astronomy for seniors whittingham’s lesotho … those of scouts. any scouts proficiency badges may...

The newsletter of the Baden-Powell Scouts’ Association

‘Traditional outdoor Scouting for the 21st Century’

Traditional Scouting in the UK: News, information, activities, advice, interest

February 2013

ASTRONOMY FOR SENIORS

Dutch Oven Cooking

and much more...

Badge positions

The Dutch Oven Cookery Book

The 175 Best Camp Games

Card Game: Pirate Snap

Fundraising advice

Whittingham’s Lesotho Expedition

Escape and Evasion Fun!

Beavers - Wolf Cubs - Scouts - Seniors - Rovers

Discovery AwardPatrol competition

Editor: Sue [email protected] Editor and Design: Nick [email protected]: Ninette [email protected]

Contributors: Nick Allen, Ninette Gray, Clive Gray,Jay Dodson, Harry Williamson, Margaret Lenahan.

Chief Commissioner: Graham [email protected] Secretary: Sue [email protected] Commissioners:Beavers: Lyn Tomlinson Tel: 01189 665003Email: [email protected] Cubs: Sheena Dodson Tel: 0161 3387459Email: [email protected]: Jay Dodson Tel: 07796 691681Email: [email protected] Scouts: Norman Boxall Tel: 01189 753438Email: [email protected]: Clive Gray Tel: 01665 574733Email: [email protected]: Martyn Dodson email:[email protected]

The Baden - Powell Scouts' Association is a registered charity (No. 278525). The articles contained within this publication are notnecessarily the views of the B-PSA.

We wish you all a happy and prosperous new yearand also welcome you to the new look ‘Scoutingabout’! 2013 promises to be another great year fortraditional Scouting and hopefully Sections, Groupsand Areas from around the country will share withus all the great things they get up to.

The dark nights have been with us for quite a whilenow and our programme plans, no doubt, are basedaround being inside and avoiding the cold andinclement weather, particularly with the youngersections. However there are still plenty of activitiesthat can be done so there are various items in thisissue that will hopefully give useful advice or justsome ideas.

NEW YEAR, NEW FORMAT

We hope to build ‘Scouting about’ into a more comprehensive and inclusive newsletter for the whole of the B-PSAand so welcome news, images, information etc from anyone actively involved within the association or from thosewith a genuine interest. Anything that could be relevant would be appreciated and perhaps gives any buddingjournalists or literary talents the opportunity to get started. Alternatively, get members of your sections writing,taking photographs etc. This newsletter aims to share ideas and provide useful information for leaders, assistantsand lay helpers of all sections. It is your newsletter and a means of two-way communication so please use it.Contact Sue or Nick using the details above.

Page Feature3 Badge positions

4 Discovery AwardScout programme changes

5 National Patrol Competition6 Reflections on 'Rovering to Success'

7 Harry's Kilimanjaro challengeWhat's Acle up to?

8 Seniors' Astronomy9 Tell the time using the stars

12 Remembrance13 Whittingham's Lesotho expedition15 Commemorating Flodden16 Reviews17 Fundraising to success18 Escape and evasion19 Dutch Oven cooking20 Upcoming events

3 Follow Scouting about on Facebook

UNIFORM AND BADGES

Many parents and newer leaders often ask for a diagram showing badge positions. The diagramsbelow, for Beavers, Wolf Cubs and Scouts, will hopefully give a better idea than some of the olddiagrams that have previously been used. The diagrams are also available on the B-PSA website(www.traditionalscouting.co.uk). Senior Scouts and Rover Scouts versions will appear in the nearfuture!

Badge positions for Beavers, Wolf Cubs and Scouts

Senior Scouts:As a rough guide, Senior Scoutsbadge positions are very similarto those of Scouts. Any Scoutsproficiency badges may be wornuntil the Senior equivalent isawarded eg the Pioneer badge isworn by the Senior Scout untilthe Senior Pioneer badge isachieved.

Please note that the badges shown inthese diagrams are not drawn to scaleand are intended purely as a roughguide to their correct positioning!

Census forms have been posted to GSMs. Please ensure that they are completed andreturned to your AC by the end of February.Accounts need to be with Sue by the end of May.

CENSUS AND ACCOUNTS

B-PSA UK Badges:Mrs Sylvia Rutherford [email protected] Thornaby Road, Thornaby, Stockton on TeesTS17 9HD01642 887962

B-PSA UK Uniform and Supplies:Mr Stuart [email protected] St. Andrews Road, Warminster BA12 8ET01985 217664


The Discovery Award is a national event for SeniorScouts and Rover Scouts and is a 4 day expeditionof hiking and adventurous Scout challenges in‘difficult’ country which tests the participants'staminaSenior Scouts / Rover Scouts will be self sufficientand must be able to navigate to a high standard.At the conclusion of the expedition a Log of thejourney is required. Successful Senior Scouts /Rovers, will be awarded a badge and certificate.The expedition can also be used as the Duke ofEdinburgh Award Gold expedition.

DISCOVERY AWARD/SAFETY ON THE HILLS

This year’s Discovery Award will take place inthe Yorkshire Dales from 3rd to 10th August.Cost is expected to be around £65.

Contact Norman Boxall for more detailsabout the Discovery Award (contactdetails on p2). Please confirm by theend of April if you wish to attend

On the summit of Snowdon: Discovery Award, Snowdonia 2009

About to set off on the hike: Discovery Award, Sweden 2011

A Senior Scout “Safety on the Hills Part One” course,based at 3rd Wiltshire HQ, will take place from 22nd– 24th February. This is an ideal chance for any SeniorScouts or young Rover Scouts to cover the part one ofthe Safety on the Hills course. This will also be greatpreparation for anyone intending to attend thisyear’s Discovery award in Yorkshire (3rd – 10thAugust). Contact Jay Dodson for more information(see p2 for contact info)

Slight revisions to the Scout Programme for Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class were explained at theAGM last year by Jay Dodson, and at the same time the first part of a new Scout handbook was launched.The Scout Handbook is available to download from the Scout Section of the Association website(www.traditionalscouting.co.uk), and has full details for Tenderfoot and Second Class, and the requirements forFirst Class and the Scout Cord. The complete handbook covering all tests will be available within the nearfuture. The Handbook is also available from B-PSA Publications. Please use the new handbook to replaceScouts Way 1 immediately, and when it is available please use the complete handbook to also replace ScoutsWay 2.Jay has revised the Scout Record Card and this is with Sylvia (B-PSA Supplies Badges) for printing, and will beavailable soon.Obviously during the changeover period SMs and ASMs should use their discretion, but as a rule of thumbplease try to incorporate the new requirements as soon as possible for any Scout who hasn’t already completedthat section of their training.If you have any queries please contact Jay.

Revision to Scout Programme


This year, Scout Commissioner, Jay Dodson,intends to try something different, by moving awayfrom the bank holiday weekend and moving to adate in June.The plan is:

West Midlands location to try to make it equallyaccessible (inaccessible) to everyone

Friday evening arrival on 28th June (no timeconstraints – food provided on arrival)

Saturday morning competition commences Sunday 30th (approx. 3pm) departure Programme similar to previous years but without

the complete day hike – Jay will put up thecomplete competition outline on the website inthe next week or so, (and this will be repaeatedin the next issue of Scouting about) but theformat is summarised below.

A competitive, challenging and fun competition forPatrols of up to 6 Scouts and Senior Scouts. Patrolscan be specially made up for the competition andinclude up to 2 Seniors, total combined age for aPatrol of 6 is 84, and for smaller Patrols the averageage should be 14. We have previously had Patrolsmade from more than one Group too.The competition involves some pre campprojects, which are scored at camp,setting up a Patrol Campsite withinspecific guidelines, and then competingon challenges at camp which include openfire cooking, pioneering, orienteering,camp craft, surprise Scouting skillschallenges, camp fire entertainment and

2013’s Patrol Camp Competition makes a move from the usual bank holiday weekendwhich, feedback tells us, conflicts too much with school exams and therefore has a rathernegative effect on the number of Patrols entering.

some sports / games challenges, and of coursepersonal and camp inspections. The atmospherehas always been really tremendous, Patrols aredefinitely there to compete, but with a happy andfriendly Scouting spirit that means that the weekendis not too intense.Patrols work on their own, and are judged (andmentored and supported) by leaders from otherGroups – and they find that this is a great way toshow their skills to a fresh set of eyes.Hoping to see more people than ever this summer –Jay’s personal target is to have 15 Patrolscompeting, but would be delighted if we smash thatgoal too.For the time being could you please:

Let Jay know if you think you may enter ateam(s) (contact details on p2)

AC’s and Area Secretaries please add to AreaMeeting agendas

Please log onto your e-DofE records before theend of March, if you experience problem

with the details given, contactNorman. We areextremely impressedand happy that we

have 7 Gold DofEawards to be bepresented in 2013

Duke of Edinburgh Award


ROVERS

A few years ago I was fascinatedto see a series of programmesthat recreated some of the classicearly mountaineering first assents,using the original 100 year oldequipment and clothing andremember being both intriguedand impressed. Two thingsbecame obvious, the hardwareworked but was less safe andeasy to use than currentequipment and the clothingperformed remarkably wellcompared to the manmade fibreand shell fabrics we were using atthe time. Subsequently we sawnew innovations on the traditionalclothing theme (soft shells, soft,breathable and wicking ‘NikwaxAnalogy’ waterproofs and hi techmerino wool base layers). I alsodiscovered a new respect for thebravery of people climbing at theirlimit when today we have toolsthat reduce the risk on the samerouts. So it is with this sense ofintrigue, rediscovery andreinvention that I felt we mightrevisit B-P’s landmark book forRover Scouts, ‘Rovering toSuccess’. The process hasstarted via the facebook group‘Rovering to Success’ wheremembers are having theopportunity to comment and allowsome editing to take place and itwill then be published in parts in‘Scouting about’.1. On First Acquaintance.The first thing I notice on pickingup the book is the subtitle, ‘AGuide To Young Manhood’, whichin 21st century Britain needsqualifying.When published in 1922’s wehadn’t had World War II and theliberating effects of women

Reflection’s on ‘Rovering To Success’ Clive Gray

HQ Commissioner

Rover Scoutsworking in previously male onlyjobs, on farms, in factories and theprofessions. All women only gotthe vote in 1928 and of course wehave evolved further and fasterthan B-P could ever haveimagined. Equality is now clearly afundamental part of our society(while I accept some will stillargue with the deeper reality ofthat) and our organisation, the B-PScout’s Association, clearlyadopts an equal opportunitiesstance both in writing and in mymind, in action.The experience of learning at thetime, ended for the majority, in theearly teens and Rovering was alsoaimed at the younger adult agegroup. Today, in our society, wesee the value in ongoing learningthroughout life.So before we even open the bookwe are challenged to reflect on itsbasic truths through the lenses ofthe time and I will at all juncturestry to use both equality based andnon ageist observations, butaccept that all of us have thebaggage of our own age to dealwith.2. Philosophy From A Soldier.I remember being hugelyinfluenced to consider the biggerquestions of life by an old teacherwho had played rugby for Walesand was in the first Allied forces toliberate Auschwitz concentrationcamp at the end of the secondworld war. He taught ReligiousStudies but it was his reflectionsof real life that had us teenageboys on the edge of our seats andconsider what life was really allabout. Rovering to Successseems to me to be B-P’s attemptto plant just such a seed foradults.This book was unlike any of B-P’searlier publications in that it islaying out a philosophy for livingas an adult with all theresponsibilities and pitfalls thatentails, rather than an A to Z ofhow to do Scouting skills. If you

count the pages devoted todifferent subjects it is evenclearer. Only the last 15% of thebook, the last chapter, is devotedto the practical ‘How’ of being aRover and even this is prefacedwith the warning ‘It should benoted that the Rules given in thischapter are liable to alterationfrom time to time’.

I cannot but feel great respect forB-P. This man who had spent hislife teaching practical skills andleading highly structured militaryorganisations, made the leap towrite his last new sectionshandbook as a philosopher,asking his readers to reflect andmake the right choices as adultsin the world they faced andaccepting that even the limitedrule setting he did then wouldchange as the world changed. Heentrusted to fellow Rovers that itwas the philosophy and not thespecific rules and format thatwould endure.I conclude that Baden-Powellhimself built ongoing change in toRovering, by both his direct wordsand by his use of philosophy asour guiding light. I know this mightbe hard for some to accept but Ihave a conviction that this deepthinking man would bedisappointed in us if we didn’t usethe framework he has given us tomake choices for the future.


Harry Williamson has been a partof 1st Earley BP Scouts since theage of six, moving up throughBeavers, Cubs and Scouts and isnow a Rover Squire. Thissummer he will be climbingMount Kilimanjaro to raise fundsfor the Meningitis ResearchFoundation.Harry said “Our Scout troop wasalways blessed with great leaders,so they were really crucial inhelping me achieve the DiscoveryAward, Silver Duke of Edinburgh

and lastly the St. George’s Award.Scouts has genuinely helpedshaped who I am today, teachingme many invaluable andtransferrable skills.”

Just before the New Year, Harrybecame involved with anorganisation called Student Action,through Plymouth University, whichchallenged 20 students to climbMount Kilimanjaro for charity thiscoming summer. Having worked hisway through Scouting with such anactive Group, the climbingchallenge isn’t the most dauntingpart. The scary part, as far as Harry

is concerned, is that he needs toraise £2650 for Meningitis ResearchFoundation so that he can take partin the Mount Kilimanjaro climb. It isa very worthy cause that fundsresearch, awareness and educationsurrounding the disease.

If you or your Scout Group wouldlike to donate to Harry’s cause, itwould be very much appreciated.For more information and to donateplease go to:www.myraising.com/harry-williamson/kili

Good luck Harry!

Harry in Scouting action!

Acle Scout Group is looking forwardto all that 2013 has to offer.Plans so far include founder’s daycelebrations, St George’s daysleepout, an Easter cyclingexpedition, rags to riches week, aswell as the weekly section activities,DofE programme and Heartstarttraining for the local community.I as GSM thought that 2013 wasgoing to be a quiet year after such abusy 2012, no one told my leadersmy thoughts as when I attendedtheir planning meeting, theirenthusiasm hadn't wavered andthey were ready to start 2013 as we

ended 2012.. Busy and Bright ‘n’ allthat!I would like to take this opportunityto say thank you to the Acleleaders, parent helpers and SeniorScouts as all have made 2012 agreat scouting year.Acle Scout Group’s final fund raiserfor the year was a Gang show.What a fabulous experience for allparticipants, helpers and member ofour audience. Our theme was 2012through our eyes, we included theJubilee, the Olympics and all of ourexpeditions and trips. It was hard tofit everything into a ninety minuteperformance but we did!Our annual Christmas camp took usto the Edinburgh InternationalClimbing Arena where we managedto try out the new climbingequipment we had recieved. After afun day we headed off to the city fora festive evening before headingdown to Kielder Hawkhirst Scoutcamp. At Hawkhirst we experiencedthe new zip slide and Jacobsladder, a muddy but greatexperience.The Beavers and Wolf Cubsenjoyed a day at Shildon railwaymuseum, they returned to thevillage via the train. Their dayended with a full Christmas meal inThe County after they had sang fortheir supper carol singing .

Let us know what your ScoutGroup or section has been up toor has planned. Spread the news,sing your praises!

Margaret Lenahan

Group Scout Master

Acle Scout Group

Acle Scout Group


Nick Allen

Senior Scout Master

1st Flodden B-P Scout

Group

SENIOR ScoutS

Requirements:(1) Know the chief stars andconstellations visible in his latitude andunderstand how to express technicallythe position of any particular star at anygiven time.(2) Be able to tell the time by the stars.(3) Know what is meant by: the Galacticsystem, star clusters.(4) Make a simple astronomical model toillustrate some features of the solarsystem.(5) Discuss the instruments used and thework carried on in an observatory. Knowthe principal observatories of the world,their situations and natural advantages,the special work undertaken by any ofthem and some details of theirtelescopes.

Make the most of the dark nights...

Astronomer BadgeThe return to GMT and the onset of early nights is no excuse for notgoing outside. Instead, it is the perfect time for doing some astronomy.The Senior Astronomer badge can be gained through a mixture of taskscarried out both inside and out.

A very useful and informative book to helpidentify stars, constellations and explanationsof how to technically express the position ofstars is ‘The Stars: a new way to see them’ byH A Rey.

Why not:� Organise a visit to an observatory

� Get Seniors to find out how to use celestialcoordinates and give apresentation

� Get Seniors toresearch a principalobservatory and sharetheir findings witheach other.

� Work out the timeusing the stars.(Use the guideon p9-11 forhelp).

� Create a flashanimation etc ora mobile toshow themovement of theplanets and/orstars.

SENIOR

ScoutS

Tell the time using the stars: p9


HOW TO

TELL THE TIME USING THE STARS

The winter sky provides a fantasticopportunity to develop, practice and perfectthose emergency survival skills that are based

on basic astronomy. One such piece of knowledgeworth learning about is how to tell the time usingthe stars. This is also one of the requirements ofthe Seniors’ Astronomer badge!

The stars have been used for thousands ofyears as an aid to navigation and virtuallyall Scouts should be able to use the

pointer stars, Dubhe and Merak, of The Ploughto find Polaris, aka the Pole Star or North Star.Without going in to great detail about this:imagine a line running from Merak to Dubheand then continue that line for roughly fivetimes the distance between the ‘pointers’ untilyou reach Polaris (see fig 1). By followinganother imaginary line from Polaris straight

down to earth we can identify the directionfrom us to that point, and beyond, as north.

However, these very same stars can be used tohelp tell the time too! Although most peoplemay have a watch or a mobile phone toaccurately determine which time of the day ornight it is, it is just as easy for someone to carrya compass or matches or a tent or a camp bedetc to help make a stay in the wilds morecomfortable. Yet we as Scouts want to gobeyond that and be able to cope relying on ameld of knowledge, observation and whateverwe can findaround us.With the benefitof a relativelycloud free skywe can easilytell the time.There are allsorts of weirdand wonderfulways to do this.Some methodsinvolve animaginary 24hour clock face centred on Polaris but running

YOU WILL NEED:

A relatively cloud free sky Ability to locate The Plough andPolaris

Simple arithmetic

Nick Allen

Senior Scout Master


Group


anticlockwise; another way involves animaginary straight line running from Megrez, inThe Plough, through Polaris and on to Caph inCassiopeia. Perhaps these methods are easierto get to grips with than others for certainindividuals but, in general, the more complex orpeculiar a method, the more likely it is thatmistakes will be made. Trying to visualise abackwards 24 hour clock face is likely to bemore confusing than a 12 hour clock facerunning clockwise as we have been brought upto accept reading in a clockwise direction whentelling the time. Having many, many yearsexperience of instructing in the Army combinedwith my professional role as a teacher andobviously my role as Senior Scout Master I findit best to remind myself of the mnemonic KISS(Keep It Simple Stupid) when passing oninformation and practical skills to others.Learners need to get things clear in their headsto allow them to learn more effectively.Furthermore, not everyone knows the names orpositions of the various stars so may haveproblems locating Megrez or Caph. I thereforeprefer to use the simplest effective method tohelp people achieve the learning objective. Themethod I prefer to use to initially instruct othersrequires no prior knowledge and no need to

identify specific stars in specific constellations.All that is required is that Polaris and The Ploughare visible.

So how do we do it?The first step is toidentify Polaris: thePole Star andimagine that this isthe centre of ananalogue clock face(see fig 2).

Secondly, use thepointer stars of ThePlough as if theywere the hourhand of the clock and read off the time (see fig3). Do not simply read the hour but be asaccurate as you can possibly be eg quarter past,half past etc. The more accurate you are thebetter. To assist accuracy you could draw aclock face on to acetate or a transparent sheet!Using fig 3 as an example the time showsapproximately 6.45 which we will convert to thevalue 6¾.

HOW TO


Next we must apply a little bit of basicarithmetic. To do this we must calculate howmany months after March 7th it is eg onNovember 7th it would be 8 months after; onDecember 22nd it would be 9½ months after.Again be accurate, at least to quarters or halves.This value must be added to the ‘time’ you readusing the pointer stars. For example, if the timeyou read was 6.45 (ie 6¾) and the date isNovember 20th (approximately 8½ months afterMarch 7th) you would add these two valuestogether ie 6¾. + 8½ = 15¼.

At this point we double the number, so in thisexample 15¼ would become 30½. Now this is

HOW TO

In a nutshell Work out the clockface time Add 1 on for each month afterMarch 7th (including quarters etc) Add the clockface time to themonth addition figure Double it Add 1 if it is BST Deduct the total from 24 or 48Convert to a time using 24 hourclock method

fine if we are on Greenwich Mean Time (or anycountry’s time zone equivalent) but if we areusing British Summer Time (or daylight saving)we must add 1 to our number to take that extrahour in to account. Since, as I write, GMTensures that the dark nights are drawing inincredibly early I do not need to add anythingon. But do not forget the point: add an hour onif it’s BST.

The final thing to do is to deduct the number wehave calculated from 24 (or 48 if the calculatednumber is over 24). In this case we cannotdeduct 30½ from 24 so we instead deduct from48: 48 – 30½ = 17½ and 17½ in the 24 hour clocksystem is 5.30pm.

We now have the theory but as manyeducational experts such as Kolb and Piaget –not that most of us need their expertise toconfirm what we already know - have said thatwe learn most by doing. In other words: itwould be most helpful, if to adorn one’s mindwith the knowledge and expertise to enableone to deduce the time to a somewhat reliablelevel of accuracy, get the ‘dirt time’ in! Practiceand check against your watch. Keep practicingat different times and throughout the yearuntil you don’t need to look at your watch!


REMEMBRANCE PARADES

45 members of Fakenham Lancaster attended the

Fakenham Remembrance Day Parade and outdoor

service at the Memorial. By far the largest Group on

parade our members were a credit to the

Association, the Movement and the town as they

paid their respects. For the first time we also

paraded with a Beaver flag bearer, who did a

sterling job keeping up with the "larger" bearers and

following the orders given by the RBL.

1st Whittingham attended St Bartholomew'sRemembrance Day Service, including readingthe younger person's part of theRemembering, the Intercession Prayers andlaying our own home made wreath withprayers on the poppies. We then hosted areception in the village Memorial Service withtea, coffee and sherry! The Beavers, Cubsand Scouts were all very smart and very wellbehaved, and we had lots of compliments onhow well the Scouts read. Well done all.

1st Pointon had a fantastic turnout and werejoined by a piper on Remembrance Day

Photo by Ian Burt, courtesy of

Fakenham and Wells Times.

1stFloddenparaded intheextremenorth ofEngland atCornhill-on-Tweed.

1st Trimsaran paradedat Burry Port,Carmarthenshire

B-PSA Groups from around the country remembered the fallen of the World Wars and otherconflicts by participating in Remembrance Services and joining in parades as part of thecommemoration tin their local communities.

A very small selection of these are shown below:


An incredible link was madebetween the B-PSA and KenDunn of Trees4Africa last yearwhich resulted in the first ofhopefully many expeditions byour Groups to one of theworld’s poorest countries! 1st

Whittingham were the first withtheir inspirational expedition toLesotho during the summer,with 1st Flodden to follow suitin 2014.A group of 17 Scouts, seniorScouts and leaders flew out toCape Town on 19th August, onan emotional and excitingjourney of two halves.On arrival in Cape Town, thegroup took the ferry out toRobben Island to visit NelsonMandela’s home behind bars.We were shown around by aformer political prisoner whowas incarcerated at the prison,and it was an incrediblyhumbling experience. We wenton to visit Bethuile where wesaw, from Signal Hill, how thetown was split into areas forblack, coloured and white

people. The people still liveseparately today, but it is clearthat they now live peacefullyside by side, and many blackpeople are rebuilding theirhomes now that they areearning better wages. TheScouts were invited into ahome in the township to meet afamily, and into the school totalk and sing to the children.The main part of our expeditionwas spent in Lesotho. On ourfirst day, we went for a walkaround the village. It wasincredibly windy, reminding usof our visit to Doddington withPrince Seeiso, where weplanted a hedge with CheviotFutures to protect a field fromsoil erosion due to the wind. Inthe mountainous kingdom ofLesotho we were to do thesame thing, and beingsandblasted that first day reallyshowed us how important itwas.We saw the huge erosion scarsalso, where rain was tearingapart the landscape, and mostimportantly the agricultural

fields. The top soil ends updownstream in South Africa.In the afternoon, we joined inwith a community footballfestival. Hundreds of childrenwelcomed us, and we playedgetting to know you games,catch with the little ones, andfootball. We also handed outsome old Blyth Football Stripsand football boots that we hadbrought out. It was a lovelyafternoon, and we had greatfun with the wonderful children.Then, back to reality, when theDirector of the MalealeaDevelopment Trust who hadorganised the event whisperedto us: ‘You do know that allthese children are orphans,don’t you?’

Prince Seeiso and Ken Dunn

ADVENTURE

Ninette GrayGroup Scout Master1st Whitt ingham B-PScout Group


In a community no bigger thanours in Whittingham, therewere a couple of hundredorphans. They had lost theirparents through AIDS,accidents and illnesses relatingto smoke-inhalation. There areno orphanages. The averagelife expectancy is 43, so thereare few grandparents to lookafter the children. The orphansare cared for by elder brothersand sisters, usually 12 or 13years old, and by extendedfamilies.Over the next few days, theScouts worked with thiscommunity to plant trees thatwill bind the soil to protect itfrom wind erosion. The treesalso provide fire wood and fruit.Hundreds of local children fromthe schools were let out oflessons to help us plant, and tolearn how to do this properly,and how to care for the trees.The Scouts also took out 50

stoves that burn wood at suchhigh temperatures that thesmoke is combusted, so thatthey burn cleanly andefficiently, causing fewersmoke-related diseases. Muchof the funding for the stoves,and for our activities in Lesothowas secured fromNorthumberland Uplands LocalAction Group. The group ishosted by NorthumberlandNational Park and uses theLeader approach to makefunding decisions. The fundingis being made availablethrough the Rural DevelopmentProgramme for England, whichis jointly funded by Defra andthe European Union.The Scouts demonstrated thestoves in three differentcommunities in the area, andattracted a lot of interest andorders. The stoves are hugelysubsidised, but followingcharity research, the peoplehave to pay a small amount,which makes them value themmore.On our final work day, theScouts headed across thevalley to a High School, whowould also like to develop agarden and plant trees, butwho have no water supply. It isimpossible to imagine a school

in our area which has no watersupply, but with drop toilets, nosanitation and simple catering,they cope, and walk to collectwater. A garden could notsurvive without water though.The Scouts spent a gruelingday working with the HighSchool kids to dig a trench,with pick axes and shovels, tolay a water pipe to the school.The Scouts, Senior Scouts andleaders have come home witha huge understanding ofapartheid, global environmentalissues and poverty, and anenormous appreciation of theirfamilies and economicsituations.

After discussions with theMalealea Development Trust,we have found a way that wecan help the orphans. Shoesare like gold dust in Lesotho.Despite the sharp rocks andbroken glass under foot,children only wear shoes inschool. They will walk to schoolin bare feet, with shoes in abag. There are more groupsgoing out to Lesotho this year.They have a huge baggageallowance, and will take outsacks of second hand shoes(flat-soled). We are collectingshoes in Whittingham to takeout, and also money to feedthose in need.For more information, contactGroup Scout Master, NinetteGray on 01665 574733.

Prince Seeiso is invested into the B-PSA

Planting trees with local children

Digging the trench

ADVENTURE


Canoeing the Tweed by Norham Castle

INFORMATION

The 9th September 2013 marks the500th anniversary of the Battle ofFlodden. The battle was a nationaltragedy that led to the death of15,000 Scots and English soldiers,100 noblemen and James IV, theScottish King. Yet these catastrophicevents are largely unknownthroughout England despite theirinfluence in shaping British andEuropean politics for the next 100years, eventually leading to the unionof the English and Scottish crowns in1603.

The battle took place in what is nowstrong B-PSA country, with threegroups within 25 miles of the battlesite: 1st Flodden, 1st Wooler and 1stWhittingham, and therefore providesan excellent base to have a B-PSAcamp.

During the reign of Henry VIII,England was at war with Francewho’s Queen persuaded King JamesIV of Scotland to renew the `auldalliance' by invading northernEngland to distract Henry from hiscampaign in France.

1st Flodden will be hosting twocamps during the year to

commemorate the battle: one forBeavers and Wolf Cubs and one forScouts and Seniors. The ‘memory’ ofthe battle still lingers especially inScotland as it had such a devastatingeffect on the nation with thecountry’s nobility being decimated.

The camps aim to give an insight intothe history of the battle and willenable section specific Floddenactivity badges to be achieved.

The different sections will learnabout the background and tactics ofthe battle as well as developingheritage skills through activities suchas archaeological tasks andtraditional crafts, hikes along some ofthe routes to battle, as well aslearning about the general lifestyle atthe time through practical tasks. Weare currently in discussion with LivingHistory Scotland to arrange historicalreenactment from experts to takeplace at one of the camps. There willbe the opportunity to learn aboutand participate in archery, canoedown the River Tweed and/or Till to

Living History

see some of the fortifications thatwere captured and used during thecampaign.

There are various associated placesto visit eg Norham, Ford and Etalcastles, most of which are part of theFlodden Eco Museum.

However, you do not have to attendthe camps to achieve the Floddenbadge. There are a range of activitiesthat can be carried out from thecomfort of your own Scout Hut, avisit to the library or a museum orinternet search etc to learn more.However a visit to the area is really arequirement but does not have to becarried out in 2013. Examples ofplaces away from the Flodden areathat could be visited are Edinburgh,to see the Flodden Wall, or LeedsArmoury to find out about theweapons and armour of the period.

If you would like to join in the campsor would like a list of activityrequirements, or to order badges,please [email protected]

Beavers/Wolf Cubs: 6-7 July 2013Scouts/Seniors: 13-14 July 2013Location: North NorthumberlandEmail 1stfloddenbpscouts@gmail

for further details

For lots of other activities takingplace, visit:

www.flodden1513.comThe battle area


Book: The Dutch Oven Cookery Book Vol 1Author: Jason Ingamells & Kevan PalmerPublisher: Woodland WaysReviewer: Nick AllenAvailable from: www.woodland-ways.comPrice: currently on special offer at £10As an advocate of dutch oven cooking I wasextremely happy to set my eyes on this book.What’s more, it’s written by Jason Ingamells andKevan Palmer of Woodland Ways which is one ofthe country’s leading provider in all types ofbushcraft courses. In other words, they know what

they’re talking about!This is a great little ring-bound book especially for those new to DutchOven cooking or those more experienced who are looking for someinspiration and one that you’d be happy to take to camp with you. Thebook contains guidance on caring for the oven and is then split intosections on ‘Soups, Snacks, Starters and Side Dishes’ which includessuch delights as Mediterranean Dutch Oven breakfast and Mussels inCider and Cream Sauce; ‘Main Dishes’ ranging from Cheese Enchiladasto Wilspotjie; ‘Breads’ such as Damper and Native American Fried Breadand finally ‘Desserts’ which includes such recipes as Norwegian AppleCake and American Peach Cobbler. Though not exhaustive, there areplenty of recipes to try out that will keep you busy for a considerable time.Furthermore, it is the kind of book that could give you the confidence toexperiment with your own recipes once you’ve had a bit of practice.Would I recommend it? Definitely! A great addition to any Scout Group’scamp cook inventory. I will certainly be trying out the various recipes withmy Scouts and I look forward to Volume 2.

INFORMATION

Book: The 175 Best Camp Games: A handbookfor leadersAuthor: Kathleen, Laura & Mary FraserPublisher: The Boston Mills PressReviewer: Nick AllenAvailable from: Amazon, various bookshopsPrice: £14.95 RRPGetting youngsters to play games is not really mything. I tend to leave that to others but I am awarethat games have their place in Scouting, especiallyfor the younger sections. I found this book while

looking for games to play with the various Scouting sections. What is goodabout it is that games are arranged by category, a recommended groupsize is stated for each game so it it is easy to find something appropriatefor your own section whether large or small. There are plenty of gamesdescribed, including ‘Break the Ice’ games, gentle games and very activeones, from ‘My name is Aaron and I like Aardvarks’ to ‘Capture the Flag’,‘Werewolf Tag’ to ‘Zany Food’.If you’re looking for a variety of different games, ornew games, to play then this could be the book foryou! It’s likely to be great if you’re new to theScouting world or are looking for something differentto the games that you’ve perhaps stuck to over theyears!

Game: Pirate Snap

Reviewer: Nick Allen

Pirate Snap is a very simple game toplay yet confusing enough to be ahuge amount of fun!

Basically it is a game of snap with thefollowing differences:

� Snap on cards that have a valuedifference of 1 eg a 6 and a 7,Ace and 2, King and Ace, 8 and 9etc.

� Snap on any Queen, no matterwhat card was laid previously.

� Everyone has to ‘snap’ and uttheir hand down.

� Last person to ‘snap’ and puttheir hand down is the loser andpicks up the cards.

� Even if you have got rid of allyour cards in a round, you cannot win until ‘snap’ has takenplace. In fact, you might lose thisand have to pick up all the cards!

The fun is that people mistakenly tryto ‘snap’ on cards that are the samevalue, forget to ‘snap’ on a Queen orforget that it is the last person to puttheir hand down in a ‘snap’ that isthe loser. Players really have toconcentrate and it becomes fast andfurious so, be warned, it can result inhurt fingers if allowed to become tooboisterous.

I have watched Scouts and Seniorsplay Pirate Snap and they love it! Agreat camp game.

If you would like to review orshare any books, card games oranything else, please contact ususing the details on p2.


Having just raised £30,000 in less than a year totake our Scouts to Africa, and previously beensuccessful in raising thousands of pounds forequipment and adventurous activities, many ofyou have approached me for advice in gettinggrants. I don’t claim to be an expert infundraising, just persistent, and when told bysome ‘I doubt you’ll get anything from there’, Ireply ‘There’s no harm in trying’. DYB DYB DYBDYB!So, here are my five steps to fundraisingsuccess:� Don’t give up before you’ve started!� Register on www.fundraisingcentral.org.uk to

receive weekly e-mails on upcomingdeadlines for funding opportunities. Perfectfor finding corporate and government grants.I recently got £1000 from Tesco for our B-PSA membership fees (insurance, leadertraining etc), Scout skills training andbadges.� Apply to Awards for All (The Big Lottery) for

£10,000 www.awardsforall.org.uk/ for allyour equipment, travel expenses andactivities. You can get this grant every 3years! New tents, stoves, Go-pak tables –what do you need?� Approach your local Community Foundation

– they have access to loads of small, privateand corporate funds, usually on a genericapplication form, so you can tell them whatyou’re after and they match you to the bestfund. Visit this website to find your localcommunity foundation:

www.communityfoundations.org.ukand click on ‘Community

Foundations in yourArea’. These

small

Fundraising to Success!grants are greatfor summeractivities, orequipment. Weget £500/yearfrom theNorthumberland High Sheriff Award, and got£800 from Comic Relief for canoeing, horse-riding and other exciting summer activities.� Speak to the local council – you can get

small grants from your parish council, andCommunity Chest grants from your Districtor County Council. Our Parish Council givesus anything from £30 – £100 per year, andthe County £1,000.

When applying for grants, you’ll need a copy ofPAR for the Constitution, the B-PSA ChildProtection Policy, B-PSA Charity Number(278525) and a shopping list!If you need any more funding advice, rememberthe B-PSA has a new funding advisor, Mariafrom Kidwelly B-P Scout Group. Maria is able toread over and advise you with your projectapplications, maybe point you to grant sources,help you develop your ideas, but sadly due toher own job and family commitments she can’twrite your applications for you! contactMaria at [email protected] luck!

Ninette Gray

Group Scout Master

1st Whitt ingham B-P

Scout Group


Teenagers from the north of England and Scotland gave up thechance of a warm, relaxed and comfortable weekend to travelto Twizel, near Belford to take part in a cold and frostyNovember escape and evasion exercise. Groups travelled fromas far afield as Manchester to join in with Northumbria Area’sSurvival Badge part 2 weekend.

The criteria of this part of the badge requirements is thatparticipants carry out a journey of at least 15km in an escapestyle exercise in ‘difficult’ country without equipment otherthan light survival packs over at least two days and one night.

Seniors prepare to move

Caught napping

Seniors, with a minimum of equipment, were therefore takento a drop off point on the Saturday morning from where theywere to use their skills in navigation, camouflage andconcealment to avoid being captured and reach a defined yet‘insecure’ area in which they had to remain overnight.

Teams of searchers were deployed to track down and pursuepatrols of 3 or 4 Senior Scouts who would lose one of theirallocated five lives whenever they were caught. If all ‘lives’were lost then the patrol would have to return to base.

The overnight rain and cloud cover had dissipated leaving acrisp and clear November day graced with glorious sunshine:wonderful for a day of relaxed walking in the country withincredible views of moorland and the Cheviots to the west andthe breathtaking Northumberland coastline with Holy Island

and Bamburgh Castle and the Farne Islands to the east.However, this was not the time to savour the wonderfulcountryside but to avoid capture. Patrols varied in theirapproach; careful use of dead ground or hedges and woodlandto give cover, selecting routes away from those expected to befollowed, breaking up ‘unnatural’ shapes by use of camouflageand irregular spacing while moving etc.

Night time was somewhat different. All the patrols weresomewhere within a defined area consisting of woodland andfields, meandering burns and undulating terrain. It was alsopitch black. To avoid capture, patrols needed to remain silentand avoid the use of fire or torchlight. Buckets of goodieswere positioned to entice the Seniors out of their hidingplaces. Meanwhile, searchers could be noisy and use torcheswhile they worked their ways throughout the night scouringthe area listening and looking for any giveaway signs. Onepatrol was even found fast asleep in their survival bags!

The following day, each patrol had to reach a specific locationwithin a given time range so it was back to daylight evasiontechniques again. All patrols were caught at least twice withothers on their last lives on the final day. Mistakes were madeand lessons learned but all participantssaid they had a thoroughly goodtime.

Northumberland moor andwoodland provides a great

natural landscape forescape and evasion

Nick Allen

Senior Scout Master


Group


One of the best things, inmy opinion, that we do inScouting is camp cooking. Imay of course be biased inmy view because I enjoyfood so much! However, itis easy to make a mess ofwhat is being cooked asthere is no control switchon a campfire and the fireneeds continuous attentiontoo. Yet there is no excusefor camp cooking to bebad; there is no excuse forthe food you cook on acampfire not being as goodas what you could cook athome. I recall the firstScout Camp that I helpedorganise quite a few yearsback now in which ,amongst other things, theScouts had to meet thepractical element of theCamp Cook badge (wewere SA at the time) andproduced the mostfabulous kebabs I haveever tasted and which Iwould have been happypaying for in a restaurant!

A great way of campcooking is with a DutchOven. They are veryversatile allowing all sortsof cooking types eg baking,roasting, stewing etc sowhy not have a go?

Dutch Ovens are cast iron pots usually with three legs and a rimmed lidenabling hot coals to be piled on top to make the perfect Dutch camp oven.Dutch Ovens are perfect for stews, casserole and can be used for baking androasting over camp fires or placed in the hot ashes. They are also great for useon BBQ's or at home on the hob or in a conventional oven. The Dutch Oven lidcan be turned upside down sat in hot ashes or supported over the fire or BBQand used as a frying pan/skillet.

How to make Pan Haggerty

Pan Haggerty is a traditional Northumbrian dish which, as wellas being very tasty, lends itself extremely well to campcooking especially with a Dutch Oven.Ingredients: about 5 good sized potatoes, about 5good sized onions, a large lump of cheese, oil orbuttter (for a 4 litre Dutch Oven)Method:� Peel and thinly slice potatoes; peel and chop onions; grate cheese.� Lightly oil/grease Dutch Oven.� Add layer of sliced potatoes to Dutch Oven.� Add layer of chopped onions on top of layer of potatoes.� Add layer of grated cheese on top of layer of onion.� Repeat previous three steps twice, finishing off with a good cheesy topping.� Place lid on the Dutch Oven and position for cooking. Cook for about an

hour - but keep checking from time to time. Use a knife or fork etc to ‘feel’that the potato is cooked.

Please note that the Dutch Oven will get very hot insideand is therefore very easy to burn what you are cooking.Regulate the temperature, for instance, by using a tripodor similar. Place a few embers on top of the lid too!

Dutch Ovens are readily available from suppliers such as Ronnie Sunshines(www.ronniesunshines.com) and cost from around £30.

There are different versionsof Pan Haggerty which youmay like to try eg addingcorned beef or strips of pre-fried bacon etc. You maywish to add salt and peppertoo. You could also omit thelayers of cheese but addsome stock and simmer forabout half an hour, finallyadd a toping of gratedcheese and finish cookingby adding a load of embersto the lid to brown thecheese.

Nick AllenSenior Scout Master1st Flodden B-P ScoutGroup


Date Event Contact18-20 Jan Rover Scouts Winter

weekend - Cairngorms Clive Gray

22-24 Feb Safety on the Hills pt 1 - 3rdWiltshire HQ Jay Dodson

15-17 Mar Senior Scout St George'sAward weekend - Cheshire Norman Boxall

22 Mar St George's Award meeting Norman Boxall

13-14 AprRovers/Leaders 24 hrendurance challenge -Camberley

Jay Dodson

20-21 Apr Preiminary Training Course,Warminster Martyn

Dodson24-28 May Wood Beads pt 2, Altrincham28-30 June Patrol Camping Competition Jay Dodson6-7 July Beavers/Cubs Flodden Camp Joanne Hall

[email protected] July Scouts/Seniors Flodden

Camp3-10 Aug Discovery Award Norman Boxall

27-29 Sept Scouts/Seniors BadgeBonanza - North Lincolnshire

Jay Dodson/Norman Boxall

Upcoming events

Rover Scout (and leader)24 hour endurance challenge.

This is a 24 hour nonstop traditional Scoutingskills challenge for teams of two Rover Scouts /Leaders.The challenge will be based on an Armyexercise area near Camberley in Surrey,starting at 10.00 on Saturday 13th April.Camping will be available on site the nightbefore.This will be tough, and a huge amount of fun,and we are hoping to have some of theoriginators of the Danish tournament in the UKto help run it.Email Jay Dodson who will send an informationpack.

Are you tough enough?for the

Endurance Challenge

Scout / Senior Scout Badge Bonanza27th – 29th September

North Lincolnshirecontacts for more information:

Scouts: Jay, Senior Scouts: Norman

St George’s AwardThe St George’s Award meeting will be onthe 22nd March at Millbrook.

Norman needs to know who is attending by theend of February.

TrainingA Preliminary Training Course will be held inWarminster from 20th - 21st April.Wood Beads pt 2 training takes place inAltrincham from 25th - 28th May.All enquiries and bookings [email protected]

astronomy for seniors whittingham’s lesotho … those of scouts. any scouts proficiency badges may...

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