To take young people into the hills you will need to have an appropriate hillwalking permit in accordance with the Scouts adventurous activity permit scheme.
For hillwalking there are four different levels of permit: * Terrain 1 Summer conditions * Terrain 1 Winter conditions * Terrain 2 Summer conditions * Terrain 2 Winter conditions.
Further information on Hillwalking adventurous activity permits for terrain 1 and 2 can be found here.
Currently, the South East Scotland hillwalking assessor team can only provide assessments for Terrain 1 and 2 in Summer conditions as part of our regular scheduled weekends. If you require a Winter T1 or T2 permit please email hillwalking@sesscouts.org.uk to make specific arrangements for an assessment.
The Assessment / Assessment Training takes place over a weekend and include lightweight wild camping on the Saturday night.
The Hillwalking adventurous activity permit is designed to ensure that only people with the relevant skills and experience lead young people in Terrain 1 and 2 environments. The “assessment checklist for hillwalking” provides a good starting point to understand the level of competency that is required. While the checklist provides a good overview of the skills and experience required for a more detailed understanding you should refer to the relevant Mountain Training awards.
For terrain 1 summer conditions the relevant equivalent qualification is the “Hill and Moorland Leader”. For terrain 2 summer conditions the equivalent qualification is the “Mountain Leader”. The list of “Useful Resources” on these pages should provide you with the information you need.
Anyone who wants to get a hillwalking permit for taking young people into the hills will require an assessment by a Scout Association appointed hillwalking assessor. Generally, this would be an assessor in your region but if none is available, assessors from other regions can be approached.
To apply for a permit you either need to have the relevant “Mountain Training” qualifications or you need to be able to demonstrate an equivalent level of experience and skill.
In addition you will need to demonstrate a knowledge of the activity POR rules (also see here) and how they affect the activity within Scouting.
Further information on the application process can be found within the Applicants’ Guide FS120101.
If you do not currently have the required level of experience to hold a permit but are interested in developing your own skills you would be welcome to attend an “Assessment Training” weekend. However, you would need to:
* have appropriate personal kit including walking boots, waterproof Jacket, waterproof trousers and suitable clothing (see the layering system), sleeping bag, sleeping mat etc.;
* have a suitable rucksack for carrying your personal kit and lightweight camping equipment for one night on the hill. (Camping and cooking equipment can be provided on request);
* be able to walk over rough terrain not following paths, and on steep ground and be out for a full day (up to 5 hours travelling time with appropriate rests and lunch break bringing it up to a 7 hour day or more);
* be prepared to undertake some navigation exercise during the hours of darkness to simulate low visibility conditions.
While the above list may feel a little bit daunting as long as you are reasonably hill fit and want to learn new skills the weekends are very enjoyable. While we will be travelling for several hours each day the distance we travel tends to be relatively low because of the time taken to do navigation exercises.
Yes the Scouts permit scheme allows for adventurous activity permits to be issued with restrictions. Depending on the specific terrain that you want to make use of this allows leaders to gain experience of taking groups of scouts into the hills in a safe way.
You will still need to demonstrate an appropriate level of skill to plan walks, navigate, and manage groups of young people safely in the area you wish to use.
Generally, we would encourage candidates applying for a restricted permit to attend our regularly scheduled “Assessment” or “Assessment Training” weekends. However, we would be happy to discuss with you alternative arrangements, especially in the situation where you did not want to undertake any lightweight camping in remote areas.
To find out if a restricted permit might be something that would be appropriate for you, please email hillwalking@sesscouts.org.uk with an indication of the area you are interested in and a brief description of your skills and experience.
The assessment process is different depending on your skills and experience and whether you hold any Mountain Training qualifications. The following subsections provide an indication of the assessment process depending on your situation.
I hold a relevant Mountain Training Qualification.
The following process should be followed:
1. Complete an application form
2. Email hillwalking@sesscouts.org.uk with the completed application form and a copy of your hillwalking log or access to your DLOG
3. An assessor will contact you to arrange a meeting, either in person or by Zoom; we generally have 2 assessors for these meetings to talk though your application.
4. Assuming a successful meeting a recommendation will be made to your District Commissioner that you should be issued the relevant hillwalking permit.
5. Granting a permit is the responsibility of the District Commissioner.
In general, where you hold a current Mountain Training qualification there will be no need for a practical assessment. However, you will need to demonstrate during your meeting with the assessors your understand of the Scout rules for taking young people into the hills (useful links: Hillwalking | Scouts and Policy, Organisation and Rules | Scouts).
I have many years’ experience leading groups in the hills but do not have any formal qualification.
The following process should be followed:
1. Check that your experience and skills are consistent with the relevant Mountain Training qualifications. (see ‘What experience is required for a scout hillwalking permit?’)
2. Prepare a log of your experience with as much detail as possible. A log typically includes information on the area you were walking in, the date, the duration of the walk, the weather conditions, and a general description of your walk. It is also useful to note if you were leading a group or part of a group being lead.
3. Email hillwalking@sesscouts.org.uk to arrange a meeting either in person or by Zoom to discuss whether additional training is recommended to refresh your skills. This training can be provided either by the hillwalking assessors or by external bodies. Attending training offered by the hillwalking assessors will allow you to gain an understanding of the level of skill required, how the assessment will be carried out and also obtain feedback on areas to work on prior to attendance for assessment.
4. Once ready for assessment you should:
4a. Complete an application form
4b. Email hillwalking@sesscouts.org.uk with the completed application from and a copy of your hillwalking log.
4c. Request a place on the next available Assessment weekend (We run Assessment / Assessment Training weekends twice a year generally in April and September).
4d. Assuming a successful outcome from the Assessment weekend the assessor will make a recommendation to your District Commissioner that you should be issued the relevant hillwalking permit.
4e. Granting a permit is the responsibility of the District Commissioner.
The training sessions that the assessor team provides will be geared to the requirements of the attendees and the skills that are specified within the assessment checklist but will tend to have a strong focus on navigational techniques and competency.
We also include some exercise to do in advance of the weekend that you will need to complete and come prepared to discuss. If you are not sure how to complete the exercises, then simply come with your question as we can address these during the weekend.
For some of the T2 syllabus such as emergency rope work you may not be as familiar with what is required. We will provide training on the techniques you will need to demonstrate for an assessment during the weekend, but we expect that you will need to practice these before attending an assessment.
While the “Assessment Training” will cover the syllabus that you will be assessed against most people will need to practice their skills during the time between training and assessment. We strongly recommend that you factor this into your plans for assessment and when selecting an assessment date.
Once you know which you need, “Assessment” or “Assessment Training”, you should check the dates of the next assessment and email hillwalking@sesscouts.org.uk with a request to attend. You should include in your email the following information:
1. Name
2. Mobile phone number
3. The sort of permit you are looking for: T1 Summer or T2 Summer
4. What you are attending for: Assessment or Assessment Training
4a. For Assessment you should have already provided an application form and your walking log
4b. For Assessment Training you do not need to complete an application form, but you should have already provided your walking log
5. Emergency contact details including name and mobile phone number
6. Any medical issues that we need to know about, for example asthma, allergies etc.
Once we have the details of candidates for a weekend, we will provide you with all the information that is required. This will include:
1. Details of any pre meeting / zoom call
2. Details of any homework to be completed prior to the weekend (for example, preparing a risk assessment, route plan etc.)
3. Details of the location, timings and other practical arrangements.
We expect that you will bring you own walking kit including any personal emergency equipment, a detailed kit list will be issued to you once you are booked onto a weekend.
We can provide some lightweight camping equipment that you can borrow if required and for T2 Summer candidates we will provide suitable ropes for the rope work sessions.
For both the “Assessment” or “Assessment Training” weekends you will be provided with all the information that you require once booked on the weekend. Set out below is a brief summary of the information that you will receive.
1. A welcome pack confirming the meeting location and area for the assessment.
2. A planning exercise to be completed before the weekend
3. A list of recommended reading
4. Detailed kit list, including items that we can provide if necessary [Please get in touch as soon as possible if there are some items of kit that you might need to borrow]
The weekend itself will comprise the following:
Day 1 activities:
Day 1: An early start on Saturday to travel to <<Location>>
Day 1: An initial briefing to allocate people into groups, check kit and cover any safety issues (note you must have suitable kit to be able to operate safely in the Scottish mountains)
Day 1: Distribution of any kit that has been requested in advance
Day 1: A short walk to the overnight camping location to put up tents (this limits the time we are carrying heavy packs)
Day1 typical activities: navigation exercises, group management, risk assessment, weather, water hazards.
Overnight Camp: selection of campsite, pitching tents, food hygiene, personal hygiene etc.
Night Navigation: if the weather conditions have not provided an opportunity for navigation in low visibility, we may undertake some night navigation exercise that simulate low visibility conditions.
Day 2 activities:
Summer T1: more of the exercise undertaken on Day 1
Summer T2: safety on steep ground, rope work, crossing water hazards
Day 2: Return to cars mid-afternoon for debrief
Day 2: Travel home in good time.
When considering if you should be undertaking an “Assessment” or an “Assessment Training” weekend if you are unfamiliar with how the assessment process works, we would recommend attending an “Assessment Training” weekend as the best way to get experience of being assessed.
We use the same assessment techniques as those used by “Mountain Training” scheme so if you have undertaken any of their courses you should be familiar with the assessment process.
South East Scotland Scouts
71 Bonaly Road
Edinburgh
EH13 0PB
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