We come to the end of a very hectic and busy year with many changes in all areas of Stotfold’s Scouting organisation.  Obvious changes can be seen around the Scout Hut - the new road, car park gates etc.  This development releasing new plans for central heating and a climbing wall, both new projects in the near future.

All six sections – 2 beaver colonies, 2 cub packs, scout troop and venture unit are maintaining their numbers, although it is difficult to decide whether few or many ventures is a good number!

With Beaver Leaders Lynne Rogers retiring and Sally Stratton taking promotion as ADC Beavers, we welcome two new leaders on board.  Lindsay Evans and Clare Trevena take over Tuesday and Wednesday colonies respectively.  My sincere thanks go to Lynne and Sally for all their hard work and dedication over many years.  Peter Cheney and Peter Tee both join us as Assistant Beaver Leaders, both gaining their wings after many years as helpers.

I was pleased to see the two Martins as Akelas of the Monday and Thursday cubs lead their boys to battle in the now annual Famous Scout Gun Run during Carnival Week.  Great PR and great fun!

We have maximum scouts all enjoying numerous activities devised by the professional scout activity team of Paul Major, Ray Baverstock, Andrew Brember and Charles Kilby even extending to an International Camp in Switzerland this year.  Well done lads for a year of hard work with a very demanding age group.

I have directed my efforts this year into activity training and we now have two trained District climbers, two GNAS archery instructors, two small bore fire arms instructors and one canoeist being trained.  In the near future it is hoped to organise archery and shooting courses for boys and parents in the Scout Hut.

The Group celebrated the Millennium with a special camp (nicknamed the Muddennium Camp!) at Buckmore Park in Kent with all leaders, 60 cubs and 20 scouts and ventures there for the weekend and 30 beavers and dignitaries visiting for the day on the Sunday.  It was a great weekend in spite of the weather and special thanks go to Martin White for all his hard work in the organisation of this mammoth event.

We have three new warranted helpers in the beavers and cubs but we still have vacancies for at least two more.  There are vacancies also on our supporters team, dedicated to raising the ever increasing fund required to run the headquarters and to annually boost our jamboree fund to help send one of our scouts to the next World Jamboree in Tawain in 3 years time.  Fundraising becomes more and more difficult each year resulting in a menial income for the enormous effort and perseverance of this small dedicated group – the Supporters Association.

My term of office as Group Scout Leader ends at the end of the year after six years.  A term of office that I have much enjoyed, working with a great band of young people and adults, involving my whole family in a worthwhile organisation.  I hope that Stotfold Scout Group has benefited from my intervention (or is it interference!) if only in a small way.

Ray Kilby

Speech Notes

Once again this has been a busy year.  All the sections have maintained high numbers with approximately 130 boys in the Group.

Beavers have had trips to the Police and Fire Stations, hikes, archery. A sleepover, pantomime trips, Blue Peter fundraising and much, much more.

Cubs have been to District Camps, District events, Portsmouth, ski-ing, bowling, the Royal Tournament etc…….

Scouts had their summer camp at Cheadle Hulme near Manchester, a joint camp at Boyd Field with a troop from Crowborough, Lincs and Winter Camp at Gilwell as well as taking part in the District Raft Race and Cyclocross.

Ventures This year they have included older scouts of 14 years and over and they have managed to keep a good programme going including golf, bowling, shooting, archery, a very short hike (to the Little Chef and back!!), cooking pancakes and ski-ing at Bassingbourne.

Leaders   A big thank you to all our leaders for all the hard work that they put in during the year.  We have lost two leaders this year – Jane Major and Lynne Rogers.  Thanks to them both for their hard work especially Lynne who started the Cheyenne Beaver Colony and has run it very successfully for many years.  Sally Straton has accepted the position of ADC Beavers in the District and is changing from Beaver Leader to Assistant Beaver Leader with the Chickasaw Colony. We have gained the following leaders and helpers:- Lindsay Evans who replaces Lynne Rogers as Beaver Leader in the Cheyenne Colony, Clare Trevena who replaces Sally Stratton as Beaver Leader in the Chickasaw Colony, Peter Cheney and Peter Tee who are promoted from Beaver Helper to Assistant Beaver Leader after many years and Frances Clark who has become a Helper with the Cherokee Cubs.

Instructors  I have concentrated on getting our own instructors trained over the past year and we now have 2 GNAS archery instructors, 2 small bore fire arms instructors, 2 climbing instructors and 1 canoeist who is currently undergoing instruction.  This enables us to run more activities in our own premises.  I am hoping to run archery and shooting courses for boys and parents and give out badges and certificates in the hope of encouraging parental participation.

Millennium Group Camp 2000   This took place at Buckmore Park in Kent and we had over 80 people there from Saturday to Monday with 110 on the Sunday.  I worked out that we had about £9000 of equipment on site, ate about £900 of food and wallowed in 500 tons of mud!!!  It was a super weekend with a good team working together and lots of activities – caving, karting and swimming plus lots of camp activities.  We were fortunate to have some small radios to use on site that certainly saved us a lot of running about.  A special thanks goes to Martin White for all the hard work he did in planning the whole camp.  Ben Rogers presented him with a box of cigars as a token of our appreciation.   

Gun Run  This was a nail biting event with both cub packs spending weeks practicing and a very close contest on the day.  It was a shame that one pack had to lose.  There are pictures on show around the hall and we will be showing a video at the end.

National Camp Fire Weekend   We are holding a camp fire on Saturday 27^th May and we will be burying a time capsule to be dug up in a thousand years!  Will the hut still be here I ask myself, well I have painted the windows to be on the safe side.

Indoor Climbing Wall Project  with a traversing wall.  This will also include a drying room, archery and shooting area and a trailer storage.  It will be for community, district and guide use as well as our own group and I estimate that it will cost about £6000 and I hope to be able to get grants for most of it.

Supporters  This small band of workers manage to put on a number of interesting events throughout the year which entail a great deal of hard work.  I have attended most of their events and they are very enjoyable.  

I will be retiring as Group Scout Leader at the end of the year after almost six years as Group Scout Leader which has been very much a family participation.  I will not be disappearing and hope to continue with the climbing wall project that I have started.  It has been interesting seeing the progression through the sections in Ventures and then Leaders.  While we were on the Group Camp Charles and Robert did a camp fire and at the end Charles finished with Kum Bay Ya.  He said that as a cub Sally Beckett always did the camp fire and finished with everyone humming the tune of Kumbaya while she recited a prayer and he would like to do the same.  I thought how nice it was to be remembered for something like this and wondered what I would be remembered for.  Then I thought that every time the group packs up for camp and carries the wooden tables out they will say “who made these bloody tables!”.