We started our year with 35 beavers having added to our core number with 4 Squirrels and a further 9 YP from our waiting list. This is a large number of very diverse young people and we are grateful that some parents have stepped up to offer support. We successfully moved 5 YP into Cubs in September, two of whom achieved the Chief Scout’s Bronze award with one other who will complete his award during the first term in Cubs.

During the Autumn term we planned for a variety of activities, including some outside sessions, weather permitting. We launched the year with ‘Space, The Final Frontier, covering elements of our space badge. The Beavers enjoyed our session on Autumn Splendours, making leaf luminaries and learning about how to keep Hedgehogs safe. In addition we learnt a song about Hedgehogs and Clare taught us how to sign it (BSL) Then the Beavers sang and signed the song for parents/carers at pick up time. However, the planning required a bit of a shuffle after the death of the Queen!  The Beavers have completed a lovely ‘book’ of condolence to commemorate the Queen’s life and service which has been sent to Buckingham Palace. We still managed to fit in Remembrance, Highland Dancing, Road Safety and Christmas Crafts and fun. It was great to see so many Beavers attending the Remembrance Day service and all behaved impeccably.

At the start of the Spring Term our numbers remained at 35 YP. A few children had dropped out but we had Squirrels to move up and a few new children to come off the waiting list. We welcomed another adult to support the Beavers who is also a BSL signer which strengthens our communication network especially for several children who sometimes need sign supported language. Our emphasis for this term was Friendship and the Beaver Motto of Friends and Fun. Also what makes us special/unique/different.  We explored the Chinese (Lunar) New Year with many craft activities.  This was followed by finding out about Healthy Lifestyles (looking at our diet, exercise and caring for our bodies and our teeth).

We then covered Emergency Aid and learnt about the different services available on 999. This was followed by a session called Danger, Danger looking at different dangerous practices around the home and garden. The Beavers were all very good at finding the dangers and saying what could happen. We covered the aspects of the Money Badge and had a session called Art Attack where we drew Australian animals and decorated them in the style of Native Aboriginal painters/artists. We finished the term on an International note, looking at languages, foods, famous building in three countries. French and Italian certainly sounded quite fluent at times!

At the beginning of the Summer Term we took on a few more children from the waiting list to replace those who had moved on or had other commitments which clashed with Beavers. So we are still at 35 YP and continue to be grateful for additional adult help. A small group of Beavers attended St George’s Day at the Leas Cliff Hall. We were very proud when Freddie went up on the stage to collect his Bronze Challenge Award; he had worked incredibly hard to achieve this award!

We began the term with a fantastic session of experiments. The Beavers were very interested and made some excellent predictions as to what would happen. We also got involved in some Coronation craft before moving on to learn about Fairtrade. The Beavers were interested in the concept of Fairtrade and for several weeks after the session would come and tell us that they had seen the fairtrade logo on food at home or in a shop. The Beavers enjoyed the air activities badge work and were able to fly their paper aeroplanes in competition with each other. Some were truly fantastic in flight.  Clare ran an excellent activity night to cover the Gardening badge. Every child took home seeds they had potted and knew how to look after them. They also set up some control pots to see what would happen if any of the vital components were missing.

A small group of Beavers attended Thriftwood Camp and enjoyed every second of it. Some of the activities were quite challenging but every one of them attempted each activity. Clare and myself were very proud of them.

We focussed on sharing/collaboration/teamwork at the beginning of June. These are attributes and skills which the Beavers will use more and more, especially when they move up to Cubs and onwards.  We had a fun session at the Rec. doing Sports. Then we learnt about what items we should pack for a Hike in readiness for a hike the following week. The Beavers did very well on the hike (surprising some of their parents who thought they might not be able to manage it!)

This year we will have awarded over 270 badges to our Beavers. These badges require multi elements to be covered and understood and our Beavers should be rightly proud of their achievements and wear them on their sleeves/jumpers to show everyone else how proud they are. The Leaders are certainly proud of them. Also, thank you again to all the parents who stepped up when we needed you…… you enabled us to extend our programme offer and support our YP’s achievements.

Wow, what a year it has been for Cubs! We’ve had a great year of fun and adventure, whilst learning and earning badges along the way. Some of the big highlights have been meeting Masai Chief Joseph to learn about his tribe and the issues they face with drought in their village/area, a trip to Legoland, a visit to Heaver Castle and a day at Chatham Dockyard. We’ve been on hikes,  had talent evenings, had fun building whacky racers, we even got to play at being politicians and debating the important things like “should leaders get paid?” and “What is the best flavour of crisp?”. More importantly, as a youth shaped organisation, the Cubs have taken a role in helping determine the programme content through our regular Pack forums.

We’ve been joined by more Young Leader’s, who support our programme and take charge of an evening, which helps them to develop their skills in a different way. As always, we have the parents who support us week in, week out and we say “Thank You” to all of you, especially those who have been able to help us out and join us on some of our outdoor activities. We also changed the end of our pack evening, so we invite parents to come and stand behind their Cub, not only to hear any announcements but also to celebrate their child’s successes whether that is being invested or simply achieving a badge.

Long may our adventures continue………

What a fantastic second year for our Squirrels!

It’s been a big year for our section and with not one but two big trips! Our programme has been jam packed with investitures, activities and adventure, and we have enjoyed every minute of it! Most of our evenings have been based on different books. We have protected eggs, learnt about space, made forkies, squished seed bombs and even had a water party! We have tried to get outside more this year, exploring the forest and also using our garden space lots more! We’ve identified trees, gone on bug hunts and even improved our den building skills! Our squirrels have gone home with plenty of artwork and creations we have made this year, and the results have only got better as we’ve got through the year! Some of our squirrels learnt how to write Chinese symbols, while others enjoyed making silhouette remembrance cards in November. (We even made special space telescopes!!) This year we were able to go on not one, but TWO big trips this year! Our first was our Christmas Trail at lower grange farm, where we sorted out letters, made reindeer food, built snowmen and even met Santa! It was a fantastic evening, even if it was a little bit chilly! Our second trip was our first out of county trip with our squirrels, taking us all the way up to Brentwood, Essex! We visited all the sections on their group camp and even got to enjoy some of our own adventures! We were the first squirrels to ever climb at Thriftwood campsite, as well as enjoying the Cresta run, assault course and a campfire with some furry friends! It was an absolutely fantastic day and all the squirrels surprised us so much with their willingness and lack of fear!! We can’t wait for whats to come for our squirrels over the next year. Our squirrels, parents and leaders have made this year so special and I can’t thank everyone enough for their support with our section! Heres to the next year, which will be full of even more adventure, outings and getting messy! Beckie and the Squirrel team

This scouting year has seen the explorers take on new challenges and develop into a confident group of young people.  

Our explorers have enjoyed the Skywalk at Folkestone Sports Centre, hikes, wide games, scouting skills challenges and learning how to work together in an effective team.  

I believe that the experiences the unit has had are a strong predictor of success in the upcoming year. The number of explorers engaged in the young leader program fills me with immense pride. They are taking the skills they are learning in that role and using them to support less experienced explorers in our unit.  

In the upcoming year the leadership team is making changes in response to feedback from our unit forums to ensure the unit functions to fulfil the ambitions of its members. There will be a renewed focus on badge work and higher level awards to give the young people proof that they are the amazing explorers we know they are. 

We would like to thank all of the explorers for attending our unit and the parents and carers who support and encourage them. Let’s be ready to do it all again next year!