Invaluable Scout leader to be honoured at bbq

A celebration is being held in memory of a scoutmaster who served one of the oldest surviving Scout groups in the world.

Philip "Pip" Williams joined the 5th Bristol Scouts in April 1940 and remained with them until 1996.

In 1958 the group needed to raise money for a new building to meet in, so Mr Williams organised a huge barbecue that attracted crowds of up to 27,000 people, according to the group.

"He went out of his way to help anyone, even in his 70s he was up ladders replacing gutters for his neighbours," said Michael White from the group.

The 5th Bristol Scouts group traces its origins to a musical band that raised funds for St Anne's Church, built in 1906.

A few years later they joined the newly affiliated Scout Association, set up by Robert Baden-Powell.

"During the Second World War, lots of Scout masters were called up, so Pip took over the band at the age of 13," Mr White said.

Mr White said without Pip, the group, which still runs in Brislington, "wouldn't have survived" the war.

In 1941, the Scout hut was taken over by American soldiers stationed in Bristol, and Mr Williams secured new premises to keep the group going.

The barbecue he organised in 1958 at Arno's Court Park was a huge affair that included an 800lb (362kg) ox roast, a model railway, wrestling and horse displays.

As a fitting tribute, the group plans to host a barbecue to unveil a plaque dedicated to Mr Williams on 8 June.

His original uniform and badges from the 1950s will be on display, alongside a bugle handed down from the 1906 band.

"We didn't just want to put a plaque on the wall when not many people would know who he was, so we decided to have our own event where we can remember him," Mr White said.

Mr White said they hoped to see "as many people as possible" at the event on Saturday.

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