Pushing yourself to the limit, meeting new people, and developing life skills. All at Hampshire Scouts Speak Up.
An eager group of young people from Scouts troops and Explorer Units from across Hampshire joined together at the county’s activity centre, Ferny Crofts, to build life skills like confidence by getting out of their comfort zones and shouting about Scouting.
Taking place over a weekend in February, Hampshire Scouts Speak Up teaches young people how to tell their stories of Scouting experiences, adventures and trips to the media and our community.
Jess, a 16 year old Explorer Scout from Portsmouth, told us about the weekend:
“My favourite bit was completing the Jacob’s Ladder; it felt really rewarding to finish it by reaching the top, high above the ground, with my team-mate climbing up each hanging beam.”
Niamh, a 15 year old Explorer Scout from Basingstoke, said:
“It was interesting to learn about how to answer the more difficult questions and getting to know new people. I arrived here not having met anyone, but now I’ve made new friends.”
Cam, a 14 year Explorer Scout from Portsmouth, told us about some of the activities during the weekend:
“We looked to our local media like newspapers and radio and learned about who their audience is. It was really interesting, especially as we found out in an interactive way by playing different wide games around Ferny Crofts to find all the tools we need.”
Not everyone faced their fears with Jacob’s Ladder, others got to know their team and their own personal strength at Tomahawk throwing including Ashleigh, a 15 year old Explorer Scout from Fleet:
“It was nerve-wracking at first, especially in front of a group of people I barely know, but by the end I’d got better at it and made friends as we went along too. It was great fun.”
After a day and a half of building their skills, the young people put it into practice and earned their activity badges by experimenting with great videos and photography, recording their own sound bites, and writing this very article!
Altogether, thanks to the help of the expert volunteer team, this group of Scouts have walked away with important and long-lasting skills for life.
You too can be part of the fun by volunteering or joining the scouts at scouts.org.uk.
Text: Jess Stevens, Cameron Stevens, Ashleigh Ayling and Niamh O’Shea.
