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Welcome to Edition 37 of Tails of the New Forest. It may be the shortest month of the year, but we’ve learned enough skills and had enough adventures for us. Let’s look back and think ahead to the spring and the finer weather it unlocks.
What’s coming up?
All Leaders’ Meeting – 11th March
A reminder that the next All Leaders Meeting takes place at Copythorne Scout HQ on Tuesday 11th March at 8.15pm.
Open to all section team members and leaders from Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs and Scouts to look ahead to upcoming events, plan them in and discuss where next. Please try and ensure every section is represented.
Refreshments provided, just before the sectional break-out meetings.
Save the Date: Soap Box Derby
Giving you plenty of time to tune those carts or find a helpful parent or two to help remodel old ones.
The District Soap Box Derby, racing unpowered carts down a hill, returns at the earlier date of Sunday 13th July 2025.
Open to Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs and Scouts.
Donkey Derby – Seeking sponsors and event promoters
As the team behind the Annual Totton Donkey Derby begin to ramp up their preparations, they’re on the lookout for sponsors and event runners:
Do you run a large or Scout event? We have spaces in our programme for promotions and adverts for these other external events. Please let the team know at [email protected] and we can get it added. Act quick, the print deadline is coming up within the next couple of weeks.
Donkey sponsors wanted! The racers need names, the punnier the better, to be announced and in the programme. Funds raised for the event, details in the post below:
Reminder: Harry’s Island Maintenance Day
By Robin Mair, Joint Lead Volunteer, and Steven Osborn, Support Team Leader
Harry’s Island, our District Scout Campsite, welcomes campers again for fun and activities from Easter but we’ve got a few jobs to do to get it camper ready.
Open to adult volunteers, parents, carers and Explorers, come along on Saturday 8th March and help us tick some jobs off our list. From site clearance, dismantling old structures, to repairs and installing new items donated for us.
A member of the District Team will be present each day to coordinate the tasks for the day. Refreshments and snacks will be available. Pass on to your groups and please re
Reminders, opportunities and notices
Malawi Fundraising badge.
In the summer 2025, a group of expeditioners will be going to Malawi ‘the heart of Africa’, with the goal of aiding the community. All money raised from this badge will go towards community projects and resources for the people living in Malawi.
The aim of this badge is to learn about Malawi, and raise funds for the project.
Badge requirements
- Register to take part here: https://bit.ly/malawiregistration
- Complete at least two activities from this resource pack attached (or your own activity)
- Plan and run a fundraising event, you can choose how much to raise
- Order your badges which are £1 each here https://bit.ly/malawicompletion
To purchase the badge, if you are not fundraising, you can do so for £2.50 (or higher donation) here: https://bit.ly/malawicompletion. Need help? Email [email protected]
Care for Harry’s Island. Join our Campsite Sub-Team.
From Robin Mair, Joint Lead Volunteer, and Steven Osborn, Support Team Leader
Are you up for a new challenge? Do you have some spare time? Would you like to join the team to help maintain and grow the District Campsite?
After many years of dedicated and exemplary service, Tony Parker, campsite warden, has decided to stand down at the end of the 2025 season. We would like to grow a new team and help put the new structure in place this coming summer to ensure a smooth transition following Tony’s retirement.
From helping out with occasional maintenance, to chipping in with preparing the site for groups and the simple business of opening up to welcome groups to the site, we have a range of roles to suit different skills, time commitments and distances from the site.
Interested? Contact Robin at [email protected], plus a role will appear on the Scouts volunteering opportunity site very soon.
What’s been happening?
For a quiet month, we’ve still managed to fit a few events in. Check out what we’ve heard from around the district below, and do let us know your news by email.
Stop Press: Roger gets his 60 years!
News just in! Last weekend, at the District’s Founder’s Day afternoon tea to celebrate our volunteers who make Scouting happen in the New Forest, we had a surprise for one of our own. Roger Newland was presented with his 60 years length of service award from joint lead volunteer Kevin:
Hedge laying at Copythorne
A team of volunteers joined forces with the Campaign to Protect Rural England to plant new hedge plants for Copythorne to create new green corridors for wildlife:
Parent and Child camp for Testwood Cubs
Winter at Ferny Crofts may not be the most obvious time for a camp, but it’s the perfect time for the regular parent and child camp for 5th Testwood Cubs and their challenge with a wizarding theme:
Testwood on the look out for volunteers
The Totton based group are actively searching for new volunteers for Squirrels on Mondays, Beavers on Tuesdays, Cubs on Wednesdays and Trustees four times a year:
Sandleheath Scouts cooking up a storm
From planning to preparation and the cooking (and eating), a great job all round:
Support Fordingbridge at the Co-op
Ringwood’s busy winter
From Emma McNally, Scout team member, 3rd Ringwood
3rd Ringwood finished the winter term with our Group Carol Service, accompanied by a combination of Scouts and Salvation Army musicians, and a camp fire and hot chocolate to keep us warm. We were pleased to welcome the new vicar of Ringwood and he blessed our new flags for the hall and the Squirrels.
Some of our Scouts attended other churches around the area in the run up to Christmas to deliver the Bethlehem Peace Light, they were warmly welcomed wherever they went.
The Spring term has seen us concentrating on developing navigation and cooking skills in preparation for a trip to the Isle Of Wight for their Expedition Challenge. They spent an evening cooking on Trangia cookers, and the braver ones dealt with some pheasants and then cooked and ate them. In between activities they have been doing some indoor pioneering and shooting rockets. In the coming term, they will be putting their navigation skills in to use with a stargazing walk and a (hopefully) haunted hike.
Remember you can stay up to date with what’s going on on our Facebook page (/newforestscouts) or Instagram (@newforestscouts). Plus if you’re a volunteer you can be part of the Facebook group for members too. Do remember to share your stories with us throughout the month so we can share them directly and keep having great Scouting adventures.
Robin and Kevin.
Send your news and items for the next edition of Tails at the end of March before the 25th to [email protected].