Robert Brown praises Centenary of Scouting

12.00.00am GMT Mon 10th Dec 2007

Robert Brown and Carrie Gibson

One Hundred Years of Scouting was marked by a debate and reception in the Scottish Parliament initiated by Glasgow Liberal Democrat MSP Robert Brown.

2007 is the centenary of the foundation of the Scout Movement by Lord Baden Powell, and the events in the Scottish Parliament recognised the work of thousands of Scout leaders and volunteers, as well as those in other Youth Organisations, who have helped to shape young people's lives and give them greater opportunities in the world over the years.

The debate was attended by Eleanor Lyall MBE - Scout Chief Commissioner for Scotland, Scout leaders and current Scouts, who met with MSPs and the Minister for Young People Adam Ingram at the Reception.

Amongst those present was Scout Leader Carrie Gibson from Greenock who was the first person to scale Mount Everest through Scouting.

Robert Brown used the opportunity of the debate to call for more funding for the support and training carried out by national organisations involved in youth work.

After the debate, Mr. Brown welcomed the announcement of an extension of the Voluntary Organisations Support Fund at a level of £1/2 million for 3 years, from the Minister for Children and Early Years, Adam Ingram.

Robert Brown said:

"Scouting has a long association with our area. The 1st Glasgow Scout Troup was the first officially recognised Scout Troup in the world. To this day, it's still a thriving group with a Scout hall in Dowanhill.

"Scouting has a presence in many communities-there are, for example, scout troops in Springburn, Baillieston and Maryhill. In Rutherglen and Cambuslang, there are no fewer than seven scout troops, and the M8 corridor project aims to restart Scouting in communities such as Easterhouse, and to make it a viable option for young people in areas where there's not currently a presence.

"My own association with the Scouts goes back to 1908 when my Granda was a Scout. He attended the second ever Scout camp in Northumberland.

"As a member of the 1st Huntly Scouts, Scouting was for me, as it was for many others, a key substantial and positive formative experience in my life.

"Few voluntary movements have had the impact of Scouting on the development, motivation and lives of many young people, and I would like to pay tribute to the leaders and volunteers who have over the years given their time and their talents to young people all over Scotland.

"There are currently 35,000 Scouts in Scotland, members of 594 local groups taking in an age range of 5 to 25. The current waiting list is no less than 2,000. There are 6,150 adult volunteers and many more parents and supporters.

"Nationally, the headquarters has staff of 9 who provide an important function in supporting Scouts across Scotland, and in delivering training. It's important to recognise the role of HQ staff in youth organisations like the Scouts.

"When I was Depute Minister, I launched the National Youthwork Strategy, which included a number of new funding streams to support youth organisations - the Youthwork Facilities Improvement Grant, the Youth Opportunities Programme and the Voluntary Organisations Support Fund.

"The Scouts are essentially self funding, but the small assistance we give in this way has disproportionately large benefits.

"I would like to know from the Minister whether he will be taking these funding streams forward, and in particular I would like to be reassured about Headquarters support.

"As the Scouts begin their second hundred years, they are needed more than ever before. Today, they are a modern, co-educational youth movement, providing as they always have done, excitement and adventure to young people from all backgrounds, building self confidence, enhancing skills and helping to anchor a moral compass in young people that encourages support for the local community, and is based on giving something back, and which is boundlessly ambitious for young people."

ends

Text of the Motion -

S3M-639

That the Parliament congratulates the Scottish Council of the Scout Association on the centenary of the Scout Movement being celebrated throughout 2007, on the level and commitment of volunteers to the delivery of the scouting programme in all 32 local authority areas and on the contribution made by scouting to the lives of young people in Scotland and worldwide; recognises the contribution of scouting to non-formal and outdoor education and applauds the commitment to engaging young people in decision-making through its Voice for Young People initiative and the participation of 120 young people in its recent annual conference; notes that the 1st Glasgow Scout Troop was the first officially recognised Scout group in the world; notes also the achievement of Carrie Gibson, a Scout leader from Greenock, on being the first person ever to have scaled Mount Everest through scouting as part of the Scottish Scouts 7 Summits Expedition; welcomes the work put into the £2 million centenary 7 on Appeal to help put scouting on a solid footing for the next centenary; is concerned at the difficulties that the major youth organisations have in accessing capital development funding; applauds the increase in membership across all sections of the Scouts in Scotland, and believes that scouting continues to make a major contribution to the development of citizenship and leadership and to life-enhancing opportunities for young people in Scotland and across the world.

scouting:

The event at the Parliament is the latest in a series of centenary year highlights which have taken place across Scotland in 2007, including over 25,000 Scouts taking part in centenary camps across in the country at the end of May, and almost 100 youth members taking part in the first Scottish Scouts Youth Summit at Aviemore in November. Total membership in Scotland has risen this year for the first time since 1988.