Adult appointments & learning
Volunteers are the heart of the Scouts and we want you to get every bit as much out of it as you put in.
We know that Scouting is not only about young people, but also about the development of our volunteers. To support Scout volunteers, you are required to complete a training programme made up of mandatory, role specific and ongoing learning.
The training programme builds on your existing skills and knowledge and some elements count towards externally-recognised awards.
Starting the journey
Here’s a handy illustration which explains the steps new volunteers take to become a full member:
Criminal records checks
The safeguarding of young people in our care is very important. The Scouts have got various processes in place to ensure that appropriate adults can take up volunteering opportunities; one of these is the requirement for a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.
The DBS check (where required) must be started within 30 days of joining. The documents that you’ll have to use are listed here.
We use a mobile friendly self-service criminal record check process through a system called Atlantic Data.
Please note, we don’t use the Disclosure Update Service. This means that new volunteers will have to complete a criminal record check even if you’ve already completed one for another organisation.
Our UK Headquarters will also automatically check new volunteers against their internal records.
References
References are used to keep young people safe and to check that all volunteers are right for Scouts. References must be requested within 6 weeks of joining.
Getting references is straightforward – you just log on to our system, enter your referee information, click submit and they’ll be contacted and asked to respond. Referees can respond directly and references with no comments or issues will be approved automatically. Any issues flagged by references received will be reviewed locally.
Referees should ideally know about the volunteer’s work or contact with young people, and be able to comment on their character and relationships with others. Referees must not be relatives. At least one referee must have known the volunteer for at least five years. One referee must not be from the Scouts.
Welcome conversation
In the first six weeks of joining Scouts, the volunteer will attend a Welcome Conversation with their Team Leader and another volunteer.
It’s an opportunity for new volunteers to introduce themselves and their interests, and for current volunteers to make sure that they understand and commit to our values, and how we keep young people safe.
Volunteer learning
We organise learning at Scouts in what we call the Learning Tree. It’s made up of:
- Growing Roots – The learning that all new volunteers need to do within their first six months.
- Branching Out – The learning that you can choose to do to develop your knowledge further and get accreditations.
Learning is accessed and recorded on our online system which you log into at scouts.org.uk
As part of Growing Roots, new volunteers need to complete their Safety and Safeguarding learning within the first 30 days of joining. This is important so that you understand how to keep young people safe in Scouts.
These, along with First Aid learning, are mandatory and must be updated every 3 years. There is also mandatory GDPR training but this only needs to be completed once.
How to access learning and keep track of your progress
Sign in to scouts.org.uk and go to ‘My learning’. There you can see the learning that you need to do, explore other learning that you might be interested in, request to be assessed and keep track of your progress.
Read the My learning digital tool guide to learn how to do this.
Who can support you with learning
The District and County Volunteering Development Teams are there to support you with your learning. They manage things locally and can answer any questions that you might have. They can also support you to access our digital learning and help you to find an alternative if you haven’t got access to the internet.
Our learning is overseen by Chris Nagle. He is responsible for the management of all aspects of the learning process for adults within the County (which is called Greater London North).
In our District he is supported by Roger Turner and Brian Fisher
To find out how learning is run in Greater London North County click here
To book onto a training course click here.