A bumper end of year edition, thank you for your fab contributions from across the district.
Ferny Crofts Mud Run
By Martine Coatham, Group Scout Leader Sandleheath & Fordingbridge
Over 50 young people and some leaders from Sandleheath took part in the Mud Run at Ferny Crofts and I managed to throw several wet sponges at our County Commissioner who was heroically taking part and told me I’d missed him – so I had to keep throwing them!
Remembrance Day
Thank you for everyone that attended one of the various Remembrance Day parades/services that took place across the district.
There was no pressure to attend and each Group looked at the possibility of attending and made their individual decisions on whether to attend.
There were representatives of the district at Totton, Lyndhurst, Copythorne and Netley Marsh.
Fordingbridge, Sandleheath and Forres Sandle Manor School had a large number of young people and leaders attend the Remembrance Parade in Fordingbridge.
District Diary
Updated version of the District Diary is attached, don’t forget to send new events for inclusion please.
Eagle Trophy 2022
By Kerie Wallace, Explorer Scout Leader at Cerberus
So, what is the Eagle Trophy?
In simple terms it is a night incident hike, but in reality, it is much, much more. It is the opportunity for Scouts to utilise their navigational skills, test themselves against the winter night elements and use their ingenuity to solve some ingenious base challenges.
The challenge is for teams of 4 to 7 Scouts to navigate around a 5–6 mile route in the New Forest, at night, complete five challenge bases and seek the answers to some intriguing questions on route, all whilst keeping within a time schedule.
The event is a District organised one, with the mainstay of leaders coming from the 5th Testwood, as befits the origins of the Eagle Trophy. It is appreciated that not all Troops may have Scouts who are fully proficient in night navigation, so to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to take part in the great experience, it is allowable that Troop leaders can ‘shadow’ their teams. You can enter more than one team per Troop. In order that everyone is equipped for the night of adventure, each Scout/team will be marked on their attire and equipment, to ensure it meets the requirements of being suitable for a team operating in adventurous countryside.
The Trophy itself, the ‘small Eagle’ in the picture, is a memorial trophy presented to the 23rd Romsey (now 5th Testwood) Scout Troop, in memory of the Cub & Scout leader’s son, Peter, who died at a very young age and who had been a member of the Troop. The Trophy was originally competed for within the Troop and then opened up to a
District event, in all this competition has been running for nearly 60 years.
The Eagle Trophy for Scouts in 2022 will be held on the 12th/13th February, more details will be issued just after Christmas. So, make sure the date is in your Troop programme and start preparing your Scouts for the challenge.
The larger ‘Eagle’ is a separate trophy for Explorer Scouts and will be on a date later in the year.
If you have any questions, or want to know more, ring Kerie Wallace on 07850172929.
Faith Badge
By Martine Coatham, Group Scout Leader Sandleheath & Fordingbridge
At the end of November, 1st Sandleheath Beavers visited their local church, St Mary’s Fordingbridge, as part of their Faith Badge.
One Beaver looks particularly impressed with the organ playing. They also had a trip up to the top of the tower; one house looks very festive for the end of November.
Fordingbridge Beaver Colony
Our sincere thanks to Martine Coatham for agreeing to be the acting GSL at Fordingbridge; since taking up the role Martine has successfully recruited several new Beaver leaders, enabling the Colony to be re-opened, fantastic news!
On Monday this week, 9 new Beavers were invested.
Young Leaders
From Steven Osborn, Assistant Explorer Scout Leader (Young Leaders)
Congratulations go to Peter O’Neill and Harry Carter, 4th Eling, who have earned their Young Leader Buckles. Well done!
From Kevin Harmer, Team DC
Robyn Farr, Charley Softley and Marianna Ash from Avon Valley Explorers have finally been able to finish their Young Leader training with 1st Sandleheath Sea Scouts, shown here being awarded their belts by Kevin Harmer, New Forest DC & ESL Young Leader.
Their journey started in 2019 with module A, and a very engaging residential weekend at Farnborough in early 2020 for modules B-K. But then the pandemic disrupted their missions. However, being Sea Scouts, 1st Sandleheath was able to resume supporting their training as soon as outdoor activity was permitted, and they provided excellent work supporting Cubs ashore and afloat at both Sandleheath Sea Scouts and Forres Sandle Manor School. And for Robyn, it was just in time before her 18th birthday. Well done!
Reminder – District Development Event, Tuesday 11th January 2022
I have heard from the Regional Support Team that only 6 people have registered for this event so far and 2 of those are DCs. This event will be hosted by members of the regional services team who will be facilitating this process for us.
What you will need for this session:
- Access to a laptop/tablet/PC as the session is not accessible to mobile devices.
- WIFI or another internet connection
- Additional device e.g., smartphone
- Register online via this link or RSVP to the original email.
- Allow 1-2 hours
- Please make sure your zoom account is updated. (Zoom does not automatically update).
- If unsure how to log on to zoom – see instructions found here.
What to expect from the session:
We will have an opportunity for you to air your thoughts and views in a safe manner as well as a short intro and district overview. The aim is to bring us all together to look to the future, with open and honest feedback. We want to be able to take people’s priorities and help us move the district forward. This is a vital exercise and will help us in formulating our development plan that is all of ours.
We are running this session on Tuesday 11th January 2022 @ 7.30pm and scheduled to end by 9pm. Meeting ID and passcode on the pdf version of this newsletter, see your GSL or DESC if you don’t have it.
Totton Santa Run
Don’t forget the Totton Santa Run is this Sunday 12th December. Good luck to everyone taking part, we hope the weather is kind to you all.
Important – Compliance Training – Action Required
Safety and Safeguarding
It’s really important that all leaders keep on top of their Safety and Safeguarding eLearning, it is the individual leader’s responsibility to complete the eLearning and submit certificates to a training advisor, GSL or Team DC to update your Compass record. HQs send out reminder emails and Julie Mair, our Local Training Manager, sends a monthly compliance report for each Group to GSLs.
Every member has access to their own Compass record to check due dates, if you have not registered you can do that here.
If anyone has difficulties in getting online to do the eLearning, please get in touch so we can discuss options and help you become compliant. Remember, they are both mandatory for Face-to-Face Scouting.
First Response Reminder
Another reminder that all leaders need to get their first aid in date by the end of January and it is also mandatory for Face-to-Face Scouting.
Adult Training Courses & Webinars for 2022
The 2022 Training calendar has now been published. Details of the residential weekends and webinars can be found on the Adult Training Calendar at the Hampshire Scouts website.
Gone Home
From Stanley’s Own Magazine
It is with great sadness that we have heard that Graham George has Gone Home after a short battle with Covid.
Graham was previously the District Appointments Advisory Committee Chair in New Forest North for over 14 years. Graham was very active with Copythorne & District Royal British Legion, he was their secretary, carried out maintenance on a weekly basis and kept their logbooks up to date. He will be sadly missed.
Graham’s funeral will be held at the Ridge crematorium on 13th December at 12:15, there has been a request for no flowers but donations to the RBL.
ADC Squirrels
Ryan is still looking for someone who may be interested in becoming our new ADC Support for Squirrels. This role will be the main link with the HQs cohort and Ryan.
Please contact Ryan to discuss further [email protected]
County Emlyn
After being cancelled for the last couple of years the County Emlyn Competition has been booked to be held between the 16th-18th of September at Lyon’s Copse campsite.
The Emlyn team are more than happy to come and speak to districts/groups who would like further information on the competition. Please feel free to contact Rachel Duffy, [email protected], directly or via the website to arrange this. Entries into the competition can be completed anytime from now, the form to enter is here.
Finally – Awards!
As the District Award Recipient, I was over the moon when the November mail out of awards were received from HQs last week. They are all now out to the DCs for presentations. These include 14 Length of Service awards, 12 Wood Badges and 8 Good Service Awards.
Once they have all been presented, I will add the full list of recipients in Tails.
Team DC hope you all have a safe and enjoyable Christmas break and wish you a very Happy New Year.
Lynn, Ian, Kevin, Robin & Ryan
Team DC – New Forest