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2022-03-31-accounts

Slough District 2022 AGM Reports Monday 16[th] May 2022 at 8:00 p.m.

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

SLOUGH DISTRICT SCOUT COUNCIL

Annual General Meeting 2022

AGENDA

  1. Introduction and welcome

  2. Apologies for absence 3. To approve the minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 22[nd] July 2021 4. The Constitution of Slough Scout District 5. The District Commissioner’s review of Scouting in Slough District 6. To receive and consider the Annual Report of the District Executive Committee including the annual Statement of the Accounts

  3. To approve the District Commissioner’s nomination of the District Chair 8. Election of the District Secretary 9. Election of the District Treasurer 10. Elect or reselect persons to the District Scout Council on the recommendation of the District Commissioner and the District Executive Committee 11. Elections of members to the District Executive Committee 12. To approve the District Commissioner’s nominations to the District Executive Committee 13. Election of Group Scouters to represent the District on Berkshire County Scout Council 14. To appoint the Scrutineer / Independent Examiner / Auditor 15. Presentations 16. Comments by County Commissioner or their representative 17. Close

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

Slough District Council Annual General Meeting Minutes

22[nd] July 2021 Via Zoom Video Conferencing

Life Vice Presidents

Mr.T.George & Mrs.P.Hodges

Welcome

The District Chairman, Bruce Clark, welcomed everyone to the AGM and thanked them for coming.

  1. Apologies for Absences Pauline Hodges, Tom George

  2. To Approve the minutes of the AGM held on 7[th] September 2020 Approved by show of hands

  3. The Slough District Constitution The Slough District Constitution was approved by a show of hands.

5. The District Commissioners review of Scouting in the District The chair thanked the District Commissioner for his very informative report.

  1. To Approve the Annual Report and the Statement of the Accounts including Treasurer’s Report The District Treasurer presented the reports. The Chair thanked the Treasurer for his reports. No questions were asked.

  2. District Commissioner’s Nomination for District Chairman

Ian Goldswain nominated Bruce Clark as District Chairman. As no other nominations have been received, a show of hands was given for approval.

  1. Election of the District Secretary

Ian Goldswain nominated Viv Gibbons as District Secretary. As no other nominations have been received, a show of hands was given for approval. 9. Election of the District Treasurer Ian Goldswain nominated Andrew Pau as District Secretary. As no other nominations have been received, a show of hands was given for approval.

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

----- Start of picture text -----
10. Confirmation of Slough District Council’s nominations as members of Berkshire County Scout Council
– Jamie Green and Jonathan-Stevens Paul.
Nominated by: Ian Goldswain
Approved by show of hands
11. Elections of Persons to the District Executive Committee – Gerry Higgins, Chris Edwards, Mike Duke, Nick
Harmer, Gary Rumble and Tim Hill
Nominated by: Ian Goldswain
Approved by show of hands
12. Approval of District Commissioner’s Nominations to the District Executive Committee – Particia Higgins,
Balwinder H, Harrison Saunders and Iqbal Lala
Nominated by: Ian Goldswain
Approved by show of hands
13. Elections of Group Scouters to represent the District on Berkshire County Scout Council – Joe Butler (adult
representative) and Nathan Malloy (youth representative)
Nominated by: Ian Goldswain
Approved by show of hands
14. Appointment of the Scrutineer/Independent Examiner – Andrew Paul indicated that the examiner from
this year would continue
Nominated by: Andrew Paul
Approved by show of hands
13. Closing Remarks
----- End of picture text -----

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

The Constitution of Slough Scout District

Introduction:

This document is the Constitution of Slough Scout District – effective from its adoption by Slough District Scout Council, approved by delegated authority to the District Executive Committee on 27[th] March 2018. It is broadly based on the generic Constitution of the Scout District (Policy, Organisation and Rules (POR)*, January 2018 edition (Rule 4.25)) with District variances shown in italics .

The Purpose of Slough Scout District

Scouting exists to actively engage and support young people in their personal development, empowering them to make a positive contribution to society (POR Chapter 1). The purpose of Slough Scout District is to support and encourage the development of Scouting in the District and to provide opportunities for young people from the District to participate in developmental activities elsewhere within the United Kingdom, and internationally.

All elected and constitutional bodies of The Scout Association at Headquarters, County, and District should have, as full voting members, at least two young people between the age of 18 and 25 years old.

This policy as a matter of good practice, should also be applied to any ad hoc, short- or long-term working groups or committees.

a. The District Scout Council (POR 4.25 e)

Ex officio

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

Nominated Members

▪ Other supporters of the District Appointed by the District Scout Council on the recommendation of the District Commissioner and the District Executive Committee.

The number of Nominated Members must not exceed the number of Ex Officio members.

Nominated members must be appointed for a fixed period not exceeding 3 years. Subsequent reappointments are permitted.

iii. Membership of the District Scout Council ceases upon:

b. The District Executive Committee (POR 4.25 f)

ii. Members of the Executive Committee must act collectively as charity Trustees of the Scout District, and in the best interests of its members to:

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

The Executive Committee must also:

iii. The District Executive Committee consists of:

Ex-officio members

At least two young people between the age of 18 and 25 years old as full voting members whether they are exofficio, elected, nominated or co-opted (POR 4.25 c).

Elected members

Nominated members

Co-opted members

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

Right of Attendance

iv. Additional Requirements for sub- Committees:

c. The District Team Meeting (POR 4.25 h)

i. The District Team, comprising Deputy District Commissioners, District Youth Commissioner, District Explorer Scout Commissioner, District Scout Network Commissioner, all Assistant District Commissioners, District Scouters and District Scout Active Support Managers, meet as frequently as necessary under the chairmanship of the District Commissioner.

ii. The purpose of the District Team Meeting is to:

d. Conduct of Meetings in the Scout District (POR 4.25 i)

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

i. In meetings of the District Scout Council and the District Executive Committee only the members specified may vote.

ii. Decisions are made by a majority of votes of those present at the meeting. In the event of an equal number of votes being cast on either side in any issue the chairman does not have a casting vote and the matter is taken not to have been carried.

iii. The District Scout Council must make a resolution defining a quorum for meetings of the Council and the District Executive Committee and its sub-Committees.**

iv. Electronic voting (such as email) is allowed for decision making of the District Executive Committee and its subCommittees when deemed appropriate by the Chair. In such instances over half of committee members must approve the decision.

v. The District Executive Committee and its sub-Committees can meet by telephone conference, video conference as well as face to face in order to discharge their responsibilities when agreed by the appropriate Chair.

e. How to change this Constitution

Changes to this document must be requested in writing to the Chairman of Slough Scout District Executive Committee for submission to and approval by Slough District Scout Council. Unless there are exceptional circumstances this approval will be sought at the following Annual General Meeting.

This is the end of the Constitution.

** As agreed by resolution of the District Scout Council: The quorum for meetings of the District Scout Council shall be 15. The quorum for the District Executive Committee shall be 6. The quorum for all sub-Committees shall be set by the sub-Committee chairman and endorsed by the District Executive Committee.

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

District Commissioner’s Report 2022

The AGM report is never an easy thing to write, what I want to tell you is all the exciting things that are coming up like the District Jubilee Camp, the summer camps that the Scout troops are going on as well as water activity days and children in need weekends. However, that’s not what this report is for and I must focus on what’s happened between April 1[st] 2021 and March 31[st] 2022!

As Scouters we have had a lot to deal with in the last year. Back in April 2021 many of our sections across the district were meeting outdoors, adapting their programs to suit the cold weather and the dark evenings so that our young people could begin to move back to some form of normality. Just to do this, we had to trawl through the endless pages of policies and websites. We had to write COVID secure plans that would allow them to re-open and face challenges, like being unable to return to venues as schools and community buildings were repurposed to spread out lessons or provide vaccinations. Scouting teaches us to be adaptable in any situation and I think we had to go above and beyond normal expectations to deliver our Scouting – I want to thank you all for your efforts in making this happen. Its only through your efforts, the Zoom calls, and the risk assessments that we were able to achieve this – so THANK YOU!

Another noteworthy fact was the grants that many of the groups were lucky enough to receive. Harrison led this initiative and became our Grant Champion motivating and advising many people across the district. Many thousands of pounds were awarded to Slough Scout groups so a big THANK YOU from all of us. I should say that those groups without HQ’s that did not qualify for these grants are eligible for hardship funding from the County. We can provide details of this. Let us know if you need to know more.

2 groups particularly struggled during this time for different reasons.

Thank you both Bruce and Harrison for your outstanding contribution to the district over this year

It wasn’t until September that the Scout Association finally announce that we could move to ‘Green’ with no limits on the number of young people we could get back together! In October 2021 the Scout Association commissioned a mini census ‘October Headcount’ which allowed us, for the first time to get a real picture of the damage that COVID had done to our numbers. Using the figures from January 2020 and comparing them to the figures at the height of COVID in January 2021 our numbers had reduced by 34%. By October there had been a recovery to about 20% of the pre covid position. Since then, we have seen the level of ‘want to join enquiries’ increase and I’m confident we will soon recover the pre covid numbers

Drawing this to a close, I’d like to let you know about 2 other exciting events that we’ve been part of this year.

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

As far as the district team is concerned, over the past few months together with Harrison and Mark we’ve made several new appointments to continue with our growth plan. Several our groups are also receiving ‘concentrated support’ from the HQ’s regional services team.

Financially I should draw your attention to the fact that we are in the very favourable position of sitting on considerable funds, primarily from the sale of assets in previous years. There are many discussions going on as to where we should invest these funds in terms of buildings and projects. Don’t forget as members of the Slough District Scout association this is your money, and if you have strong feelings as to where you’d like to see it used then please speak to me Mark or Harrison. We would welcome your input.

Finally, none of this would be possible without each one of our volunteers, be that on the District team, Section Leaders or Occasional helpers we’re all here for the same reason and that’s to provide lifechanging activities and memories for the young people of Slough using Scouting as the conduit. Thank you all for everything you do

Yours in Scouting

Ian Goldswain – Slough District Commissioner

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

District Chair’s Report 2022

Having taken up the chair role at the end of October 20 there were many challenges set in front of the Exec.

The first year was about finding out where we were - stabilising the team and broadening our ability to deliver and support the groups.

With this in mind, the Exec has done a sterling job and I’d like to personally thank them for sticking with us through the tough times of covid and helping us climb back into the saddle to help the district deliver scouting as it should be now that things are getting back to normal.

I would also like to thank the team that put the “District thank you” BBQ together - we had a very good turn out and the weather was kind to us. Thank you to those who came for joining us and I hope to see you again at the Jubilee camp.

Please remember that you may know some of the team and have an understanding of what they do in the background but very often they are the unsung heroes of Slough scouting. They put in many hours to provide things that we hope make it easier for the uniform side of scouting and ultimately the young people (the reason we are all here).

Some key highlights that we have achieved:

The accounts have been a challenge, and this was no small hill to climb, but we now have a suitable baseline to work from and the reports produced by Andrew make our accounts transparent and a more suitable tool for our Exec team to use. This enables them to make the right decision where money is concerned and more importantly meet the legalities we need to support.

We have had some changes within some of the key roles. Sarah Ainsworth has taken on the Appointments Committee chair role and is currently managing the team with Michele Garcia as secretary. They manage a team of 7 others which ensures we follow the process for bringing new adults into scouting and their suitability for the role/s they apply for.

One of the challenges was to bring the training of the exec members up to speed and I’d like to thank the team for ensuring they have all carried out the minimum requirements. We have also managed to get all the groups in the district who hold exec roles up to date. I believe that this is not only a great achievement, but it also ensures that all of our exec members understand their responsibilities. Despite the never-ending challenge of maintaining this level of achievement I do believe our dedicated team will ensure it stays at this level. I believe the leadership team are also very close to being on target to complete the training for people that need it.

Thanks to the efforts of our Quartermaster, John Higgins, we now have a fully up-to-date kit list for the district equipment and the knock on from this is that we now also have a more cost effective (fifty percent cheaper) insurance policy that covers all of our equipment.

With regards to buildings, a considerable amount of work was undertaken by Harrison and his helpers to get the district HQ back up and running so it was fit for groups to meet in and for kit to be stored in. Harrison also worked hard in supporting 2[nd] Cippenham with much needed building repairs – a new floor has been fitted throughout the building and the site has been cleared from (let’s say) everything. He has also assisted at Britwell with their flooring and water leak issues. We still have much to do but at least, thanks to the efforts of everyone involved, Scouting is happening at these groups.

I’m pleased to report that a friend in Scouting, Jamie Green, recently joined us as a member of the District Scout Council. Jamie has been working with some of the groups in Slough in helping to get them all wet 😊 on the water in Kayaks, canoes and even stand-up paddle boards. We have been working with the Jubilee Riverside centre in Slough, and we hope to broaden our engagement with him in the future so that more young people can benefit from this facility - our thanks to the charity SPICE for helping to make this possible.

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

I’m sure I will have forgotten many things and not named all the people that have achieved so much and for that I apologise but I do thank them for all their efforts.

We are very much looking forward to the future as this year I’m very pleased to report that Slough District Scouting now includes Squirrels. I’m very pleased to report that two Squirrel units that have set up in Slough (at 1[st] Langley and 3[rd] Upton) with great success and I’m looking forward to watching them grow. I believe the leaders have all been invested into the movement and the young people will shortly join them. We will meet them at the jubilee camp so look out for little people in a red tops - our future is looking great!

Ok, so when I was DC I used to use a saying from Confucius to finish with something to make you think but I can’t beat the news I’ve just heard while typing this report,

Scouting and Guiding has been secured in the Britwell HQ / land for the next 99 Years. The Scout association trust’s board has approved the lease and as we speak is signing the Engrossment lease. This was a challenge set to me when I took on the chair role and for the last two years, I’ve been supporting the Britwell team as their chairman. I can honestly say that it’s been a learning curve but I am very pleased they now officially have a hut, the grounds and the ability to carry out scouting and guiding for a very long time. My only request is for someone else to negotiate the lease next time around (in the year 2122). I must say a huge thank you for support of Slough Borough council in this, especially Stuart Aislabie (Principal Asset Manager) who supported us through this journey and I hope we can work together with the other leases in the same way. Many thanks, Stuart.

I can’t thank everyone enough for their efforts this last year. To the DC team, all the Leadership teams, the Executives and all the Parents and young people that make up the Slough District I wish you a happy year in Scouting - stay safe; stay well.

And I do hope to see you all at the Jubilee camp.

Bruce Clark - Slough District Chairman

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

Slough District Beavers Report 2022

The last couple of years haven’t been easy but our patience has paid off and it’s been great getting back to preCovid Scouting including sleepovers & activities. I know that colonies have been enjoying the freedom again.

Our first activity back together as a district was a Christmas party in December. We played party games, had some food & drinks and a huge snowball fight at the end. Unfortunately, the snowballs weren’t real, but they all went home with a little gift from Father Christmas.

This year we have a water activity day planned where any Beavers attending can gain a number of badges and take part in 3 different activities. We also have a “Children in Need” day planned for later in the year. This will be to raise a little bit of funds for the charity but also have different activities for the Beavers to enjoy during the day. Hopefully we can squeeze a sleepover in somewhere as well.

Leigh Kelly, one of our District Beaver Leaders, has stepped down from the position due to her work commitments. I would like to say thank you to Leigh for all her hard work and support while she was DBSL. We will miss her and hope that she will be able to come back sometime soon.

I would like to also say thank you to all the leaders in the district that run or help to run colonies, without you the young people in Slough wouldn’t have the opportunities that they do. Thank you for keeping Scouting going through Covid and for coming out the other side. Makes me proud to be ADC of some great volunteers.

Looking forward to another year of fantastic Beaver Scouting in Slough.

Joe Halls – ADC Beavers

Slough District Cubs Report 2022

After a very challenging 2 years Scouting is getting back to normal under the guidance of the Scout Association We are still very mind full of Covid 19 and are taking all the necessary precautions to keep our Young people and Leaders safe Cub packs in Slough District are enjoying face to face Section Meetings, Camps, Sleepovers and Outings District Events have been planned for June, September and December and District Cub Leaders meetings are now back face to face All leaders have remained committed to Cub Scouting and their enthusiasm has never left them during these difficult times We are all looking forward the District Jubilee Camp and Cubs will enjoy seeing their friends again and hopefully the sun will shine! A huge WELL DONE to all Cub Leaders, Cubs and Parents who have and continue to be amazing! We should all be very proud of what we have achieved and I know that Cub Scouting will go from strength to strength as restrictions are eased / ended

Sharon Neame – ADC Cubs

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

Slough District Scouts Report 2022

Firstly, I’d like to say a thank you to Muhammed Sharif for his assistance in taking over the role as ADC Scouts. I’m very pleased to advise that Scout sections across the district saw a good return to some quality scouting this last year. Leaders have been reporting at our meetings that numbers are looking good and the District events that have taken place have been amazing. I think pretty much all of our young people in the district have at least been offered a nights away experience and it’s great to see these returning. I would like to also thank Muhammed Sharif for the bike ride and chess tournament and also David Docherty for organising the incident hike. Hopefully the next year will have even more great things for the Scouts of Slough.

Tim Hill – ADC Scouts

Slough District Explorer Report 2022

The past year has been one of mixed feelings as we started to rebuild following the disruption of the pandemic resulting in a drop in numbers. Circumstances also meant we learnt that during 2022 we would see some changes to our 1st Slough leader team as were going to lose Dave Shaw due to relocation to another area which has indeed now happened. In addition, our Explorer Commissioner, Alexandra Keane needed to step down due to increased work commitments making it impossible to continue in any meaningful way. As a result, we are now seeking a replacement to take on the role. Thanks must however go to both Dave and Alex for everything they have done over several years. On a positive note though we do have large numbers coming through and are in the process of formally opening another unit which we will be able to report more about in 2022.

Mark Ashworth DDC (acting DESC)

Slough District Network Report 2022

As a section network was hardest hit by restrictions as the fact they are all over 18 meant they did not qualify for the youth provision exemptions to allow meetings to start again without restrictions on numbers and location. Consequently, throughout the past 2 years the section has been effectively dormant and we need to therefore start again and rebuild. A key part of this will be the appointment of our new Network Commissioner, Nathan Molloy. I know Nathan has some great plans to really get things going again and I am sure this will result in us having some positive activity to report on in next year’s report.

Mark Ashworth - DSNL

Slough District AGM – 16[th] May 2022

OFFICIAL#

Slough District Scout Council Accounts 01/04/2021 - 31/03/2023

Income 2021-2022
1st Slough Explorers 1,398.02
Covid Grants 10,667.00
Donation 250.00
Events 5,349.40
Events - Beavers 135.00
Fundraising 179.61
Insurance 134.47
International Events 4,710.00
Loans to Groups 15,962.50
MembershipFees 23,370.00
Rent 59.24
Total Income 62,215.24
Expense
1st Slough Explorers 572.45
Admin 384.52
Events 4,711.33
Events - Beavers 84.32
Events - Scouts 59.29
Insurance 629.04
International Events 600.00
Loans to Groups 19,886.09
Meetings 39.50
MembershipCosts 18,642.00
Rates 81.20
Rent 54.24
Utilities 1,216.27
Venue Maintenance 1,138.95
Total Expenditure 48,099.20
Account balances
Lloyds 1 256,804.94
Lloyds 2 1st Slough Explorers 790.81
SITIS 1 7,237.32
Metro 6,592.74
Lloyds SAS Network 4,417.79
Summary
Account balance brought forward 261,727.56
Total income 62,215.24
Total expenditure 48,099.20
Net income 14,116.04
Account balance carried forward 275,843.60

Slough District Scout Council Accounts 01/04/2021 - 31/03/2023

OFFICIAL#

Internal Fund Accouts
International 13,000.00
Explorers 7,000.00
Development 183,000.00
Covid Restart 30,860.29
Totals 233,860.29
Unrestricted Funds 41,983.31

CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examinerfs report on the accounts Section A Independent Examinef s Report Report to the trusteesl members of Slough District Scout Ciwncil On accounts ft)r the year ended 314 March 2022 Charity no lrfany) 1181292 Sgt out on pages 16&17 I report to the Iru5tees on my examination of the accounts of the atx)ve chanty {Ihe Trusf) for the year enrjed 3110312022 Responsibilities and basis of report As the chartty's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance wilh the requirements of the Chafities Act 2011 (Ihe A(Yl. I report in resFect of my examination of the Trusys accounts carried OLrt under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carying out my examination, I have followed all the aN￿1¢able Directions given by the Chanty Commission under section 145(5){b) of the A¢X. Independent I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have examinerfs statement come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any malerial resped". the accounting records were not kept in acurdance with section 130 of the Chartties Act". pr the accounts not accDrd with the accounting records,. or Ihe accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements conceming the fom and content of accounts set out in the Charities {Accounts and ReK)Orts} Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a Irue and fair, view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination. I have no concems and have ¢ome across no other matters in connpLtion th the examination to which attention should ￿ drawn in this report in Order to enable a prop¢r understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signed: Name: Relevant professional qualfficationlsl or body lif anyl: Address: IER Oct 2018