Network Scout Supplement

Read and print complete supplement as a PDF

Network view
The Network Decathlon
and tent-pitching challenge
are just around the corner

Join the royal family
Queen’s Scouts share their experiences of the award

Campdowne 2008
How Network members can help out at this exciting camp

A Scouting kind of magic
Find out about the Queen’s Scout Working Party

Travel notes from Peru
Network members and Explorer Scouts tell us about their amazing trip to a fascinating country

Cycle the great outdoors
Get on your bike and take in the breathtaking Welsh scenery with our new series

Diary dates
Upcoming Network events

A Scouting kind of magic

Completing the Queen’s Scout Award is one of the high points of Scout Network. William Palmer, of Merseyside Network, shows us that gaining the award can be a step towards even more exciting things with the Queen’s Scout Working Party

Standing in the grounds of Windsor Castle at the Queen’s Scout Reception in 2002, I felt so proud I had gained the highest Scout Association award for members – the Queen’s Scout Award. I thought back on all the hard work I had put in to get there – it had definitely been worthwhile. One thing that I hadn’t really given much thought about was what I was going to do next.

Don’t stop me now

I first heard about the Queen’s Scout Working Party from my then District Commissioner. He told me of his experiences and said it was quite a challenge, but that he got to do a lot of fun stuff he would never have done otherwise.
I’d actually met some members earlier in the year at my Queen’s Scout Reception; there, the Queen’s Scout Working Party had been making sure everything ran like clockwork. I decided I’d like to join, and I’m glad I did!
My first event with them was a Beaver and Cub Funday at Gilwell Park National Scout Activity Centre. I was a bit worried, as I’d only ever been to Gilwell Park once before and I didn’t know any of the Queen’s Scout Working Party. As always in Scouting, there was no need to worry. Everybody was more than welcoming and I soon found out all I needed to know.

One vision

The Queen’s Scout Working Party is a 60-strong national Fellowship of people who have completed their Queen’s Scout Award. They assist at major national Scout Association events all year round, all over the country.
It is highly likely that you have met someone from the Queen’s Scout Working Party, wearing a green and gold neckerchief, already. This could be at the National Scout Parade at Windsor, or at a Beaver Funday, or even at Gilwell Reunion.
Being a member of the Queen’s Scout Working Party means that you’re asked to do a lot of different things. One weekend could be spent as a lawn marker at Windsor, and the next as crowd control at a Scout Gang Show. There are also the slightly less glamorous jobs, such as toilet cleaning at camps. Often, we help out behind the scenes and ensure everything runs smoothly.
Sometimes our work is a bit more prominent. For example, we’ve taken part in the national tent-pitching competition and recently managed to persuade Chief Scout Peter Duncan to have a go on the slides at the Tate Modern Art Gallery, during the Queen’s Scout Reception.

Good company

The Queen’s Scout Working Party is happy to get its hands dirty. There’s often a long list of things to do, but we always get them done. Assisting at events is hard work but we all enjoy it and get a lot of satisfaction from it.
Since I’ve been a member of the Queen’s Scout Working Party, I’ve taken part in events that I didn’t even know existed and I’ve met loads of great people. It’s hard work but, most importantly,
it’s fun. If you’ve got your Queen’s
Scout Award and are looking for something to do, then the Queen’s Scout Working Party may be just the thing you’re after. You can find more information at www.qswp.org.uk