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2023-03-31-accounts

19 Annual Report 2023 j• AP* ij Scouts Greater Manchester West

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County Chair’s Welcome

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Annual Report for Greater Manchester West County Scout Council from 1st April 2022 to 31st March 2023.

What a year! Within this report you will read about the fun and challenging experience that young people have been involved in. This is testament to you, and your teams, in the time that you give to ensure every young person has the opportunity to take part in a wide and varied activity programme, from weekly meetings, days out, camping experiences, adventurous activities and for some, international trips. This leads to the achievement of Top Awards – WELL DONE TO EVERYONE!

There are many volunteers within Greater Manchester West who carry out their role(s). Some are front facing delivering the excellent programme for the young people and many are “behind the scenes” working hard to support you to carry out your role. As a County, we recognise this hard work and the experience many individuals bring – THANK YOU!

Further thanks are passed to our excellent campsite teams who work hard to ensure our campsites are excellent local spaces for many young people to take part in outdoor experiences. The continuing development of activities, programmes on offer, site maintenance and buildings do not just happen – so THANK YOU to everyone associated with our campsites.

It has been my pleasure to work with the County Commissioner and the Senior Leadership Team in order that they have the necessary support to carry out their roles.

Thank you to the County Executive Committee who have welcomed me as Chair since my appointment. Firstly, thank you for the support and direction you have shown me personally, but THANK YOU for the work and decision making undertaken to ensure the future direction and development of the County.

Overall, the commitment, dedication, willingness and just an overall desire to strive to grow is shown by every single person who is part of Greater Manchester West.

THANK YOU!

Susan Leonard County Chair

Silver Wolf Award Holders

Mrs Jacqui Aspinall MBE Mrs Joan Hayton
Mr Stanley Atkins Mr Kenneth Ince
Mr Graham Barrick Mrs Sheila Ince
Mr John Bilsborough Mrs Eileen Johnson
Mr David Copeland Mr Keith Lang
Mrs Pamela Copeland Mr David Maltby
Mrs Sylvia Cornish Mr Martin Maynard
Mrs Vera Crossley Mr Brian Mouat
Mr Hugh Davies Mr Steve Ralph MBE JP
Mrs Iris Emery Mrs Ann Salt
Mr Derek Freeman Mr George Sharp
Mrs Christine Gleaves Mr Geoff Sides
Mr Peter Hart Mrs Judith Summersgill
Mr Bob Haynes Mr Alex Waddington
Mr Alan Hayton Mr Haydn Worrall

Our County Team

County President

County President Sir Warren Smith KCVO KStJ JP
Vice Presidents Mr Geoff Sides
Mrs Vera Crossley
Colonel Sir John Timmins KCVO OBE TD
Regional Commissioner Mr Brendan Booth
County Commissioner Mr Andy Farrell
Deputy County Commissioners Mr Greg Archer (People)
Mr Jacob Bond (Programme and Communication)
County Youth Commissioner Mr James Turner
Deputy Youth Commissioners Mr Reece McSherry
Mr Luke Turner
Mr Joe Westhead
County Transformation Lead Mr Jacob Bond
County Chair Miss Susan Leonard
County Secretary Mrs Jean Archer
County Treasurer Mr Roger Kettle
County Appointments Secretary Mr Greg Archer
Asst. County Appts Secretary Mrs Jacqui Aspinall MBE
County Appts Advisory Committee Mr Graham Barrick (Chair), Mr Peter Marsh,
Mr Greg Archer, Mr Lewis Foster, Mr Andy Atherall,
Mrs Penny Rothwell Mason

Assistant County Commissioners Mr Tom Dutton (Beaver Scouts) Mr Dave Finch (Cub Scouts) Mr Bob Wilson (Scouts) Miss Jenn Carline (Explorer Scouts) Mr Oliver Horne (Scout Network) Mr Jeff Picton (International) Mr Chris Starkie (Activities) Mr Anthony Staunton-Unsworth (Inclusion)

County Campsite Managers Mr Chris Hayes and Mr Martin Shaw (Bispham Hall) Mr David Hughes (Dunham Park) Mr Ste Butterworth and Mr Mike Dunn (Hollinwood)

Our County Team

Managers / Advisers

County Training Manager Mrs Gemma Higson County Communications Manager Mrs Hayley Mullen Media Development Coordinator Miss Amy Tomkins Newsletter Coordinator Mrs Michele Millington Digital Project Coordinator Mr Andy Brown Digital Systems Coordinator Mr Lewis Foster Duke of Edinburgh Award Adviser Mrs Debbie Pullen King’s Scout Award Coordinator Mr Steve Ralph MBE JP Safeguarding Adviser Mr Greg Archer Safety Adviser Mr Mike Barrett

Scout Active Support Managers Mr Nick Anderson (Goodwood) (not listed elsewhere)

Assessors

Climbing Mr Andrew Bradley Climbing and Abseiling Mr Neil Gregory Hill Walking Mr David Smith Kayaking/Canoeing/Rafting Mr Michael McCarthy

County Administrator

Mrs Sue Ralph

County Training Team

Mr Jacob Bond, Mr Chris Hayes, Mrs Gemma Higson, Mrs Lindsay Johnston, Mr Neil Marks-Parker, Mrs Jane Riley, Mrs Penny Rothwell Mason, and Mr JP Yates

County Training Administrator Mr Chris Hayes, Mrs Jackie Worswick, Miss Sam Holloway and Mrs Lindsay Johnston

District Commissioners

Mr Kenneth Williams (Altrincham) Mr Jacob Bond (Ellesmere) Mr Steve Ralph MBE JP (Lilford) Mr Ryan Swailes (Lowry) Mr Andy Atherall (Sale) Mr Matt Osborne (Stretford) Mr Chris Knowles (Urmston) Mr Jeff Picton (Wigan)

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

Held Tuesday 6th September 2022 at 7.30pm at Dunham Park Scout Camp

Present

Sir Warren Smith KCVO, KStJ, JP County President Mrs Diane Hawkins JP LLB Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Greater Manchester Mayor of Trafford Councillor Chris Boyes and Mayoress Mrs Pam Boyes Mayor of Wigan Councillor Marie Morgan Ceremonial Mayor of Salford Councillor Ann-Marie Humphreys and Consort Mr Keith Byers Mr Ian Hill, Regional Commissioner Miss Sue Leonard, County Chair, Acting District Commissioner Ellesmere Mr Andrew Farrell, County Commissioner Mr Roger Kettle, County Treasurer Mrs Jean Archer, County Secretary Mr Jacob Bond, Deputy County Commissioner (Programme & Communications) Mr Greg Archer, Deputy County Commissioner (People) Mr James Turner, County Youth Commissioner Mrs Judith Summersgill, Dunham Park Camp Site Secretary, Silver Wolf Holder Mrs Gemma Higson, County Training Manager Mr Graham Barrick, County Appointments Chair, District Chair Urmston Mr Tony Staunton-Unsworth, Assistant County Commissioner Inclusion Mr Bob Wilson, Assistant County Commissioner Scouts Mr Chris Knowles, District Commissioner Urmston Mr Ken Williams, District Commissioner Altrincham Mr Ryan Swailes, District Commissioner Lowry Mr Steve Ralph MBE JP, QS Coordinator, District Commissioner Lilford, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Matt Osborne, District Commissioner Stretford Mr Jeff Picton, Assistant County Commissioner International, District Commissioner Wigan Mrs Jacqui Aspinall MBE, Assistant Appointment Secretary, Silver Wolf Holder Mrs Pamela Copeland, District Secretary Lilford, Silver Wolf Holder Mr David Copeland, County Executive, District Chair Lilford, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Hugh Davies, Silver Wolf Holder Mrs Iris Emery, County Executive, District Secretary Altrincham, Silver Wolf Holder Mrs Deborah Forrest, District Secretary Ellesmere, CSC member Mr David Hughes, Campsite Manager Dunham Park Scout Camp Mr Anthony Roberts, Local Training Manager Altrincham Mrs Lindsay Johnston, Local Training Manager Ellesmere Mrs Joan Smith, District Treasurer Wigan Mr Bob Haynes, Silver Wolf Holder Mrs Ann Salt, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Clive Winby, County Executive Mrs Hayley Mullen, Communications Manager Mr Lewis Foster, Executive member, Communications Team member Mr Dave Maltby, District Chair Stretford, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Brian Mouat, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Andy Connellan, County Nights Away Adviser, County Training Adviser Mrs Christine Gleaves, Local Training Manager Sale, Silver Wolf Holder Miss Sarah Goodstadt, County Adviser Staged Performances

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

Mr Josh MacDonald, District Youth Commissioner Lowry Mr Ste Butterworth, Campsite Manager Hollinwood Scout Camp Mrs Joan Hayton, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Alan Hayton, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Chris Varley, F.C.A. Cedar Solutions (Management) Ltd - Account Examiners Mr Andrew McDonnell, Dunham Park Camp Site Treasurer Mr Jon Davies, Dunham Park Camp Site Chair Mr Dave Marsden, District Secretary Sale Mr Joe Westhead, Deputy County Youth Commissioner Mr Michael Harding, District Treasurer Sale, CSC member Mrs Eileen Johnson, Scout Active Support Manager Ellesmere, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Derek Jones, Scout Active Support Manager Urmston Mr Derek Batchen, Hollinwood Scout Active Support Mr David Finch, Assistant County Commissioner Cub Scouts Mr Simon Gould, District Chair Altrincham Mr Richard Gould, Asst. Unit Leader World Scout Jamboree 2023 Mr Paul Wilkinson, Dunham Park Active Support

Mrs Sue Ralph, County Administrator (Minutes) plus 14 other scouters and friends signed the attendance register.

Apologies

Col Sir John Timmins KCVO, OBE, KStJ, TD, DL, DSc, LLD, County Vice President Mrs Vera Crossley, County Vice President, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Geoff Sides, County Vice President, Silver Wolf Holder

Mr Haydn Worrall, Silver Wolf Holder

Mr Phil Rigby, County Scout Active Support Manager Hollinwood Camp Site

Mr David Astin, President Bispham Hall Scout Estate

Mrs Sharm Clarke, District Treasurer Lowry

Mr John Bilsborough, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Phil Horton, Greater Manchester East Scouts Mr Reece McSherry, Deputy Youth Commissioner Mr Keith Lang, Silver Wolf Holder Mrs Cathy Ward, County Commissioner, Greater Manchester North Mr Alex Waddington, Silver Wolf Holder Mr Justin McDonnell, Local Training Manager Lowry Mrs Rona Rommel, Girlguiding Manchester Mr Ian McGeough, District Chair Sale Miss Yasmin Lee, District Youth Commissioner Sale Mr Andrew Atherall, District Commissioner Sale Mrs Margaret Davies, CSC member Mr Ged Davies, District Chair Wigan

Mr Chris Starkie, Assistant County Commissioner Activities, County Nights Away Adviser Mr Tom Dutton, Assistant County Commissioner Beaver Scouts

Mr George Sharp, Silver Wolf Holder

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

01/22 Safety Notice - David Marsden

02/22 Opening Thought and Welcome to Dunham Park Scout Camp - Jon Davies

03/22 Welcome and Introduction

04/22 Welcome by the Mayor of Trafford

On behalf of the Borough of Trafford, The Mayor Councillor Chris Boyes offered a very warm welcome to everyone, reminiscing about his Scouting as a boy and congratulating Greater Manchester West Scouts on providing Scouting for the young people helping them to overcome challenges and achieve their dreams.

The County President thanked the Mayor for his warm welcome.

05/22 Apologies for absence read by County Secretary - Jean Archer, as listed.

06/22 Approval to accept the Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on Wednesday 29th September 2021 which had been previously circulated to members of the County Scout Council.

The County President proposed acceptance of the minutes.

Seconded by Iris Emery - All in favour.

Andy asked everyone to take time to read the Annual Report, a lot of exciting things having happened in GMW over the last twelve months. He thanked Jacob Bond and Sue Ralph for putting it together.

Roger announced that the accounts as included in the Annual Report were selfexplanatory. The finances had been quieter during the period of Covid and from April onwards have started to get busier.

Roger strongly advised groups and districts who did not use digital banking to seriously consider this option due to increasing costs.

For anyone looking for accounting software he could recommend ‘Club Treasurer’, current annual fee £40. The Account Auditor Chris Varley has this year checked the accounts solely by the information on Club Treasurer, and it saves a lot of time and is easy to use. The International account, shown as restricted funds, are only a holding / handling account for those going on expeditions. The account is now

active for the forthcoming 2023 Jamboree in South Korea.

Roger asked if anybody has any questions. None were raised.

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

09/22 Proposal to approve the Annual Report and adopt the Examined Accounts

The County President proposed we approve the Annual Report and adopt the Examined Accounts. All in favour

The County Commissioner announced Sue Leonard as County Chair.

The County President asked for approval from the meeting – All in favour

12/22 Announcement of the County Levy

The County Executive had agreed an increase to the County Levy to support the financing of the Online Scout Manager and towards specialist training for instructors allowing us to provide permits and training within the County.

In conclusion Roger announced the County Levy will increase by £1.50 to £11

The HQ UK membership fee for 2023/24 will increase by £1 to £36 discounted to £35.50.

The total subscriptions for each young person under 18 years of age will therefore be £46.50.

The District Treasurers were thanked for making sure the subscription funds were received each year on time.

13/22 Election of the County Secretary

The County Commissioner proposed that Jean Archer continue as County Secretary and thanked her for the brilliant work she had done.

Seconded by Jacob Bond - All in favour

14/22 Election of the County Treasurer

The County Commissioner proposed Roger to continue as County Treasurer and thanked him for all the brilliant work he had done.

Seconded by David Maltby - All in favour

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

15/22 Announcement of elected members to the County Executive committee as notified to the County Secretary

Salford Metro:- To be advised*

Trafford Metro: (South) Clive Winby, (North) Solomon Cuthbertson

Wigan Metro:Lewis Foster

16/22 Announcement of the County Commissioner’s nominations to the County Executive Committee

Iris Emery and David Copeland

17/22 Announcement of members to the County Scout Council as notified to the County Secretary elected by each District Scout Council

Altrincham To be advised * Ellesmere Deborah Forrest Lilford Sophie Rothwell Mason Lowry To be advised * Sale Mike Harding Stretford Matt Osborne Urmston To be advised * Wigan Margaret Davies

Appointment to the Committee of The Association

The County Commissioner proposed his representative for adult and youth member as James Turner.

Seconded by Graham Barrick – All in favour

19/22 Appointment of Account Examiners

The County Treasurer proposed that Chris Varley from Cedar Solutions continue as Examiner/Auditor.

Seconded by Andy Connellan -All in favour

20/22 Member Recognition and address by County Commissioner

The County Commissioner then presented the following awards:-

County Commissioner’s Commendation Award - Jack Buckley and William Buckley, two young people from 2nd Irlam, Ellesmere District.

Wood Badge - Jacob Bond, Deputy County Commissioner for Programme.

30 Years Service Award -Matt Osborne, Stretford District.

Award for Merit – County President Sir Warren Smith

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

Jacqui Aspinall was then asked to come forward to present the following:-

Silver Wolf - Joan Hayton Silver Wolf - Alan Hayton

21/22 Address by Regional Commissioner - Ian Hill

Ian introduced himself as Acting Regional Commissioner for the North West, holding role of Regional Commissioner in the North East.

Referencing Dunham Park Campsite as the AGM venue, he pointed out how important spaces like this were to our young people, getting them outdoors, and congratulated those who make it possible.

Ian spoke of his reasons for Scouting; not only because he really enjoys it, and critically it’s fun, but more importantly really appreciated the difference that Scouting makes to the lives of young people.

During the last few difficult years, Scouting never stopped. He congratulated the amazing volunteers who had showed qualities such as passion, determination, and creativity to keep Scouting going, something that was reflected in GMW’s membership figures for 2022. A testament of what we do in Scouting.

For the present, Ian thanked everyone in GMW for getting their young people back outdoors, back around the campfires and back doing the things they love. Providing them with fun, challenge, adventure, helping them to make new friends and of course providing them with skills for life.

Looking to the future and feeling positive about changes that are coming in the next couple of years, Ian reflected on how Scouting had always changed and it’s only because of those changes that we are as relevant as we are to young people today.

Our Skills for Life Strategy was making great progress but was delayed by the impact of COVID-19 and taking this forward we are focusing on a warmer welcome, making the joining process easier, to simplify how we volunteer; which means changes to roles, titles, structure, giving more support for the things we do every day.

Compass is to be replaced with a new membership system. Doing more things digitally, all designed to help deliver brilliant programmes for our young people.

Changes include a more engaging ‘learning’ process making sure we support our leaders to do a great job for our young people, allowing us to deliver more Scouting to more Young People which is so important.

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

In order to help this process, Ian asked of everyone:-

Take the opportunity to express your views about the changes that are coming, one - - way is via the ‘testing hub’ at https://www.scouts.org.uk/about us/testing hub/

Support your Transformation Lead. Jacob Bond in GMW has kindly agreed to take on this role. Help him by going into your Compass record, check everything is up to date including your mandatory training; Safety, Safeguarding, First Aid and GDPR all of which are so important in keeping our young people safe. https://compass.scouts.org.uk/login/User/Login

Keep sight of our goal – of having more volunteers so that we can offer every young person the experience of benefiting from Scouting.

Concluding Ian thanked each and every one, whatever your role. Everyone is so important and when we work as team we deliver extraordinary things. He also gave thanks on behalf of all the young people and reminded everyone to be incredibly proud of what you do.

For further information please visit the following links:-

Skills for Life – Our plan to deliver better futures: https://www.scouts.org.uk/about us/strategy/

The Next Steps for Growing our Movement: https://www.scouts.org.uk/about us/strategy/the-next-steps-for-growing-our-movement/

People – Improving the volunteering experience at Scouts:

https://www.scouts.org.uk/about-us/strategy/our-programmes-of-work/people/

- - Our Programmes of Work: https://www.scouts.org.uk/about us/strategy/our programmes-of-work/

Digital Transformation – Our digital strategy supports our members, grows the movement - and puts our people at the heart of what we do: https://www.scouts.org.uk/about us/strategy/our-programmes-of-work/digital-transformation/

22/22 Vote of Thanks

Jeff Picton then thanked Dunham Park Scout Camp for hosting the AGM.

23/22 Final Address

The County President, Sir Warren, finished being the Lord Lieutenant of Manchester in July 2022, after 15 years, and had told Her Majesty the Queen that they had probably been his happiest. This was for many reasons, one being the inspiration gained from meeting people throughout the County and no one more so than the Scout Movement.

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 2022

The pandemic has had a huge impact on young people’s mental health and what Scouting has done to preserve the mental health of young people is beyond price, and the one thing Scouts really do well is enable the young people to have fun.

It is phenomenal how many people are prepared to give hours a week as volunteers and leaders within the Scout Movement and thanked each and every one for their contribution.

Sir Warren challenged everyone to be an ‘Ambassador’ to promote Scouting. To tell their non-scouting friends, work colleagues, employers, and the people around them all about Scouts. Encouraging more people to join and some may even be willing to help financially.

Scouting also has an important part to play in the next two or three years when life is going to get harder and money is going to get tight; no one should be excluded through shortage of money. The young people must still be inspired and given hope. Sir Warren genuinely believed that the Scout Movement can do this.

Concluding Sir Warren again thanked each and every one for the amazing contribution made to the lives and futures of young people.

With the formal business concluded, Paul Wilkinson, former Warden at Dunham Park Scout Camp and Chair of the Friends of Dunham Park Scout Camp then gave short presentation on the history of the site in celebration of its 100th Anniversary.

Following this there was a performance by the Sale Scout and Guide Band.

*Since the AGM we have been advised of the following:Agenda Item 15/22: Lowry District’s elected member to the County Executive Committee is Ryan Swailes

Agenda Item 17/22: Altrincham District’s representative on the County Scout Council is Jane Ford. Urmston District’s representative is Michele Millington and Lowry District’s representative is Josh MacDonald.

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Roger Kettle County Treasurer

Good Service Awards

Silver Wolf

Greater Manchester West Graham Barrick

Bar to the Award for Merit

Wigan District Valerie Hussey

Award for Merit

Greater Manchester West Sir Warren Smith

Queen’s Scout Award / King’s Scout Award

Emily Topping – Altrincham District (KSA)

Louise Austin - Urmston District (QSA)

Lauren Brennan – Urmston District (QSA)

Tom Dutton – Lilford District (QSA)

Simon Lowe – Lilford District (QSA)

Sarah Mullaney – Lilford District (QSA)

Nathan Murray – Lilford District (QSA)

Rebekah Trott – Lilford District (QSA)

County Commissioner's Report

2022-2023 has been another good year for Greater Manchester West and with the introduction of Squirrel Dreys our membership stands just shy of 6000 members – testament to the hard work of our volunteers given the challenges we faced over the past couple of years.

Our programme continues to provide exciting and educational opportunities for young people and our adult learning is thriving with more and more adults completing both mandatory and manager training.

Looking back over previous reports, I’ve spoken a lot about change, and this year has been the most significant with the introduction of Transformation across all groups, structures, and trustee boards. This has been a huge undertaking and I would like to thank Jacob Bond and team for all their efforts in bringing us on this journey. I know it’s not been an easy ride and whilst we’re not over the finish line just yet, we are on track to ensure we are compliant with the new ways of working.

Adult recruitment continues to be a pain point for groups across the County and indeed nationwide. However, I am confident with the new warmer welcome and less red tape (whilst continuing to have checks and measures in place) we can start to attract more adult volunteers and therefore grow our membership.

I would like to thank the Trustees and Senior Leadership for their ongoing support. At times, I know I have a somewhat unorthodox approach to leading GMW and I am grateful to have an amazing group of people around me to ensure that we get things done, in a logical and considered approach.

Finally, thank you to all young people and their parents for always supporting and championing Scouting, whether locally or on an international scale – wearing a GMW badge on my uniform makes me immensely proud and seeing what you have all achieved over the past 12 months, echoes that pride in equal measure.

We have some exciting opportunities coming our way in 2023-2024, and I look forward to sharing them with you as they unfold.

Andy Farrell County Commissioner

Transformation, Programme and Comms

Transformation

In May 2022 I attended The Scouts Basecamp event at the University of Manchester with other members of the County Team. This event set out the next chapter of Skills for Life for The Scouts, and introduced the improvements being made to enhance volunteer experience.

To give more young people skills for life, we need more volunteers. Scouts have spoken to more than 10,000 people inside and outside the organisation and have been told we need to make volunteering with Scouts easier and more fun, so we can attract and retain more volunteers. Scouts want to make volunteering more flexible, by allowing volunteers to commit the time they have and to be part of a team.

The key changes to help transform volunteering at Scouts to make it easier, more enjoyable and rewarding are:

All these changes are underpinned by a new membership system. Scouts have also been working to ensure good governance practice in all groups, districts, and counties; some of the changes have already been implemented locally from April 2023.

These changes are being rolled out in phases, and in Greater Manchester West we are keeping the relevant volunteers informed throughout. In March 2023 we held a conference for district teams and group scout leaders showcasing how Scouts are transforming volunteer experience, and the roadmap for our County. We continue to regularly update our volunteers through meetings and our member updates.

Programme

We were certainly back to a full year of programme events and opportunities following a slower start in 2021 after the pandemic. I was amazed to see attendance rocket at events across all sections and a huge increase in the number of Top Awards being presented to young people across the County.

In the spring months we had the Lord Derby and Cardboard Canoe Race which were both well attended and it was nice to see some sections who don’t usually enter these events take part for the first time. I would like to especially mention 6th Worsley who stunned many of the teams at the Lord Derby with their nature table decoration base. Beavers Go Bananas was back which involved hundreds of Beavers exploring Blackpool Zoo!

At the annual Day of Celebration which takes place at Windsor Castle each year, the adult volunteers who had received their Silver Wolf Awards were in attendance. We were also delighted to have so many recipients of the Queen’s Scout Award attend as part of the Parade. To achieve this award, young people must be dedicated and work hard to complete each component, often including completion of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme. Hopefully, we will continue to see an increase in these Top Awards for Explorers and Network across the County.

Transformation, Programme and Comms

In June we held the first Celebration of Excellence Day for Beavers and Cubs since 2019 and I was delighted to welcome over 230 young people and their families to Bispham Hall Scout Estate for an action-packed day of activities including archery, shooting, tomahawk throwing, climbing, cave bus and many more. Each young person who attended has achieved their Chief Scout Bronze or Silver Award; we are so proud of every young person who receives their Top Award in their section. We were joined by the then Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester, Sir Warren Smith and other special guests who continue to provide support to Scouting in Greater Manchester West.

July brought another series of events, but the main event was our County Beaver and Cub Camp at Bispham Hall Scout Estate. There were over 1600 campers on site and there were young people attending from every district in the County. On the Saturday, young people took part in a series of activities working towards their Outdoors and Adventure Challenge Awards which included a whole range of themes including adventurous activities, team challenges, craft, and scouting skills. We all came together in the evening for a BBQ which 3rd Ashton-On-Mersey Scout Group had organised, and we could not thank them enough for running this again, the food was great! As the sun started to set, a giant inflatable screen appeared on the farm field where Beavers and Cubs tucked into popcorn whilst watching The Lion King. The activities didn’t stop there; on Sunday morning it was Commonwealth Games themed activities starting with a flag parade with each district representing a different country. We then had a variety of sports day activities which supported young people in achieving activity badges in both sections.

Over the summer and autumn, we continued with more programme events including our Camping and Backwoods for Scouts and BST Adventure Hiking event at Rivington Pike. For the Cub Mudder we were joined by the South Lancashire Amateur Radio club who helped our young people also take part in the Jamboree on the Air (JOTA), communicating by radio signal with other Scouts across the UK and overseas.

In November we held our annual Patrol Leader Training Day, which was followed in March by our first Patrol Leader Training Camp. These events provide young people with essential skills for life to lead other young people to make the right choices, share skills and overcome challenges. We are delighted these events are oversubscribed each year, but it is important we provide opportunities for young people to take the lead as they are the volunteers of tomorrow.

There were plenty more events including a return of the Cub Ready Steady Cook, Beavers Cooking Competition and Scout Football Event which was hosted at a new venue at Altrincham Grammar. Altrincham Rifle and Pistol Club hosted our annual Shooting Competition for Scouts, Explorers and Volunteers which has record attendees and a team who headed to the National Competition to represent the County. All these amazing programme events would not have been possible without our amazing programme team, campsite staff and supporters who make these events possible. THANK YOU!

In the world of international, ‘The Weatherbees’ continued their preparations for travelling to South Korea for the 25th World Scout Jamboree in Summer 2023. The Unit held a number of residential weekends and social activities where they were provided with information to support their trip, time to bond as a Unit and learn more about Korean culture. In addition, there were

Transformation, Programme and Comms

dozens of combined and individual fundraising activities including marshalling marathons, race nights, car boot sales and even running a BBQ stall and activities at our Celebration of Excellence Day. I think the highlight of their year was taking part in Chamboree at the Cheshire Showground which was a week-long camp jam packed with activities on and off site. I was lucky enough to join them for festival day with other members of the County Team, I had one of the best days! It has also been great to see some of our International Service Team (IST) representatives get involved in their activities and support the unit.

We have opened 5 new Squirrel Dreys throughout the year with more opening since the reporting period closed. Squirrels provide young people from the age 4 to 6 with their own Scouting adventure aiming high for their Chief Scout Acorn Award. There are lots of fantastic stories coming from our Squirrel Dreys, including the number of additional adult volunteer the section has brought to some groups. If you are interested in finding out more about Squirrels or are interested in opening a section at your Group – please get in touch!

We continue to provide some extraordinary experiences to our young people! It would not be possible without all the adult volunteers at sections, groups, districts and in the County Team – THANK YOU for everything you do! I’m super proud to lead programme in Greater Manchester West.

Communications

We have continued to adapt and change the way we communicate with our volunteers. We continue to update our website, making it a hub of information for our volunteers. We have continued to develop our monthly member updates to not only include information about calendar events, but also key information such as transformation, mandatory training, inclusion resources and important updates about adventurous activities.

Over the next year we are hoping to grow our team and focus on external communications, improving our online presence helping us to grow the movement across the County. We will be working closely with each of the new County teams to promote their areas of work, share great news stories and showcase the amazing opportunities we provide for young people and volunteers alike.

Jacob Bond Deputy County Commissioner

People

What a busy, transformative year we have had. There have been lots of ‘Training’ plans, lots of ‘Activities’ plans and lots of discussions as to what we can do and how we can do it.

The year started with the continuation of face-to-face training. I must say it has been great to see so many members involved in the training weekends. We really hope that you get as much out of them as we do; the team always stress that it is about collaboration between us all.

The team are always conscious that we deliver the best training possible and that is what we always strive to do. We are also aware that there is a new style of ‘Volunteering Journey’ coming in via the transformation process which no doubt you will have been reading about, but for this reporting year it was business as usual.

It is great to see so many on the training courses, from new leaders starting their journey to leaders who have come along to refresh their knowledge, and it is also great to see so many sharing their experiences and passing on their knowledge.

We do believe the weekends are the best way to deliver training, but we are conscious that this does not work for everyone, and we ask you to get in touch if this is the case. We are approachable and will always try to help. If we don’t know we can't help!

All this could not be done without the fantastic Training Team we have in place. Huge thanks to Gemma Higson (County Training Manager) who works so hard in planning the courses, making sure the right people are there to facilitate the delivery of the modules and to make sure we are fed, it all takes time and planning. Any questions on any aspect of training drop Gemma an email at training@gmwscouts.org.uk she will be happy to help.

Training is your responsibility. We can deliver training but making sure your mandatory training is up to date and your Woodbadge modules are completed is down to you. Please check your Compass records and make sure that it is where you feel it should be.

Alongside the Training set up we have Chris Starkie who looks after the Activities for us. Chris has worked so hard to form a team that is able to assist in getting you the right permits needed. Chris and his team have a wealth of experience in various sectors, from Hill Walking to Kayaking we can get you assessed and get your permit. If anyone needs more information on getting a permit, please go to the GMW Scouts webpage and there is a section that will assist you. Any questions email Chris at activities@gmwscouts.org.uk Thanks again to Chris for all his efforts and due diligence in making sure we are covered as a County.

Heartfelt thanks from myself to all the members of my team. As much as I thank Gemma and Chris, I am fully aware of the many people who work alongside them in offering services from weekends to section nights. We could not do this without you so “Thank You” for your time, opinions and guidance which is what makes us work so well.

People

What does next year bring?

As we have always said, we never stop looking at ways of improving and whilst we are not yet completely sure on HQ’s vision for ‘Volunteer Learning’ we know parts will change. However, we will look to put on some more specialist courses and continue to offer the courses we currently run and will communicate any changes with you as we have them.

As always, the other side of my role is supporting the County Commissioner, the rest of the Leadership team and County Executive Committee (Trustee Board). They are doing some fantastic work in the County, and it has been a pleasure to help them where I could. I would like to thank Andy, Jacob, Sue, and the rest of their teams for their support over this year also.

The last part is always the call for help! I speak to so many people who say they would love to get involved but think we are too “cliquey” - We are not. Unfortunately, when we offer what we offer we need people to support that and often call on those we know will help! However, we are like you just trying to make a difference. If you feel you could help, please get in touch, we would love to have that chat. We have so many fantastic members with great skill sets we would love to share.

Finally thank you again to the Teams. I say it every year you make my role enjoyable and working with you is absolutely my pleasure, I would be lost without each and every one of you.

Have a great year of Scouting and look after each other.

Greg Archer Deputy County Commissioner

Duke of Edinburgh Award

It is great to report that we have several new groups taking part in the Award. There are now 10 in total:- Altrincham, Ellesmere, Lilford (Pegasus), Lilford, Sale (MacAlpine) Stretford (Shackleton), Stretford (Longfords), Urmston (2nd Davyhulme), Urmston and Wigan.

This reporting year there were 18 Bronze, 19 Silver and 9 Gold awarded across the County as follows: -

Sale (MacAlpine) 13 Bronze, 6 Silver, 2 Gold Altrincham 1 Gold

Lilford 1 Silver, 3 Gold Lilford (Pegasus) 1 Bronze, 1 Silver Wigan 2 Bronze Urmston (2nd Davyhulme) 2 Bronze, 11 Silver, 3 Gold

Congratulations to all the young people who have worked so hard to achieve their Awards.

Debbie Pullen Duke of Edinburgh Award Adviser

King’s Scout Award

This reporting period 1st April 2022 to 31st March 2023 has been unique in that both Queen’s Scout and King’s Scout Awards have been issued.

As can be seen on the Awards page this has been a very successful year for the County with 7 Queen’s Scout Awards and 1 King’s Scout Award having been earned. Congratulations to all Award holders I know that a lot of hard work and planning went into the journey, and I am sure that each and every one of you are justifiably proud, I know that we as a County are proud of you.

The King’s Scout Award is the culmination of years of hard work and endeavour; and I would ask that you as leaders encourage your young people to sign up for the Top Awards as soon as possible, i.e., when they start Explorers. The Scouting Awards coupled with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award make for a great and exciting programme. Link these with the Young Leader Award, the Explorer Belt and the Scouts of the World Award and we really have it all covered from ages 14 to 25.

Here’s looking to more exciting times ahead, with young people from GMW showing that they are up there with the best.

Steve Ralph King’s Scout Award Coordinator

Bispham Hall Scout Estate

Another year is over and what a busy year it was……

We were delighted once again to host a number of district and group camps this year including, St Helens, Lowry, Sale Central as well as GMW’s Annual Celebration of Excellence and the County Beaver and Cub Camp. The Team at Bispham received great feedback again, from the different camp and event organisers, for helping to make the events run smoothly and great memories for young people. The total number of visitors for the year were 4242 totalling 7115 camper nights. Bispham Hall was used through the year by various schools across the Northwest allowing young people to earn the respective Duke of Edinburgh Awards, which is an area of growth.

Prior to lockdown we had plans drawn up to upgrade the bathroom facilities in the staff accommodation which we were now able to press on with. Members of our team worked hard throughout the year installing new toilets and showers with modern fixtures and fittings. At the same time, we took the opportunity to install fire doors and frames complimenting the new fire alarm system for the staff areas, office, workshop, and providore. This brought the building up to modern standards, as it had not been modernized since the 1970’s!

GMW Training Team chose to use Bispham House again to provide leader training for several weekends throughout the year. Thank you to all involved.

We took the decision to consolidate the activities we offered, investing in a smaller number of activities that we can deliver to a high standard and are very proud, in particular, of our shooting, archery and axe throwing facilities.

Bispham Hall held its annual Chariot Race which has been running for over 45 years! As always this was a great weekend which was enjoyed by all. The Chariot Race course was again used the following weekend for Cub Mudder, hosted by GMW, which is becoming an annual event and a training ground for Cubs preparing for the Chariot Race.

As it is for many, the cost of utilities at Bispham Hall have increased significantly which has become very challenging in terms of financial management. One of the ways we have been able to ensure the sustainability of the campsite is to allow Meta Games who are a ‘live action role play’ provider to use our site for 3 weekends this year, giving us much needed income. We are keen to build on this relationship allowing them to use our campsite again next year in the periods that have been traditionally used less frequently by Scout groups.

The increased costs of utilities and general materials required for the upkeep of the site will continue to be challenging. This is something the Management Committee are very aware of, and this may result in price increases for the use of Bispham Hall’s facilities.

We discovered in lockdown that Bispham Hall’s Land had never been registered in The Scout Associations name and, working with our appointed solicitor, we pulled together the relative documents to enable them to submit a Land Registry application in June 2022 on our behalf. Due to significant delays with this Government Department, we are yet to receive confirmation.

Bispham Hall Scout Estate

Again, we cannot stress enough the hard work, determination, and drive that our volunteers have which makes Bispham Hall Scout Estate what it is! It is impossible to put into words how much we appreciate the help and support from our amazing team!

Looking forward, we are as motivated and passionate as ever to deliver a site fit for young people to experience something different and make memories……

Chris Hayes and Martin Shaw Campsite Managers

Dunham Park Scout Camp

2022 the Centenary Year of Dunham Park Scout Camp saw many opportunities to celebrate the success of the Campsite. In 1922 Dunham was the second campsite in the country set up as a training camp, after Gilwell Park.

The history of Dunham Scout Camp was captured on an informative and inspirational picture board which is now on display at the campsite. It is situated in what has become known as ‘Centenary Square’ on the site of a slate compass kindly donated by ‘Quest’ Scout Group in Stretford District.

During 2022 we also joined in the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of our late Queen Elizabeth II with a get together and the lighting of a beacon. We hosted the County AGM at the site in September which was very well attended.

Our volunteers, comprising of our Tuesday Club, our duty wardens and our management team have worked hard during the year completing the tomahawk range, repairing the archery, and shooting ranges which had succumbed to the floods, and repairing and replacing much needed fencing.

A ‘reflection area’ was also created in a previously overgrown part of the site and it was a most suitable place to site “Pat’s Chair” a large story chair purchased in memory of the late Pat Haynes. It is used both for Beavers to listen to stories and for Scouts’ Own. We held a Wardens’ Day in March and a Christmas meal in January.

We have added to the activities at the site by purchasing a professionally installed zip wire, and bouldering and traversing walls. This was possible with financial help from the Friends of Dunham Park Scout Camp, Altrincham District, and the County. The Beaver trail is now complete and has been used by Beaver Colonies both on evening and weekend bookings. We hosted the Lord Derby Competition in April. The Jamboree contingent met on a number of occasions at the campsite.

After a difficult two years with the COVID pandemic, we are pleased to report a steady increase in bookings, both weekend and weekdays and the return of summer camps. Some of our customers are from scout districts in other counties, they are very welcome. We continue to work closely with our landlords, The National Trust, who held their annual training day at the site in November with over 100 people attending.

As Campsite Manager I am indebted to our volunteers at the site, currently over forty people. They have provided assistance with the management, maintenance, and development, and we are most grateful to the Friends of Dunham Park Scout Camp who fundraise for us. Our Duty Wardens cover the busy weekends, for which we are very thankful, and we are always interested in hearing from anyone who would like to join the team.

David Hughes Campsite Manager

Hollinwood Scout Camp

Building a campsite is an amazing opportunity and not something many people get to do.It’s as challenging as it is rewarding.We’ve had a very productive year, with many achievements, and it is only possible with our small but hardworking team.

We DO need your help though; you can come and volunteer or – and we can’t emphasise this enough – come and use our incredible space! We promise you’ll like it!

It may seem like progress is slow, but we are now a functioning campsite and some of the events that we’re able to put on show this. This is a big step forward from where we were just 12 months ago.

As ever, we are striving to make Hollinwood a safe, beautiful, and welcoming place for young people to learn #SkillsForLife.

Some highlights in no particular order are:

Electricity

A big one! We had electricity installed in Spring 2022. You all know how useful electricity is but having this installed is no mean feat and is down to our incredible volunteers.

Grants

Little ones. They keep us going while we’re able to be more sustainable. It’s expensive to run a campsite and these grants keep us in fuel, good working tools, help pay the rent and all sorts of things. They are also hard work to find. Please come and use Hollinwood so that we’re less reliant on them.

Temporary Toilet Block

We know that we need a toilet block which is why we snapped up the chance to buy a small container and fit it out ourselves. Again, a huge amount of effort goes into doing this. If you have any skills that you can lend us, please get in touch! Once this is operational (this autumn hopefully) then we can get rid of our pesky and expensive port-a-loo!

Chalet

This is a great little building (found for us by our County Commissioner no less). Its construction highlighted the positive aspect of the Hollinwood team pulling together and in Jan 2023 we spent a few soggy weekends prepping the ground and foundations. We’re cracking on with making this a useable space for our hardworking team.

Youth Investment Fund

Without doubt the biggest potential for Hollinwood Scout Camp since our inception.The team have been diligently working away in the background to prepare a design pack to an extremely high standard. We’re now 8 months into the process and should find out in August 2023 whether we’ve been successful in gaining a large award for 2 buildings, a ‘proper’ toilet and shower block and a wet weather building. If we are successful, this will propel Hollinwood forward.

Hollinwood Scout Camp

These are just some of the highlights and tangible things that we can point to. What we can’t list are all the small things that many of our team do for Hollinwood every single day.

Just a small flavour of what it takes to run a campsite are; running events, removing invasive brambles, missing your tea to go and let groups onto site, setting up corporate team away days, welding in 5 degree temperatures, doing scrap runs, fixing faulty lights, planting hedges, running Explorer evenings, fitting new locks, painting, cutting grass, keeping the bills paid, arranging for machines to be serviced… the list is seemingly endless!

We are hugely indebted to anyone who volunteers their time. But we do need more of us.

Please come and pitch in. You never know, you might like it!

Ste Butterworth and Mike Dunn Campsite Managers

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