Random Ramblings from our Group Scout Leader – September 2022

Our Scout Hut
We have been invited by the Church Warden of Christ Church, Shooters Hill, Sue Peach, to a Public Exhibition within the church hall regarding a proposed new development of a community hall and social housing on the land surrounding the church. The Public Exhibition seeks to gain feedback from the community prior to submission of a building planning application later this year. The invite misleadingly describes our Scout Hut as a ‘storage hut’ which along with the adjacent church hall are viewed as being at the end of their useful lives and are both suffering from subsidence.

Our present Scout Hut is situated within the proposed development area (as have two former scout huts since 1960), and was built by the Leaders, Parents and Venture Scouts of the Group in 1996. The Scout Hut has been and is maintained to the highest of standards and is used weekly as a meeting place for our Explorer Scouts, as an occasional activity centre for all our sections and for regular Trustees and Leaders meetings, we also store our games and camping equipment within the building.

So far, we have heard of no provision for a new scout hut proposed within the new development and no compensation for the loss of our building has been offered to date, if the planning application goes ahead I am afraid that we may well find ourselves homeless. While we have been trying previously, we now need to highlight to the community and make the Royal Borough of Greenwich aware of our dilemma and our opposition to any development plans which do not consider the needs of our Scout Group.
To coincide with the church’s exhibition this coming Friday 23rd of September from 15.30 – to 18.00 and Saturday 24th from 10.00 – 14.00, we intend to have an open house at the scout hut, to let the public see and be aware of our building, its uses, its 63 year history and its good physical structure.
Do join us this Friday or Saturday to review the churches exhibition and drop by the Scout Hut to show us your support, and please don’t forget to wear your scout scarf if you have one?

Now for some good news!
Squirrel Scouts is a new provision by the Scout Assn. for 4  to 6 year-olds. The sections uniform, programme and structure were launched 12 months ago, and the section has since blossomed into 800 Squirrel Scout Dreys across the UK. It is now our Trustees and Leaders’ intention to open a Squirrels Drey at the XRE in February 2023. We are fortunate to have recruited two parents to take up leadership roles, Anna Bienkov and Piyumi Bodhi, who are both prepared to do leadership training and to run the sections the one-hour term time meetings at Shrewsbury House on Saturday mornings.
As excited as we are to welcome 4 – 6year olds to our Scout Group, we still need more parents to volunteer to become leaders. The adult: child ratio for early years scouting is 1:4. plus 1 overall leader, at present we have 12 young people within the Squirrel age group on our waiting list (assuming they all wish to join) but only 2 parents as yet signed up.
If you would be interested in being part of this new initiative and becoming a leader, please contact me.

Uniforms
At the XRE we take pride in wearing our Scout Uniforms, and good uniforms reflect a good Scout Group, which I believe we very much are.
If your child is moving up to a new section this Autumn term you may need to obtain a new uniform sweatshirt or shirt. Uniforms are available on Monday nights at The District Scout Centre, 19 Waverley Crescent, Plumstead SE18 7QT from 19.00 – 21.00. or on-line at www.scout.shops.org.uk.
I would like to remind all parents that our uniform consists of mandatory scout activity trousers, a sweatshirt for beavers and cubs, and a scout shirt plus scout belt for scouts and explorers. Any parents who may have difficulty in paying for their children’s uniforms, we would like to offer a 100% grant to cover these costs, please contact me below in confidence.

Group Campfire Thursday 13th October
After lasts year’s success, the Group Camp fire is on once again this year. All Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers and Parents are invited to join us for a singsong. Each section will be asked to entertain each other with a song or a stunt and this year our MC will be our former District Commissioner, John Twidale, now the Scout Leader of the 40th Greenwich. The campfire starts at 19.00 at Woodlands Farm on Thursday 13th October, and will last around 45 mins followed by hot dogs and cocoa and our traditional mass Conker Smash as a finale, do dress for wet weather, members should wear their scout scarves and don’t forget a torch, camp mug and your campfire blanket?

Jamboree on the Air at Severndroog Castle Saturday 15th October
Jamboree on the Air or ‘JOTA’ is a World Scout Event where over 1 million Scouts set up short wave radio stations in their home countries and communicate with other Scouts, via the air waves, over the weekend of the 14th – 16th October. Along with the Cray Valley Amateur Radio Club we will be running a radio base station in the castle, for our members and members of our Scout District to experience a truly worldwide scout event. We will also be setting up a computer room so our members may contact other Scouts across the globe via Skype. The cost per session will be £5, which includes a visit to the observation tower in the castle and a Jota/Joti 2022 badge to wear on uniforms. Your leaders will let you know times, meeting places over the next few weeks. Uniform required.

Remembrance Sunday Parade Sunday 13th November.
We will be attending this year’s Remembrance Parade at St Johns Parish Church along other Scout Groups, Guides, Police and Army Cadets Cadets and this will be joined by our own Cub Pack. Meeting at 10.00 am at the Woodruff Club in Eltham High Street, and we will walk to St Johns Church at 10.30 am ready for the national two minutes silence at 11.00 am. All members should attend in full uniform but do wear warm undergarments and a waterproof coat.

Bag Packing Saturday 3rd December
Once again, it’s time to keep the bank balance topped up and raise some quick cash on Saturday 3rd December at M & S, Eltham for our annual Bag Pack. All Cubs, Scouts and Explorers will be asked to attend at the supermarket to man the tills between 10.00 and 17.00. Section Leaders, nearer the date, will decide rotas which will be for no more than two hours long each. Any parents willing to help supervising would also be most welcome. This event is in full smart uniform!

For full details of your child’s sections programme this Autumn, go to OSM, and don’t forget to join us on Facebook @ 10th Royal Eltham Scouts.

See you ‘Up the Hut’ I hope?
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