Top A wards Chief Scout A wards Quantity o eligible Bronze Silver Gold Platinum Diamond 36 47 15 19 33% 37% Explorer Belt Young Leader Belt Kings Scout Award Scouts of the World Award O 7% DofE Bronze DofE Silver DofE Gold embership Numbers and Growth embership 2024 Membership 2024 Squirrels Beavers Cubs Scouts Explorers Totsl Members 72 1st Ascot 1st Binfield 1st South Ascot 1st Sunningdale 1st Warfield The Parks 2nd Bracknell 4th Bracknell 6th Bracknell 20 22 19 11 16 32 47 49 16 160 23 23 22 14 12 89 97 14 22 30 19 20 40 12 17 30 13 38 12 15 57 101 63 35 19 27 11 14 12 12 12 11 Total Youth 49 216 181 714 Growth 2022 to 2024 (Census) Overall (4-18) Squirrels Beavers Cubs Scouts Explorers Adults +104%. 6% +8% +8.6% 44th Annual General Meeting- 9th July 2024 Page 12of 19 Growth from 2018 to 2024 800 ,700 600 500 196 192 181 185 400 300 204 221 202 200 100 20 188 67 49 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Squlrrels 11 Beavers • Cubs L Scouts m Explorers Programme Team This year has seen the programme team go from strength to strength including the long- awaited and successful return of District led events. During the year the team have delivered the following activities for the District: Events Leaders Onl Cam (11th to 12th May 2024) Leaders from South and South East Berkshire Districts attended a free event at Earleywood to participate in adventurous activities and camp. Expression of interest discussed with numerous leaders to obtain their permits and support Programme Team events later this year. District Cam (24" to 26th May 2024) 5/9 Groups attended across the District 284 - camping 46 - day visit 330 on camp Saturday Self-funded A full weekend where everyone participated and supported running the activities, seamlessly. Feedback meeting: ALI very positive and constructive, areas identified for improvement Good news you all want another one in 2027 and want to go to Gilwell Park Gilwell Fun da (9th June) Squirrels/Beavers & Cubs 5/9 Groups attending 286 attended 5 coaches paid for by District Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs, Explorer Young Leaders, parents and Scout Leaders enjoyed activities where they climbed, rode, made, jumped, bounced, shot, ran, slid, balanced, created, ate and finally fell asleep on the way home in the coach. 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 13 of 19 Paddle S orts 6th to 8th Se tember Ex lorers County organising weekend for Explorers on the water at Henley. 25 Explorers across 5 Groups attending with 4 Leaders Parent & Child Cam (20th to 22nd September) All 5 Groups from South East Berkshire attending 164 campers 12th July deadline to confirm numbers Gilwell Scarefest (25th to 27th October) Explorers 11 Explorers across 3 Groups attending Scouts Event Being investigated Autumn 24 uirrel/ Beaver Being planned Au ust 25 Ex lorers/Network 7 Explorers expressed interest already 8th July deadline to confirm numbers Permits Hike ALPS25 Leaders have expressed an interested to obtain 33 permits: hts Awa Indoor x 2 Campsite x 4 Activities Air Rifle x 3 Archery x 1 Climbing x 4 Hill Walking x 8 Narrow Boat x 3 Off- Road Cycling x 6 Water x 2 Volunteer Development ream The Volunteer Development Team has been in existence for a little over a year. During the year we have made great progress in reducing non-compliance of mandatory training and navigating new volunteers through their getting started training. The team is still growing in both knowledge and number and we will have many challenges over the coming months with the introduction of the new training system and volunteer record database. Welcome conversations, the replacement for the Appointments Advisory Committee, are now fully in place. A training module is available in order to gain accreditation to be a welcome volunteer, and many Group Lead Volunteers have now completed it. There are also a few independent volunteers in the team, but we are always on the lookout for more to join us. Please get in touch if this is of interest. 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 14of 19 Emphasis is now on ensuring new leaders attend a welcome conversation within the first few weeks of joining a group. A positive experience at the outset of their journey will stand them in good stead throughout their time, however long, within Scouting. Learning Getting started training and mandatory renewals have been the focus points over the past year. Compliance has improved immensely and the number of adults with expired mandatory training is now almost non-existent. We have welcomed six new Training Advisers / Learning Assessors to the team. Along with the current Training Advisers, they are working with groups to make training a positive experience for our volunteers. Each group has been allocated one or two advisers, so volunteers know who to approach to discuss their training needs. The focus over the next year will be to ensure we have no one within the District with expired mandatory or first response training, and that all new volunteers complete their initial Getti ng Started / Growing the Roots training within the set timeframes. The new Growing the Roots training will be computer based, and the revamped ongoing mandatory training will remain computer based. Validation for these modules will be automatic, giving the Learning Assessors time to concentrate on what matters, understand the training needs of our volunteers and aid them in formulating a training plan that is meaningful to their role. Recognition A designated team of experienced volunteers are on hand to ensure we are appropriately recognising our volunteers with the relevant awards. Helen Robinson Volunteer Development Team Lead District Active Support Un7t Once again this last year has been a rather quiet one for the DASU. Apart for when The Scout Association held a webinar on the same night as one of our planned meetings we continued to hold our meetings every two months. With our reduced membership there has not been a great number at these meetings and we are currently reviewing the format for our meetings. Members assisted at the District AGM and enjoyed helping, in September, at the Parent and Child camp at Earleywood. There was no Gang Show in February 2024 so we did not have the opportunity in supporting them. Bob Chandler (one of our members) continued to host at Earleytwood. It was with great sadness the ASU along with many current and former members of the District attended the funeral, of one of our long serving and well respected members - Betty Scurry. Certainly the end of an era. In March a couple of our members attended the funeral of Vera Hathaway (a former Leader at 1st South Ascot Scout Group) in Bournemouth. Following her funeral her ashes were interred 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 15 of 19 in the churchyard of All Souls church in South Ascot and this service was attended by ASU members and representatives of 1 St South Ascot Scout Group. The DASU look forward to being able help the District as and when they can but age is creeping up on many of our members! ! Tony Fulford Manager / Lead Volunteer South East Berks District Scout Active Support Unit Earleywood Our fabulous 9 acre woodland site, continues to deliver for young people through adventures and exciting memories. Most of our Management Board's efforts are spent focused on the short term requirements to keep the site safe, clean and useable. We still recognise the need for some longer term focus about how the site can further develop. Ahead of the peak summer season, we took the decision to invest in the key roads around the site to make access better. We have invested some funds to improve drainage and the surface of the car park area. The team have rehoused the wood pile and given it some much needed TLC, so it is much more accessible for all visitors. During the year we have invested in improved lighting around the site. Not content with just bringing great Wi-Fi to one corner of the site we have now extended it to most of the buildings and activity areas. Our much loved parachute has been reinstated for the summer season and makes a great base for groups and activities. Great to see County using the site for climbing activities and installing a County Container behind our existing container for some of their own summer equipment. This year we introduced new fire cradles to protect the land asking visitors to have fires just off the ground. There are several benefits to this and all the feedback we have heard has been very complimentary of this new system. Everyone involved in the site has new ID cards and lanyards In May we held a successful District Open day for local leaders to come and rediscover Earleywood and to enjoy all the activities we offer on site. We plan to run this around the same time again next year. We continue to offer a wide variety of activities which are much loved by our visitors, these include Crate Stacking, Climbing, Traversing, Outdoor Archery, Indoor Archery, Rifle Shooting, Mini Golf, High Ropes, Hammocks, Pioneering, Orienteering and Campfires. We are also looking at introducing Throwing Angel (Tomahawk) axe throwing next year. Like all Scouting groups this year has also meant some increased focus on our own Health & Safety policies and procedures. Much of these tireless efforts happen behind the scenes but ensure the site is open, safe and insured for all visitors. Our bookings continue to be predominantly Scouting groups, with some Duke of Edinburgh and Guide bookings. This has been supplemented by private bookings from local church groups, schools, Round Table and a local Forest School. The site has also benefit from a number of corporate volunteering days including over 100 volunteers from Salesforce, who leave their technology day jobs for litter collecting, cleaning out ditches, painting, planting or pruning. Financially the site remains stable and continues to retain at least one years costs in the bank. Our annual running costs have increased substantially with the figure currently sitting at £21,000 which includes electricity, water, insurance. We are as always incredibly dependent and grateful to our great Hosts and Instructors who interact with our visitors giving them each a great and memorable experience at 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 16of 19 Earleywood. Andy Woodward continues to be a star in coordinating all hosting duties. We are always in need for additional hosts who might be able to open up or lock up after a group have visited. Sadly Bob Chandler has finally hung up his boots from many years of hosting duties. We are hugely grateful for all Bob has done over the years to host 1,000's of Earleywood visitors when they have arrived and departed. Plus so much work that Bob has done over the years when he would potter on site to just get lots of the small jobs done, whether that was painting benches to restocking toilet rolls. THANKS - we will miss you Bob! Likewise Andy Gorham our face of Bookings and customer interactions for so many years has sadly stepped down from this vital role. Andy has supported so many Earleywood enquiries and helped groups arrange a perfect visit to the site. During his tenure he was instrumental in the transition to the OSM booking system and online payments. THANKS for all your hard work and devotion to Earleywood, which has enabled so many groups to use the site. Hilary and Ruth are covering over peak after which time we will be looking for a volunteer to take on this crucial role. We are always looking for more people to support and develop the site for the future, so do contact me if you might be interested to spare a few hours every month as we have a number of roles we are looking to fill. Lastly a big thanks to the Earleywood Management Board (EMB) who all contribute so much to the site Paul, Steve, Derek, Ben and Josh. Plus Hilary/Alex and Phill our DCS from both South and South East who invest so much of their time and energy in Earleywood. Sam Winterson Chairperson Earleywood Scout Campsite Long and Good Service A wards The following awards were issued in 2023-24. Congratulations to all the recipients! Good Service Awards Steve Richards Award for Merit District Trustee Derek Salter Award for Merit Section Leader- Explorer Scouts 2nd Bracknell Ben Shirvill Chief Scout's Commendation for Good Service Chief Scout's Commendation for Good Service District Scout Active Support Co- ordinator Assistant Section Leader - Scouts Zoe Arden 1 st Binfield Air Scouts 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 17of 19 Commissioners Commendations Michelle O'sullivan Commissioners Commendation Group Scout Leader 1 st Warfield Scout Group 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts Karen Woolls Commissioners Commendation Deputy Group Scout Leader Liam Fricker Commissioners Commendation Section Leader- Cub Scouts Ruth Yates Commissioners Commendation District Scout Active Support Co- ordinator District Scout Active Support Co~ ordinator Assistant Section Leader- Explorer Scouts Group Administrator Ben Shirvill Commissioners Commendation Rob Viola . Commissioners Commendation Katrina Shappard Commissioners Commendation The Parks Scout Group 2nd Bracknell Spike Maughan Michal Szymaniec Derek Salter Commissioners Commendation Section Leader - Beaver Scouts Commissioners Commendation Section Assistant- Scouts 2nd Bracknell Commissioners Commendation Section Leader- Explorer Scouts District Appointments Chair 2nd Bracknell Carolyne Brambley Kelly Fricker Commissioners Commendation 1st Binfield Air Scouts Commissioners Commendation Section Leader- Squirrel & Beaver Scouts Group Scout Leader 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Fiona Jones Commissioners Commendation 1 st South Ascot Michael Parker Commissioners Commendation Group Scout Leader Group Scout Leader The Parks Scout Group The Parks Scout Group The Parks Scout Group The Parks Scout Group Michael Parker Commissioners Commendation Amy Vaughan Gemma Lacy Commissioners Commendation Section Leader - Squirrel Scouts Assistant Section Leader- Beaver / Cub Scouts Section Leader- Cub Scouts / Assistant Section Leader - Scouts Commissioners Commendation David Sandy Commissioners Commendation The Parks Scout Group Wood Badges Ann Minchin Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Group Scout Leader 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts Fiona Jones Group Scout Leader 1st South Ascot Laura Wenham Group Scout Leader 1st Ascot (All Saints) 1st Binfield Air Scouts Simon Pearce Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts Hilary Crofton District Commissioner Alex Sizeland District Commissioner Oliver Fisher District Section Leader - Explorer Scouts Assistant Section Leader- Scouts Oliver Fisher Wood Badge Wood Badge 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Jackie Rawes District Section Leader - Explorer Scouts Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts Milan Fiala Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge Wood Badge 1 st South Ascot Carly Anderson Claudia Pardoe Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts 1 st South Ascot Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Greg Borthwick Ceri Richardson Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts 1 st South Ascot Assistant Section Leader- Scouts 1 st South Ascot Ceri Richardson Deputy Group Scout Leader 1 st South Ascot Pedro Malha Assistant Section Leader- Beaver Scouts Assistant Section Leader- Beaver Scouts Assistant Section Leader- Scouts 1st Binfield Air Scouts Crystal Malha Wood Badge 1st Binfield Air Scouts Balazs Csernus Wood Badge 1 st South Ascot 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 18of 19 Long Service Gilles Vassor Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award District Section Assistant - Explorer Scouts Group Treasurer Simon Artal Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award 1 st Ascot (All Saints) 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Kirsty Sizeland Section Assistant- Cub Scouts Rachel Hinde-Harris Assistant Section Leader - Beaver Scouts Assistant Section Leader - Beaver Scouts Group Executive Committee Member 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Ashleigh Fiala Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award 1st South Ascot Steven Reid Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 5 years Service Award Chief Scout's 10 years Service Award Chief Scout's 10 years Service Award Chief Scout's 10 years Service Award 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts lan Johnson Group Chair 2nd Bracknell Andy Howell Group Treasurer The Parks Scout Group Micky King Group Chair Group Scout Leader 1 st Sunningdale 1 st Warfield Scout Group Michelle O'sullivan Matthew Streeter Assistant Section Leader - Scouts 1 st Sunningdale Karan Mehra District Treasurer Martin Watters Group Administrator 1 st Ascot (All Saints) Andrew Wheeler Assistant Section Leader - Explorer Scouts Group Scout Leader Steve Dark Chief Scout's 10 years Service Award Chief Scout's 10 years Service Award Chief Scout's 10 years Service Award Chief Scout's 15 years Service Award 1 st Warfield Scout Group Natalie Crook Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts 2nd Bracknell Patrick Doherty Annick Tremblay Section Leader- Cub Scouts 2nd Bracknell Assistant Section Leader - Explorer . Scouts District Scout Active Support Co- ordinator Scout Active Support Member Andy Gorham Chief Scout's 20 years Service Award Chris Kinch Chief Scout's 20 years Service Award Chief Scout's 20 years Service Award Chief Scout's 20 years Service Award Neil Coles Section Leader - Cub Scouts 2nd Bracknell Steven Green District Scout Active Support Co- ordinator Assistant Section Leader - Cub Scouts Simon Pearce Chief Scout's 20 years Service Award Chief Scout's 25 years Service Award Chief Scout's 30 years Service Award Chief Scout's 30 years Service Award Chief Scout's 30 years Service Award Chief Scout's 40 years Service Award 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Karen Woolls Deputy Group Scout Leader 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts Christopher Evans Assistant Section Leader- Cub Scouts 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts Paul Binney Section Assistant - Scouts 1 st Binfield Air Scouts Mark Grubb Deputy Group Scout Leader 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts Sylvia Barrett District Scout Active Support Co- ordinator Group Scout Leader Ann Minchin Chief Scout's 40 years Service Award 4th Bracknell Sea Scouts 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Page 19of 19 South East Berkshire District Scout Council District Registration No: 10213 SOUTH EAST BERKS The 44th Annual General Meeting Earleywood Scout Campsite Tuesday 9th July 2024 Annual Report of the District Trustee Board including the Annual Statement of Accounts Scouts Table of Contents District Lead Volunteers Review of Scouting in South East Berkshire....................................... Annualstatement of Accounts....................... ........................................................................ Scrutineers Report: Earleywood Scout Campsite Accounts ....... .10 Independent Examiners Report: South East Berkshire District Accounts........... .. .......................... 11 TopAwards.......................................................................................................................... 12 Membership Numbers and Growth....................................................................................... 12 Programme Team............ .................................................................................................... 13 Volunteer Development Team............................................................... .............................. 14 DistrictActive Support Unit........................................ ......... Earleywood.......................................................................................................................... 16 Long and Goodservice Awards............................................................................................. 17 .15 Page 2of 19 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 D7str7ct Lead Volunteers Revlew of Scouting in South East Berkshire Reflecting on 2023-24 there is much to celebrate. By almost every measure the South East Berkshire Scout District is doing well, and accelerating into 2024-2025. During the year the number of young people in the District grew 4% to a total of 714 members. We also added two new Squirrel Dreys in the District, growing squirrel provision 104Yo, a trend that looks set to continue into next year with 2 additional Dreys already open. Demand for places remains high with almost 400 young people on the waiting list across the District and we recognise that additional capacity is needed - something we are working on with the County team. Another huge positive is that we had almost 9Yo growth in adult volunteers through the year. We also welcome Michelle O'sullivan as the new Group Lead Volunteer at 1st Warfield. Sadly however, during the Autumn Betty Scurry passed away. Having been involved in Scouting for over 70 years, Betty was a very well known and loved member of both 1 st Ascot (All Saints) Scout Group and South East Berkshire District - she is a huge loss to the District and to Scouting. We also mourned the loss of Vera Hathaway, a former Leader at 1 st South Ascot Scout Group. Our condolences to their families and friends. During the year Dale Kipp (Chair) and Steve Richards (Trustee) have decided to step down from their positions on the District Trustee Board. Bob Chandler and Andy Gorham have also decided to Leave the Earleywood team. The District Team thank them for their contribution to the District and wish them all the best for the future. Derek Salter is also stepping down from the Trustee Board to focus on leading the District Programme Team who have this year done a great job of rebuilding the programme of activities that the District offers. The full report of their achievements is later in this document. Highlights include our first Squirrel Picnic, Parent/Child camp, an Adult Leader weekend and also (into 24-25) the long-awaited return of District Camp June 2024, attended by over 300 young people. There is also much more in the pipeline to look forward to next year. International expeditions provide amazing experiences for our young people and this year has been no exception. SE Berks had 5 attendees to the World Scout Jamboree in Korea who all had a different from expected, but great experience! This summer we have another 5 young people joining the County expedition to Malawi, and we have 15+ expressions of interest for the Alps 2025 expedition. Another highlight of the year is the growth of the Volunteer Development Team, led by Helen Robinson. We have successfully established welcome conversations in the District, with the support of Carolyne Brambley, replacing the previous AAC. Training provision has increased with the addition of 6 new training advisors and our mandatory training requirements across the District are being met. We have also awarded 18 wood badges this year. This team are also leading the effort to ensure we are ready for the transformation coming when the new membership system launches. Awards are always a highlight and this year we have seen a significant increase in both youth and adult top awards with 216 Chief Scout awards (Bronze/Silver/Gold) and 12 DofE awards issued to our young people, supporting our belief that across the groups in the District we are delivering quality programs for our young people. Adult awards have also accelerated this year, with Tony Fulford leading the awards team, and we have been delighted to award 4 Good Service awards, 18 Commissioner Commendations and 29 long service awards. Page 3 of 19 44th Annual General Meeting- 9th July 2024 Earleywood continues to provide a great experience for both District and other users and the provision of activities there continues to increase. Progress is also being made on renewing the lease which will enable us to generate investment in the site for the future. Our thanks to the EMB and all the Earleywood team. From a financial perspective the District is in a good position with healthy reserves and along with providing budget for the District Programme and a number of activities, this year we are providing a £500 allowance for each group for the purchase of equipment that will increase their ability to provide quality scouting to their members and others in the district. We are also supporting other projects on a case-by-case basis. As we move into 2024-25 we have also identified a set of goals that are the focus of the Trustees for the year, as follows. As you will note from the above we are making good progress in achieving many of these and regular progress updates are being provided to the District leadership team. 1. Governance within the District a. Overall structure, set up and level of support within each Group b. Financial resilience Charity commission compliance d. Risk register, GDPR Policy, safety and safeguarding 2. Earleywood transition & future plans a. Ownership: help/support needed to progress lease extension b. Creation of a robust roadmap/timetable for development of the site c. Fund Raising: widening the support 3. Investment Plan a. Communication to Groups and how to apply for project funding b. Identification of projects to support c. Review 4. Supporting Growth a. Maximising current capacity b. Adding additional sections to existing Groups c. Starting new Groups 5. Re-Launch District Program a. District Camp May 2024 b. Support Programme Team Leader's activity plan Thank You to all our volunteers and trustees for everything that you do and to the Berkshire County team for their help and guidance. Finally, we are always looking for more help! If you see something here that interests you, or would just like to find out what it's like to be part of this great team please speak to us! Yours In Scouting Hilary Crofton and Alex Sizeland Joint District Commissioners, SE Berkshire Page4of 19 44th Annual General Meeting - 9th July 2024 Annual Statement ofAccounts DISTRICTTREASURERS RE.PORT The attached flnancial statement was approved by the Trustees on and shows the flnancial position of the charity as at 31st March 2024. The main income of the charity is the capitation fees and interest on accumulated funds. IV Karan Mehra District Treasurer Dlstrict Executive Committee Trustees 202312024 Chairperson Secretary HonoraryTreasurer Ex Off icio District Commissioner DES Commlssioner Nominated Elected Co-opted Examiner of Accounts Mark G Sayers Bankers Nat West Bank PIC Virgin Money b) Dlstrict Registration No. 10213 Charity Registration No. 1021253 Page Sof 19 44th Annual General Meetlng- 9th July 2024 Consolidated Accounts for tlie year IstApill 2023 tD 315t Mafch 2024 - Receipts & PaymentsAccotsnts surnn￿ry Retel ts & Pa ments Ac¢ount Sumii)a t5&Pa nents Account -ry Total Receipts for the year Total Expenditure for the year let movement In funds- £56.258.22 -£47,308.40 £8.949.82 7 £64.176 67 -£49.63170 U4,544.97 V*& Cash & Bank brought forward_ Movenients In Earlywood Deposit and other non Cash Item5 Included above- E12j607.49 • £126,045 45 -U7.982 93 Cash, Bank and sinillar funds carrled forward - £131.557.31 £122.607.49 Suiiiina of Moneta Asset53t 31 March 2024 1 2023 District Executlve Account DASU Account It Earle￿¥00d 2022 E16.930 11 £6,775.41 £47,85179 - £131.557.31 '£74.109.97 £6,715.95 £41.781.57 < £122,607.49 South Eo$t Berkshire Scout Fellowshlp and Earleywood Campslte, jroni the Chorities colnin￿s10n vEwp