Message from John Larkin RE: Pinewood Derby 2018

Hi Folks,

Sorry it has taken ages to get these out anyway I am sure your troop will be interested in their final overall placings (attached).

Don’t forget to count it as badge work…

It was the biggest District Scout event with 120 entries!

Thanks for your support and help to stage the event.

Onto next year….

Woggles Up!

John

Hi 

Please find notes for leaders attached for the Promise Renewal event on Monday 23rd April, as well as letters to give out next week following the half term holidays.

Timetable

• 23rd March – deadline for replies from YP
• 30th March – deadline for replies/money back to Maureen
• 13th April – info emailed out to parents (copied to leaders)

I will be emailing separately about rounding up helpers for the various activities (alongside staff from Phasels Wood) and the opportunity for a half-day training enabling adults to run quite a few of the activities at Phasels Wood.

Looking forward to a great event – it would be excellent to have a large turnout to renew our promises together.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to drop me a line.

Russ

Please find attached a letter to go out to all Scouts about the district’s Powerboating activity day on 18th March.

The capacity for the activity is 15 Scouts. Bookings will open at 6pm on 23rd February on a first-come-first-served basis, via the district website:

www.hemel-scouts.co.uk/activities/powerboating

Priority will be given to those who have not attended the activity previousl. Anyone who has attended before may join a waiting list to fill any spare places on a first come first served basis by emailing their name to Pete West on peteandsue8@virginmedia.com

Thanks to Pete and the team for organising this activity.

Power Coxswain Badge Day flyer for YP

Following the District Executive’s decision to take on a paid administrator to support various functions within the district to improve our “behind the scenes” activity, I’m delighted to announce that Hannah Mansfield has been appointed to the role of District Administrator.

Hannah does not have Scouting experience but is a very competent administrator and is already proving to be a quick learner. Please bear with her whilst she gets her head around our structure and terminology!

Hannah’s first task is to update and distribute the district directory, which she will be contact GSLs about over the coming days. Beyond that, Hannah will be supporting the District Team and Executive with the following tasks:

• Contacting group’s termly to confirm space for new members, subscriptions and who enquiries should be sent to (Simon will still handle the enquiries themselves)
• Collating information about dates for Scouts to move to Explorers, allowing Maureen Shelley to more effectively plan the link events.
• Ensure the planning for district events/activities is on track and supporting organisers to ensure that letters are produced in good time, published to the website and sent out by paper/email as appropriate.
• Supporting event organisers by contacting venues/transport companies etc for quotes when necessary.
• Regularly update our email and SMS software with data from Compass to ensure communications are always being sent to the right people.
• Sending out promotional material for the Scout Shop each term to encourage parents to buy from us, allowing us to re-invest the profits locally and as a result, keep the district levy down.
• Maintaining the diary of hall bookings for Warners End and Boxmoor HQs.
• Other reasonable tasks as requested.

If there’s anything Hannah can do to support your Scout Group, please do contact me, as there is flexibility for her to take on additional tasks on behalf of Scout Groups too.

Hannah will work remotely, although may attend some meetings if necessary. Her email address is: hannah@hemel-scouts.co.uk and phone number is 07817 606497.

I’m sure you will welcome Hannah warmly as and when you come into contact with her.

Russ

Further to the survey conducted last term, I have now arranged a session to enable you to move forward obtaining a hillwalking and/or climbing permit if you wish to do so.

Please email me to let me know (by return email) if you are coming so we can arrange refreshments and enough handouts for everyone.

Date: Wednesday 21st February 2018

Location: Phasels Wood

Timings:

• 7.30pm – 8.15pm – climbing-specific info
• 8.15pm – 8.45pm – permit scheme general info
• 8.45pm – 9.30pm – hillwalking-specific info

We have Dan Nathan (Assistant County Commissioner for Activities from Hertfordshire Scouts) attending to explain what’s required for both types of permits. The evening is an opportunity to:

• hear more about the process of obtaining activity permits
• ask questions
• meet others wanting to do the same
• plan a series of training, practice and assessment dates

Please bring your diaries as the intended outcome of the evening is that we schedule some training and assessment weekends over the coming 12-18 months.

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Russ

District Diary updated on the website

Ahead of tomorrow’s New Year’s celebrations, the diary has been updated on the district website. It’s possible to browse the future events, print a list or subscribe electronically for updates: www.hemel-scouts.co.uk/diary

If you use Google Calendar, click the link below to subscribe for updates: Click here to subscribe in Google Calendar. Subscription for other calendar services are available from the web page.

Enquiries from potential members

As always, we expect Simon will be inundated with enquiries from potential new members in January.

Our understanding of the available spaces is summarised in the table at: www.hemel-scouts.co.uk/join – if you know differently, please let him know: join@hemel-scouts.co.uk.

I hope you had a very Merry Christmas and were able to celebrate with family and friends.

Just a quick reminder about our January leader’s meeting:

• Date: Thursday 4th January
• Time: 7.45pm for 8pm start
• Venue: Hobbs Hill Wood Primary School

There will be a quick update from District Chairman, Keith Gower, on the search for the next District Commissioner as well as the usual “district update” slot from me.

Just because I’m moving on from the role, the diary of activities already planned won’t be affected.

It’s full steam ahead for a busy year with some excellent events planned for this year so please ensure someone from section attends to find out about the forthcoming events in 2018!

Wishing you an enjoyable New Year’s celebrations and looking forward to seeing you on the 4th January!

Russ