New Year Blog 24
I hope you all had a great Christmas Break and New Year, and had some time to relax and see family and friends. I am looking forward to being the new Lead Volunteer for Gravesham Scouts – and if you want to find out why it’s not the new DC, come to the meeting on 27th January.
It is great to be taking over such an active District from Henson, and I would like to thank him for all the support and help over the years. You can be assured that whilst he is definitely taking a step back we won’t let him off the hook altogether. You can see a reminder about some forthcoming activities below and please keep an eye out for further opportunities.
If you are planning your 2024 programme you can find the current district calendar on the website.
All volunteers meeting
A reminder that there is a meeting which all leaders, trustees, assistants and other volunteers are invited to on Saturday 27th January. Come along and find out about some of the changes coming and what they mean for you. See details and register your attendance here. We will have a room with a large pile of Lego for children to play in with supervision if it is easier to bring children with you and they don’t want to sit in the meeting.
Paddling opportunities (Scout age upwards)
See the blog post here for sign up details for opportunities to paddle canoes, kayaks and stand up paddleboards at Leybourne Lakes and on the River Medway, suitable for beginners or those with previous experience – and the first session is in a couple of weeks.
Easter Hillcraft and Winter Camp (Scout age upwards)
Details are out for these. For Easter Hillcraft, our annual walking trip to the Lake District, over 18’s please sign up on the expression of interest form and young people please book here. Young people wanting to attend Winter Camp at the beginning of February should sign up here and adults should email scouts@graveshamscouts.org.uk.
New Yellow Card
Scout HQ have published an updated yellow card and all adults in Gravesham should have a new hard copy coming their way via their Group Scout Leader during January. The main change is that all safeguarding concerns should now be reported direct to the safeguarding team at HQ not to your line manager / me. There are also new posters of the yellow card and NSPCC details which should be displayed at all meeting places.
St George’s Day 2024
If you are interested in helping with the District celebration this year, or have ideas about what we should or shouldn’t do, please get in touch with Jack Reeves, our District Youth Lead.
Census 2024
The Census is the annual record of our members, and the site is now open. We have been asked to ensure “Prefer not to say” is only selected where this is a genuine response rather than as a default option, as too many of those responses can impact on the ability get grant funding – particularly at national and county level.
I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year and look forward to seeing everyone in person at some point during 2024. If you want to get hold of me in the meantime, you can email me on lead@graveshamscouts.org.uk
Fraser Patrick
Lead Volunteer - Gravesham Scouts
New Year Blog 24