy and paste! but if anyone wants a full run down, I will gladly copy and paste all the comments, if they email me via here.
YadaYada
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Re: CH Scouts

Post by YadaYada »

What about the local Horsham scouts association?

Has anyone spoken to them and asked them for some advice/assistance?
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