Flysheet

The Sutton District Scouting Newsletter – July 2007

Contents

  1. Contents
  2. Awards
  3. Chairman’s Notes
  4. Notes from the District Commissioner
  5. Beavers
  6. Cubs
  7. Scouts
  8. Explorers
  9. District Camp 2007
  10. Making Our Mark
  11. Church Bell Ringing for the Centenary of Scouting
  12. BikeStreet
  13. Sutton Youth Service Equipment Hire
  14. Midair Model Aircraft Workshops
  15. PAGGS YLC 2008
  16. New and Updated Fact Sheets
  17. Diary 2007
  18. Flysheet
  19. Stop Press

Awards

Congratulations to the following members of our District who have been awarded the Medal of Merit for Outstanding Services to Scouting:

John Cort – 2nd Cheam
Philip Tree – 3rd Cheam
Fiona Witham – 8th Sutton Trinity Scout and Guide Group
Margaret Pennington – 4th Worcester Park

Chairman’s Notes

Since the last issue of the Flysheet it has been good to hear about the activities that have been arranged by Groups to celebrate the 100 years of Scouting. The main District function was of course the camp held at Walton Firs organised by Ray Shaw and his team. Regardless of the very wet weather as a visitor it was easy to see that all the young people there were really enjoying themselves and this has been confirmed from comments after the camp.

The Mayor and Mayoress of Sutton, (Councillor Myfanwy Wallace and Mrs June Reid) together with other VIPs that included Tom Brake MP, Roger Hurrion our County Commissioner, Deputy County Commissioner Nigel Steward, County Chairman Tony Edwards, and the County Commissioner for Surrey Richard Shortman attended the camp on the Saturday. All the guests were given a guided tour of the camp and at 5:30pm the Mayor planted a Hornbeam tree to commemorate the occasion. Refreshments followed and then the Camp Fire with the lighting of the Beacon at 8:00pm to coincide with others across the country.

[Picture of the tree planting]
The Mayor of Sutton planting a commemorative tree

At the Camp Fire the Mayor praised the Scout Movement and all that it had done over the 100 years. She thanked the leaders for their work with young people in the London Borough of Sutton and congratulated the District on the camp and its many activities. Regardless of the weather she really enjoyed all that she had seen.

Following the Mayor’s comments Ray presented a cheque for £3,500 to the Walton Firs Foundation. They are raising £800,000 to purchase the Camp Site and Activity Centre so that its use by “Scouting” can continue. Very well done and thanks to those in the District in raising this money.

Thanks also go to Ray, his team and to all the leaders and helpers who worked so hard and gave everything for the young people there.

The weather was kinder for the District AGM at Park Farm and this enabled the BBQ which followed the meeting to function. Thanks to the 1st Wallington (Sutton District) Band that played for the reception and for the fanfare on the arrival of the Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayoress. In his speech the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Doctor Brendan Hudson stated that the first aid in his Scouting training had giving him the inspiration to be a doctor. It is often said that the training we give in Scouting can influence the young people for the rest of their lives and here was a good example. Thanks go to the 1st North Sutton “team” for their excellent catering and to the Sutton Ranger Guides who acted as car park attendants also helping to serve the food.

Our best wishes to all those in the District taking part in the Jamboree. It is a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, learn about other cultures and of course to have a great memorable time. The 1st August – “Scouting Sunrise” falls within the Jamboree. At 8:00am local time in every country, Scouts and former Scouts are gathering together to renew their Promise at the start of the second century of Scouting. We all should be proud of Scouting and let the public see the commitment we all make.

Due to the 100 years celebrations development has to some extent taken second place but we must not lose sight of our intention for better Scouting and recruitment in Sutton. The District and Group Development Plans are intended to do this and in the autumn they will be reviewed so that we can move forward to meet our aims.

Paul Richardson, District Chairman

Notes from the District Commissioner

District Camp

The Camp has come and gone and despite the rain it was a great success. It was very well supported with 22 Groups attending. Over 750 campers were there for the weekend and 450 members visited on Saturday. Everyone I have spoken to has said that their young members enjoyed the range of activities on offer. These included a Monopoly run in London for the Explorers, caving, sailing, canoeing, climbing and a whole range of craft activities. Unfortunately some of the activities had to be cancelled on Sunday due to the rain.

Ray Shaw and his team did a superb job in organising the Camp and we all owe them a big thank you.

Sunrise Ceremony

This will take place on Wednesday 1st August. Many Groups will be away at camp or are arranging their own ceremonies. The Beavers plan to meet in Sutton Town Centre and then go to McDonald’s for breakfast. Whatever your Group is planning I hope you have a fantastic time.

I would like to ask everyone to join me in wearing the One Promise wrist band for the day to let the public know that the 1st August is a special day for Scouting as it was the first day of the Camp at Brownsea Island which started our Movement.

District Annual General Meeting

This was held at Park Farm as the District HQ is still not easily accessible for large functions and there was a fairly good turn out. The AGM marked our second year together as a District and we are well on the way to becoming a really good effective unit. The next twelve months need to be spent really working on our Development Plan and taking things to new levels. Thanks to 1st Wallington Scout Band for providing the entertainment and 1st North Sutton for doing the barbeque.

This will be the last Flysheet before most of us go on Summer Camps and then break for a few weeks. I wish all of you on camp a happy time and less rain than we had at the District Camp (there cannot be much more left up there, surely). I look forward to seeing you all again in September, refreshed and raring to go.

John Perkins, District Commissioner

Beavers

Over 200 Beavers descended upon Walton Firs on the Saturday of District Camp. Despite the dismal weather they attacked every activity with so much energy. Just how many times can a Beaver be knocked off a pole before they give up? The really exciting base was the assault course where if they did not come off covered with mud they were disappointed. Nothing could deter their spirits and as I waved off the coaches after the very wet camp fire and beacon lighting the Beavers were still full of life, even if the leaders had collapsed into their seats. A very successful activity.

Our next event is the Sunrise Ceremony on Wednesday 1st August near Waterstones Bookshop, Sutton High Street. We are meeting at 7:45am and holding a short but meaningful ceremony at 8:00am before walking down to breakfast in McDonald’s. The Beaver section wish to invite anyone involved in Scouting to join us for this experience. If a uniformed member please do come in uniform with your parents to look after you. Hopefully the mayor will join us.

Pauline Pattison, Assistant District Commissioner Beavers

Cubs

As we come to the end of another school year I would like to thank the Cub leaders for their continued commitment and energy. As a District the section has been extremely busy with competitions, badge opportunities and events and I know that this is just a small part of what each pack is doing with their young people.

We recently held the annual matball competition. Thank you to those who helped to organise it and all those who took part: 1st Belmont, 1st Cheam A and B, 9th Cheam, 1st North Sutton, 5th Sutton, 14th Wallington and 4th Worcester Park Brownsea. Despite having to do it indoors due to the rain, it was an excellent morning and the standards of play were very high. Particular congratulations to 9th Cheam.

Finally I would like to take this opportunity to say that I have decided to step down as ADC Cubs at the end of term. Thank you to all the leaders for their unfailing support as I have found my way in the Scout Association and particularly to John Perkins who has always helped whenever and in whatever way needed.

Catherine Keen, Assistant District Commissioner Cubs

Mat Ball Competition

This year’s District Cub mat ball competition took place at Carew Manor School in Wallington on Saturday 30th June 2007. Although the day started dry, rain started to fall as the competitors arrived and the decision was taken to run the competition indoors using the school hall and gym.

Mat ball is normally played by two teams of six Cubs on a grass pitch with no boundaries. Players attempt to pass a tennis ball to their catcher who stands on a 1m×1½m “mat” (a rectangle marked on the ground). The mats should be positioned 25m apart, but playing indoors meant that that the pitches were much smaller and the play rather cramped.

Eight teams entered the competition from 1st Belmont, 1st Cheam A and B, 9th Cheam, 1st North Sutton, 5th Sutton, 14th Wallington and 4th Worcester Park Brownsea Packs. The games last six minutes each (three minutes each way) so there was enough time to play a full league with each team playing seven games.

The top four teams at the end of the league were 9th Cheam, 14th Wallington, 1st North Sutton and 4th Worcester Park Brownsea. These teams were entered into an exciting knock-out to decide the winner, with 9th Cheam narrowly beating 14th Wallington to confirm their top place and gain the trophy.

[Picture of the winning team]
The 9th Cheam mat ball team with the trophy

Scouts

The Scout section remains as busy as ever with lots going on. Whilst our annual water activities weekend has been rescheduled for early September (this was partly due to District Camp) it also sees us off to Longridge to see if this is a suitable long-term venue for this District activity. Our biggest problem is finding a venue that can cope with our large numbers – we are anticipating 100+ Scouts eager to take part.

Many Troops are now well into their “out” programmes for the summer term with several night hikes amongst the chosen activities. Summer camp time is just around the corner and I know that many Troops will be away over the summer. I hope that they have a great time and are lucky with the weather. We must also remember that the 1st August sees the Sunrise Ceremony and I hope that all of our Scouts have an opportunity to renew their promise at 8:00am on this momentous day.

Ray Shaw, Assistant District Commissioner Scouts

Explorers

Explorer Belt

The Explorer Belt is the challenge of a lifetime that is available to Explorer Scouts aged over 16 and members of the Scout Network. It is designed to help young people develop a real understanding of another country by travelling through that country, working as a small team to complete surprise projects, and meeting local people.

In the report presented to the District at the recent Annual General Meeting, two Sutton Explorer Scouts were congratulated for completing this challenge in Lithuania last year. However, there were five Sutton District Explorer Scouts in Lithuania last year. Congratulations are due to three Belmont Explorer Scouts who also gained their Explorer Belt but who were not mentioned in the Annual General Meeting report: Ben McDavid, Daniel Gilbert and David Young.

District Camp 2007

After 18 months of planning, lots of meetings, lots of worrying – suddenly it was upon us.

Thursday 24th May saw the advance party arrive on site and start setting up. Even this didn’t quite go as planned as we had interruptions to our planned schedule. Thursday evening saw the first of the Groups bringing in tentage and from then on it was all systems go. I have to say that at this stage the weather was wonderful – the sun was shining and it was lovely and warm. Friday evening saw the first influx of campers and the car park was getting busy.

Saturday got off to a busy start with several hundred members being sent off site for activities whilst even more campers arrived. The site was starting to look like a tent city. Lunchtime saw the arrival of nine coaches loaded with day visitors ready and eager to have fun (the Beavers and Cubs were pretty keen too).

Saturday afternoon was a sea of activity. The giant inflatables were very well liked as was the maze and the assault course – I think that the most popular part was the water crossing – very muddy.

[Picture from the Centenary Camp]
Beavers at the bows and arrows base

Our District Executive held a reception that was attended by Councillor Myfanwy Wallace, Mayor of Sutton, Paul Burstow, MP for Sutton and Cheam, our County Commissioner, Roger Hurrion, along with his deputy, Nigel Steward, the County Commissioner for Surrey, Richard Shortman, and a representative from the Walton Firs Foundation – what a line up. We planted a tree so that everyone will know that Sutton was here for this great occasion.

The campfire and the beacon lighting were a bit of a damp squib due to the weather, which was a great shame. We know for next time to ensure that we have a large marquee.

The rain on Sunday did not stop play, maybe made it a bit slow starting, but the young people certainly got on with enjoying themselves. We had more visitors from around the County all across the day to see what a great time we were having. Boats were paddled, glasses painted, ice skated, fish cooked backwoods style, activity badges earned, caves crawled through, lengths swum, pins bowled, maggots raced, cups of tea drunk – what a lot we did. A visit from the National Scout Chaplain, Father John Seddon, to say Mass for our Catholic Scouts and all packed into one day. And to round off this great day we offered even more in the evening: you could shuffle around the training hut to a disco beat (there just wasn’t room to dance), or you could go batty and learn all about bats with a talk and a handling session from Surrey Bats.

As the day dawned on Monday (our last day), we all hoped for glorious sunshine and a gentle breeze to dry out all the tentage and make the packing up easier. Oh how disappointed we all were – the weather was the worst it had been all weekend. So after a great debate we decided that we would bring forward the close and let everybody get packed up, and by the time I left the site at about 5:00pm most Groups had left to return and hang up their tents to dry.

Finally, it just leaves me to say a very big thank you once again to my willing team for all that they did and everyone who helped on the camp itself and to all of the leaders and helpers who brought their groups of young people to camp – without whom there would not have been any camp.

Well let’s hope that we will see you all at the next one in 2010.

Ray Shaw, Camp Leader

Making Our Mark

We set out to raise money to help save Walton Firs Camp Site and that’s just what we did. Our thanks to the following Beaver Colonies for their efforts:

The top four Colonies, each raising over £200, were 3rd Carshalton, 2nd Cheam, Trinity Scafell and 4th Worcester Park Cedar. The Colony with the highest average collection per Beaver, and therefore our winner, was Trinity Scafell. The individual Beaver who collected the most was Joshua Naylor from Trinity Scafell Colony. He raised an amazing £50.02.

Our thanks go to the following Cub Packs:

There were two Cub Packs that raised more than £200 and these were 3rd Carshalton and Trinity Kanchenjunga. The ultimate winners were the Trinity Kanchenjunga Pack. The individual Cub who raised the most, an incredible £100.20, was Joshua Simpson from Trinity Kanchenjunga Pack.

Our thanks go to the following Scout Troops:

The winning Troop was 5th Worcester Park, who raised an incredible £450.00. The individual Scout who raised the most, Tom Geraghty of 5th Worcester Park, swam far enough to raise an amazing £100 on his own.

So very well done to all of these sections and thank you for all your efforts. We presented a cheque at our camp to the Walton Firs Foundation for an amazing £3,500 but in total we have raised nearly £4,000. If you still have monies to send in then it is still not too late – get it in now!

Ray Shaw, Assistant District Commissioner Scouts

Church Bell Ringing for the Centenary of Scouting

The Central Council of Church Bell Ringers would like to include Scouts and Guides in a celebration of “Scouting’s Sunrise” with bell ringing. Many ringers have either been or remain involved in Scouting or Guiding and wish to be part of this occasion. It has been suggested that special ringing be arranged between 27th July and 8th August 2007. This would be a great opportunity to link events together in the local media and thus gain valuable PR for both Scouts and Church Bell Ringing.

The Central Council would like to encourage ex-ringers, adults and young people (many of whom may have taken up ringing as part of the Scout or Guide bell ringer’s badge) to return and be involved in the “Scouting’s Sunrise” celebration. Visits to local churches with bells could also lead to a number of Scouts or Guides wishing to ring for the celebrations. If action is taken quickly training to handle a bell could be possible for the focal dates.

The Central Council together with the Scout Association is looking into the production of a certificate commemorating this very special event that can be presented to all the ringers who take part.

For further details please contact Paul Richardson, our District Chairman.

BikeStreet

The BikeStreet project is currently looking for 14-24 year olds to volunteer on the BikeStreet reminiscence programme. Participants will have the opportunity to break down barriers between old and young people by taking part in an innovative DVD project in which they will interview older generations about how they used to get about on bicycles in the past.

The project also runs bike maintenance workshops from absolute beginners leading to the opportunity to restore bikes for use in the community. AQA qualifications and a millennium volunteers award of excellence are also available through the programmes that could contribute towards community, Chief Scout’s or Queen’s Scout awards.

For further details please contact Michael Dees on 020 8404 1520 or e-mail bikestreet@ecolocal.org.uk.

Sutton Youth Service Equipment Hire

Sutton Youth Service equipment is now free to hire for registered Sutton youth groups. Two weeks notice is required for booking; training and induction are available but groups must take responsibility for the equipment:

The Youth Service also owns minibuses with box trailers, canoes, kayaks and buoyancy aids (a Scouting activity permit is not needed for canoeing on placid water – see POR for details). The Projects Office can help with minibus driver training (particularly with the trailers) and with sourcing expedition and other equipment.

For further details contact Debbie or Paul on 020 8687 0239 or e-mail projectsoffice@suttonlea.org.

Midair Model Aircraft Workshops

Midair Models can visit Beaver, Cub or Scout meetings to run model aircraft workshops that fill a whole meeting. A typical workshop starts with a flying demonstration followed by everyone making, decorating and then flying their own model aircraft, which is theirs to take home. The models are made from expanded polystyrene and fly well but cause no damage to anything they hit. Midair provide all the materials required and guarantee that all the models will fly; all that is needed is a warm, lit hall – the bigger and higher the better!

For further details contact Midair Models on 020 8942 5000 or e-mail midair@blueyonder.co.uk.

PAGGS YLC 2008

PAGGS YLC 2008, an international camp for leaders aged 18–25, will take place on 20th–25th March 2008 in the Czech Republic. Places are limited and applications must be received by 30th August 2007. For details see the flyer at www.suttonscouts.org.uk/2008/ylc.pdf or contact Claire Dunne by e-mail at dunsky007@yahoo.co.uk.

New and Updated Fact Sheets

FS295210 World Scout Jamboree (Jun/07 [2] 21KBytes)
FS330084 Group information form for parents/guardians (Jul/07 [1] 30KBytes)
FS800011 Criminal Records Disclosures and the Scout Network (Jun/07 [3] 63KBytes)
FS250037 Hyperactivity (Apr/07 [3] 17KBytes)
FS315090 Scout Activity Badges and External Awards (May/07 [2] 108KBytes)
FS260019 Visiting the United States of America (May/07 [2] 55KBytes)
FS140048 First Aid Kits and Accident Books (May/07 [2] 70KBytes)
FS285001 Risk Assessment For Scout Premises (May/07 [2] 110KBytes)

Diary 2007

July 2007
20th Fri Sutton LEA Summer Term ends
26th Thu Centenary Royal Mail Scouting stamps issued
27th–8th Aug
Fri–Wed		 Centenary 21st World Scout Jamboree
August 2007
1st Wed Centenary Scouting’s Sunrise – the dawn of a new century for Scouting
31st–2nd Sep
Fri–Sun		 District Canoe Club River Wye Weekend
September 2007
3rd Mon Sutton LEA Autumn Term starts
7th–9th
Fri–Sun		 District Scout Water Activities Camp
Gilwell Reunion
18th Tue District Cub Leaders’ Meeting
20th Thu District Beaver Leaders’ Meeting
22nd Sat District Cub Sports Day
27th Thu District Scout Leaders’ Meeting
October 2007
6th Sat District Swimming Gala
7th Sun County Scout/Explorer Cyclo-Cross
10th Wed County Annual General Meeting
13th Sat District Cub Challenge Trophy Competition
13th–14th
Sat–Sun		 County Explorer Night Hike
20th–21st
Sat–Sun		 Centenary Jamboree-on-the-Internet (JOTI) and Jamboree-on-the-Air (JOTA)
22nd–26th
Mon–Fri		 Sutton LEA Half-Term
28th Sun District Beaver Sports Afternoon at Westcroft
November 2007
17th Sat District Scout Tate Shield Competition
24th Sat Centenary Festival of Scouting in the O2
25th Sun District Beaver 100th Celebration Birthday Party, Phoenix Centre, Roundshaw, 3:30pm–5:30pm
December 2007
2nd Sun County Scout/Explorer/Network/Leader Orienteering Competition
6th Thu District Beaver St Nicholas Service
19th Wed Sutton LEA Autumn Term ends
January 2008
3rd Thu Sutton LEA Spring Term starts
13th Sun District Beaver Pantomime – Frosty the Snowman

Flysheet

Flysheet is the Sutton District Scouting newsletter. Please send items/pictures to the editor, Chris Sowden, at flysheet@suttonscouts.org.uk (almost any format would be acceptable). Articles for the September issue should be sent by 7th September 2007.

Stop Press

9th July 2007 – Ian Newbery has been appointed County Commissioner Designate of Greater London South West Scout County.