I hope that all of enjoyed a well-deserved break over the summer. Whilst the Regional Team took some downtime, that didn’t mean that Scouting stopped with a lot of work going on behind the scenes to support Scouting’s ongoing commitment to Safe Scouting for all our members.

Keeping young people safe is our top priority in Scouts. Following on from the inquest into the tragic death of Ben Leonard and the UK Scouts’ response to HM Coroner’s Prevention of Future Deaths, all Regions were asked to perform a thorough self moderation exercise. This covered the following areas:

• Adventurous Activity Permit Scheme
• Nights Away
• Training
• Visits Abroad
• Safety Support

Following on from this exercise a set of prioritised actions have been identified. I am pleased to say that the moderation exercise highlighted the good work already going on to support Safe Scouting within the Region and my thanks go to those who supported this – in particular Mike Treanor, Bruce MacDonald and Simon Innes.

However, we will not be resting on our laurels and the exercise highlighted that there are a number of areas where we could improve and Mike Treanor, Volunteer Development Lead, is working with the Regional Team and Regional Trustee Board to look at how we take these forward in the coming months.

There are a number of ways that you can support Safe Scouting locally:

1. Ensure that your Safety and Safeguarding mandatory training are up to date. If they have expired or are about to expire in the next couple of months please complete ASAP and get your Training Adviser or Lead Volunteer to validate on Compass.
2. Ensure that Risk Assessments are in place and documented for all Scouting activities. Advice on how to perform Risk assessments is available here
3. Ensure that appropriate First Aid cover is in place. Following the cessation of previous First Response Rules on 30th November 2024, all adult volunteers in relevant roles will need to hold a current Module 10A and 10B to act as First Aid cover on Scout activities with the date on which Module 10A is completed triggering the three-year renewal date of the learning (this used to be Module 10B).
4. If you own premises, make sure that all required safety precautions are in place. You might find the Scouts Premises Audit
5. Ensure that your Group or District’s Risk Register is up to date.

Our Regional Leadership play a key role in supporting Safe Scouting and there have been a number of changes over the Summer:

• Robert Anderson has been appointed as the new Lead Volunteer for Braid District, taking over from Judith Wood. I look forward to working with Robert in his new role and I would like to take this opportunity to thank Judith for the huge amount of work that she has done as Lead Volunteer, leading the district over the last 6 years, steering the district confidently through some challenging times. I would also like to thank her for the invaluable support and advice that she has offered me and I am pleased that she is staying involved in Scouting in the District.
• Hilary Cartwright has completed her term as Lead Volunteer for East Lothian. I would like to thank Hilary for all that she has done to support Scouting in East Lothian not just in her five years as District Commissioner/Lead Volunteer but in a variety of roles over the years. Hilary’s enthusiasm for Scouting comes through in everything that she does and this was particularly evident during the challenges of COVID. I am delighted that Hilary is staying involved in Scouting in the District and am grateful for her continued advice and support. Until a new Lead Volunteer is appointed, I will serve as acting Lead Volunteer for East Lothian.
• Colin Liddle has been appointed as Regional Programme Lead. Colin, is also one of the Lead Volunteers in Pentland district, and is looking forward to working with the Programme team and looking at how we as a Region can better support them in the important work that they are doing. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the members of the Programme team for the way that you have continued to ensure the delivery of programme support whilst this position is vacant – we are fortunate to have a strong Programme Team in the Region and with the support of Colin’s leadership I am confident we can continue the positive momentum that they have built.