We provide fun, challenge and adventure for boys and girls in the largest Group in the local area
We provide fun, challenge and adventure for boys and girls in the largest Group in the local area

Sections

The leadership team in 2015

Beaver Scouts are the youngest section of the Scouting family. Their activities are based around making things, outdoor activities, singing, playing games, going out on visits, investigating nature, listening to stories, learning how to be safe and most importantly, making new friends.

Children join a Beaver Scout Colony for many reasons. It might be they have heard great things from their friends about all the things your Colony gets up to every week. Perhaps parents or carers are keen for them to join. Whatever their reasons, whether or not they stay will be down to you and your team, and the weekly programme you provide.

Basics

Beavers are usually aged between six and eight years old, though they can be as young as five and three quarters.

Joining

Earlier entry is at the Beaver Scout Leader’s discretion (for example, to allow someone a little bit younger to join at the same time as their friends).

Structure

A group of Beaver Scouts is called a Colony, and each Colony can be split up into smaller groups called Lodges.

Beavers have a Promise and Motto, but there is not a Beaver Scout Law. The concepts of the Scout Law should be presented to Beavers through games, storytelling and other informal devices.

 Cubs is the second section of the Scouting movement, originally started in 1916 for younger brothers who wanted a ‘look-in’. In nearly a century, the section has constantly evolved and adapted its programme and methods to meet the changing needs of each generation of young people, and these days admits girls as well as boys.

Basics

Cub Scouts are young people aged between 8 and 10 1/2, who make up the second section of the Scouting family, between Beavers and Scouts.

Joining

Under some circumstances, Cub Scouts can join the Pack as young as 7 1/2 if, for example, they have friends joining at the same time, or are mature enough to move on early from Beavers, (and there is space in the Pack). Such decisions are taken by Cub and Beaver Scout leaders.

Activities

During their time in the Pack, Cub Scouts will get a chance to try lots of different activities like swimming, music, exploring, computing and collecting.

There are a range of badges available which Cub Scouts can wear on their uniforms to show everyone how well they’re doing.

Cub Scouts also get to go on trips and days out, to places like the zoo, theme parks or a farm. Sometimes they will be able to go camping with the rest of the Pack and take part in all kinds of outdoor activities.

Structure and organisation

A Pack of Cub Scouts is organised into Sixes, with each Six named after a colour, and a Sixer and a Seconder in charge.

The recommended maximum size of a Cub Scout Pack is 36 Cub Scouts. To meet local circumstance this maximum number may be increased, either in the long term or the short term with the agreement of the Group Scout Leader.

 Scouts are the third section of the Scouting movement. From the first experimental camp for 20 boys in 1907, the movement now has an estimated 28 million members worldwide, and in the UK alone there are over 499,000 boys and girls involved in Scouting. An increase in adult volunteers means that more and more young people are now able to take part in their own big adventure.

Basics

The Scout Section is for young people, usually aged between 10½ and 14 years. A young person can come into the Troop at 10 and may stay until they are 14½  years old. The Scout Troop is the third section in the Scout Group, above Beavers and Cubs.

 Activities

Scouts are encouraged to take part in a wide range of activities as part of their programme. Participation rather than meeting set standards is the key approach, and for the Scout who wants to be recognised for his or her achievements there are a number of Challenges awards and activity badges.

 Balanced Programme

Scouts take part in a Balanced Programme that helps them to find out about the world in which they live, encourages them to know their own abilities and the importance of keeping fit, and helps develop their creative talents. It also provides opportunities to explore their own values and personal attitudes.

Being outdoors is important, and half the programme is given over to taking part in traditional Scouting skills, such as camping, survival and cooking, as well as a wider spectrum of adventurous activities, from abseiling to zorbing.

 International Scouting

Its international aspect gives Scouting a special appeal, and many Scouts now travel abroad during their time in the section. In 2007, 40,000 Scouts from around the world attended the World Jamboree in the UK, and Scouts regularly participate in international camps and experiences both on home soil and abroad, each of them a unique experience in its own right.

 Structure

A Scout Troop is divided into small groups called Patrols, each headed up by an older Scout called a Patrol Leader, and often with an Assistant Patrol Leader.

Scouting is about being with friends, as part of a team, and participating fully in the adventure and opportunities of life.

Explorers are the fourth section of the Scouting movement. Right from the time of Baden-Powell, there have been arrangements for young people who wanted to continue after their time in the Scout Section, and in 1967, Venture Scouts were formed from the existing Senior Scout and Rover Scout Sections.

Basics

Explorer Scouts are young people, usually aged between 14 and 18 years old. They make up the fourth section of the Scouting family after Beavers, Cubs and Scouts.

Structure and meetings

A group of Explorer Scouts is called a Unit.

Not all Units meet every week, partly due to activities, holidays, exams and the other commitments that crop up in a teenager’s life, and also because Explorers tend to get out and about at weekends more often than other sections.

Activities

Explorer Scouts often get the chance to work with other Explorer Scouts in their District, not just their own Unit, so can take part in an even wider spectrum of activities.

There is also a range of ambitious badges and awards, through which Explorers can demonstrate their proficiencies and expand their interests.

The 16th Morecambe Group links with the Discovery Explorer Scout Unit, which meets in our headquarters building.

Click on the appropriate tab at the top of the page to link to the relevant section.

16th Morecambe and Heysham Scouts