The Scout Association

The Scout Association is the World Organization of the Scout Movement recognized Scouting association in the United Kingdom. Scouting began in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell. Due to the rapid growth of Scouting and a desire to remove control from the publisher of the Scouting magazine, the Boy Scout Association was formed in 1910 by the grant of a charter by the United Kingdom Parliament.

A Royal Charter of January 4, 1912 incorporated The Scout Association throughout the British Commonwealth with "the purpose of instructing boys of all classes in the principles of discipline loyalty and good citizenship". The Charter was granted by George V.

In 1967 the name was formally changed to The Scout Association. Girls were admitted in 1976 so that the Association has now become a co-educational institution.

Overview

In the UK, the Boy Scout Association was formed in 1908. It was granted a Royal Charter by King George V in 1912. That charter was an Imperial Charter which gave the Association legal effect throughout the Empire. Those under age eleven were named "Wolf Cubs" (often abbreviated to just "Cubs"), and graduated to "Boy Scout" at that age. Older members belonged to a section, established in 1919, named "Rover Scouts".

The Association changed its name to The Scout Association in 1967 as part of a package of radical reform and modernisation. "Boy" was dropped from the title, and a new uniform with long trousers was introduced to eliminate the "Boer War appearance". Senior Scouts and Rovers were abolished, and Venture Scouts were introduced for the older 15 to 20 age range.

In 1976 girls were allowed into the movement as Venture Scouts. This was extended as an option to all sections of the movement in the late 1980s, along with additional reforms to the uniform including the introduction of sweatshirts.

In the early 1980s, the leaders of children aged between 6 and 8 (called Beavers) were allowed to become members of the Association, while the children themselves were not. This changed on April 1, 1986, when Beavers became Beaver Scouts overnight. There was initially only one badge to be earned, but this had expanded to three by 1995, and was expanded further as part of the reform package below.

As a result of another review, 2003 effectively saw the reversal of one of the 1967 changes, with Venture Scouts being replaced with Explorer Scouts (14–18 age range) and the Scout Network (18–25). In 2004, completing this reform package, a new training procedure for Adult Members was introduced. This comprises 36 modules, with titles such as "Managing Challenging Behaviour" and "Valuing Diversity". New leaders must complete specific modules in order to gain the "Wood Badge" and be fully qualified. This system is intended to allow training to fit around the specific requirements of individuals, with various methods of completion. Prior to this, there were two courses, Leadership One and Two, which were overnight courses, run over a number of weekends.

Program and divisions

Local divisions of The Scout Association generally but not strictly follow the boundaries of the ceremonial counties of Great Britain.

The Scout association elsewhere

Non-sovereign territories with Scouting run by The Scout Association include

Sovereign countries with Scouting run by The Scout Association, as they are without independent Scouting organizations, include

Other Scout organizations in the United Kingdom

Other Scout organizations in the United Kingdom include an independent branch of Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego/ZHP, a Polish emigré Scout organization, nonaligned to a supranational organization and not connected with ZHP/Poland.

External links

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