Beavers are young people aged 6 to 8. Beavers get up to all sorts of things, including day visits, sleepovers, arts and crafts, exploring the outdoors and much more! Their fun adventures are only possible thanks to our amazing set of leaders – the backbone of Scouting.
Next in our ‘Meet our Volunteer’ series, we’d like to introduce you to Alex, Assistant Beaver Scout Leader for the 7th Edinburgh North East (Leith) Sea Scouts who are also known as Trinity Scouts.
Read his story and find the perfect volunteer role for yourself. Whether you want to work with young people directly or help behind the scenes, there’s something for everyone at Scouts.
Name – Alex
Group and District – 7th Edinburgh North East (Leith) Sea Scouts
Role – Assistant Beaver Leader
Joined Scouting – since March 2019
Any former Scouting experience? I was a Beaver and Cub Scout in the 1980s
I’ve been volunteering at my local Scout group, 7th Edinburgh North East (Leith) Sea Scouts since early 2019 as an Assistant Beaver Scout Leader.
My older son had started in Beavers two years before and the Colony was very welcoming and inclusive, as well as fun. What struck me, having been a Beaver and Cub myself as a child is how much Scouting had changed, and how much more was offered to keep everyone interested. My abiding memory of Scouting in the 1980s was that it was general lawlessness for small boys to burn off steam playing football, wrestling and fighting.
Now they are building water filters, visiting observatories and islands, learning camp craft, as well as running around like whirlwinds. In 2019 our Group was facing potential closure as many leaders were retiring/moving away, and volunteers were being sought, so it felt like the right moment to become involved.
The great thing about Beavers is that pretty much any idea is worth trying. We’ve made cardboard toilets to learn about World Toilet Day, put on a Chinese Zodiac puppet show, run a pirate assault course, learned our own phonetic alphabet (C is for Chocolate), made giant paper aeroplanes, gone grass sledging and created our own junk-modelling animal collection.
Scouting gives you an excuse to chance your luck by asking for things you might get a funny look for otherwise, and one of our highlights was visiting the local fire station.
During lockdown we kept Beavers running on Zoom, which proved much more successful than anticipated, with parents expressing thanks for keeping young people connected and giving them something fun to look forward to.
BENEFITS OF VOLUNTEERING:
As I work for the emergency services, my job is often unpleasant, stressful or even traumatic, and Beavers is a great pressure valve to counteract that. It allows an hour of complete silliness, be that making armpit fudge or hosting the conker Olympics. Let’s be honest, it’s not “just an hour a week” by the time all the planning and preparing is counted, but it’s just good fun. Come and give it a go!
There are lots of ways you can get more involved with Scouts as a parent, carer or family member. From helping out occasionally on a family rota or playing a vital role behind the scenes, to stepping up as a leader, our volunteering activities are as varied as you.
We’re talking tidy uppers and tea makers, session planners, fundraisers and treasurers, and all-round team players to support our young people.
The good news is you shape what you do and the time you have to give. Scouts happens when a lot of us give a little (and no, you don’t have to be a Scout or outdoors expert to volunteer).
Across the Edinburgh North East District, the current vacancies include:
What to expect:
No two weeks are the same, but the impact you make is always great.
Make a difference, volunteer today
To find out more about helping out, speak to the leader at your local group or use our volunteer enquiry from which can be found using the option below. Share your details and a volunteer from your local team will be in touch soon.
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