Scouts Australia

Scouts Australia
Headquarters	Chatswood, NSW
Country	Australia
Founded	1908
Founder	Lord Baden Powell
Membership	65,810 [1]
Website * Scouts Australia
Scouting portal

Scouts Australia is an organisation for children and young adults from 6 to 26 years of age. Scouts Australia is part of the global Scouting movement and national member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement since 1953.

Scouting in Australia

Boy Scouts reviewed by Lord Baden Powell in Canberra in 1927

Boys in the Commonwealth of Australia were involved in Scouting as early as 1908 ^[2], the year the first Boy Scout training handbook "Scouting for Boys" was published in England. The visits made to Australia by Baden-Powell in 1912 and in later years (1927, 1931 and 1934) encouraged the extension of the Movement in Australia.^[3]

Although each state branch in Australia was directly and individually responsible to Imperial headquarters in London, there grew up a desire to achieve co-operation at headquarters level and so a federal council of nominees from each state council was formed in 1922. This body later appointed an Australian Commissioner.

For more than 30 years, Scouting was coordinated by the Australian Federal Scout Council, which functioned as a Branch of the British Boys Scout Association. In 1958 the adjuration of the Australian Boys Scout Association took place and in 1967 the national organisation was incorporated by Royal Charter.^[4] The public name of the association was changed to the Scout Association of Australia in 1971, when girls were first admitted, although the official name was not changed until 2001, when the Royal Charter was amended through an Act of Parliament. The Organisation is now known as 'Scouts Australia', however its formal title remains The Scout Association of Australia.

Scouts Australia is a 'federation' made up of branches that operate in each Australian state and territory. Each branch is completely separate, maintaining its own structure and operational methodologies and rules, however all operate under a common uniform and common award scheme structure. How each branch chooses to structure itself down to individual Group level remains the prerogative of the relevant Branch.

The Chief Scout of Australia is the Australian Governor General,^[5] who is the representative in Australia of the Monarch (currently Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II). The Chief Scout in each state is normally the State Governor, who is also the Monarch's representative in each State.

Australia was made a member of the World Scout Organisation of Scout Movements (WOSM) in 1953 and is a Founder Member of the Asia-Pacific Region. In the field of support and co-operation with other member countries of the Asia Pacific Region, the organisation has contributed to a number of international friendship and community development oriented projects.

Over the years, Australian Scouts have supported emerging Scout Associations in the South Pacific. A twinning project with the Bangladesh Scouts, known as the "Bangladesh-Australia Child Health" (BACH) project made a dramatic impact on child health in project villages during its operation from 1986 to 1992.^[6][7] The Scout Association has a twinning project with the Nepal Scouts known as NATURE Project and involves the reforestation of the Kristi Landslide.^[8]

Australia hosted the successful 16th World Scout Jamboree and the 31st World Scout Conference in 1988. Some 15,000 Scouts from 94 countries attended the Jamboree at Cataract Scout Park near Sydney. An Australian Scout Jamboree has been held every three years since 1934 except for the years of the Second World War. The scout jamboree is the largest national scout event but there is also an Australian Rover Moot and an Australian Venture are also held every three years.

In response to World and Regional Scout Conferences held prior to 2000, Scouts Australia established a National Youth Council to engage youth members in national operations and to provide opportunities for these representatives:

• to advise on the relevance of Youth Program to young people;
• to advise Scouts Australia and external agencies of internal and external issues it should address;
• to provide further youth input into all strategies including membership and marketing;
• to be a sounding board for new initiatives;
• to make recommendations to national committees; and
• to continue to develop members' own skills, experience and knowledge in line with the movement's Aims.

Positions were first advertised at the 19th Australian Jamboree held at Cataract Scout Park in Sydney in January 2001 and by April of that same year, the first 30 Scouts, Venturers, Rovers and Young Leaders had been chosen to represent the youth population of Scouts Australia. The Council held its first meeting on May 4-6, 2001.^[9]

Today, there are 25 members on the Council from all branches of Scouts Australia. The only non-youth member of the Council is the Adviser who does not have any voting rights. The Council meets face to face twice a year and works in patrols and meets using online collaborative tools throughout the rest of the year. The Chair of the National Youth Council is a full member of the Scouts Australia National Council and therefore has voting rights on the National Operations Committee and National Executive Committee. ^[10]

In 2003 Scouts Australia became a Registered Training Provider under the banner of the Federal Dept. of Science, Technology and Training. Scouts Australia's Adult Leader Training now leads Adults to a Diploma of Leadership under the Australian Qualifications Framework.^[11]

According to its own Annual Reports ^[12] membership has decreased in all sections from a total of 84,502 in 2126 Groups in 2001 to a total of 63,200 in 1836 Groups in 2005. In 2010, an increase in overall membership to 65,810 in 1,504 groups was reported.

Sections in Scouting

Youth in Scouting are divided into several age related groupings. They are designed to overlap and encourage movement through the sections as the youth member matures.

The youngest section is Joey Scouts (6 - 8 Years). Joey Scouts is about activities to help develop a child's sense of personal identity and sharing. This is demonstrated by the Joey Scout law A Joey cares, a Joey shares. This section is followed by Cub Scouts (7.5 - 11) which aims to develop a sense of adventure and achievement and a chance to grow their character. The Scouts Section (10.5 - 15) promotes understanding of campcraft and the environment, whilst developing team skills and organisational abilities. Venturer Scouts (14.5 - 18) use the skills learnt in the later years of scouting through a system of self-governance. Rovers (17.5 - 26) is all about developing the social connections gained in earlier years in scouting and serving the community and the organisation.^[13]

Uniform

Throughout its history the Scouting Movement has been clearly identified by its uniform. Over the years much goodwill has been received by the Scout Movement and the uniform serves as a focus for the support of the community.

Within the Movement the adult uniform enables the leaders to be closely identified with those they lead. The uniform also expresses the basic values that are involved in being an Adult Leader. For an Adult Leader, the uniform expresses the fact that all are equal before the task in hand. Common ideals are shared by recognising the roles of other leaders by the insignia on their uniforms.

The core uniform is a dark blue shirt with the relevant youth Section colour across the sleeves, yoke and collar; a blue or moss-green belt (white for sea scouts); scarf and woggle.

• Tan for Joeys
• Yellow for Cubs
• Green for Scouts
• Maroon for Venturers
• Red for Rovers

These colours are the official ones for the youth sections. The colour for the leaders' shirt is dark blue.

Lone Scouts

The Lone Scout Group is for the youth unable to attend or find a local Scout group. Lones include people with disabilities and are therefore unable to attend regular group meetings, people who are constant travellers or go to places at which they are unable to attend a group i.e. boarding school or isolated communities.^[14]

Religion in Australian Scouting

Scouts Australia is open to young people from all religious faiths and from those with no religious affiliation. The wording in the Scout Promise of "do my best to do my duty to my God" allows flexibility and the movement is open to all who can make this promise. Historically, Scouting in Australia was rooted in Christianity as that was the dominant faith in the country in Scouting's early days, but recently, members have come from many faiths.

Scouts Australia elsewhere

Non-sovereign territories with Scouting run by Scouts Australia include

• Australian Indian Ocean Territories of Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands
• Norfolk Island

Award Scheme

The Award Scheme in Australian Scouting consists of Awards for Proficiency in an Adventurous Activity, participation in Major Events, recognition of service, Gallantry and Meritorious Service, and for the practice of scouting^[15] (Queen's Scout, Baden-Powell Award, etc.).

Adult Recognition Awards

Adult Recognition Awards (formerly Good Service Awards) are presented each year by the Chief Scout of each Branch and are presented for service to Scouting over and above what is expected for someone who is simply carrying out the duties of their position. These awards can be nominated by anyone affiliated with Scouts Australia.

Awards for Gallantry

Awards for Gallantry are made by the Chief Scout of Australia for actions involving risk, for example for saving someone from a burning building, to individual members or groups.

Awards for Meritorious Service

Awards for meritorious conduct are awarded for actions that may not have involved risking of life but still display courage, endurance, initiative or devotion to duty, often under suffering. As with Awards for Gallantry, these awards are made by the Chief Scout of Australia to individuals or groups depending on the circumstances.

See also

• Guides Australia
• Queen's Scout Award
• Sea Scouts
• Baden-Powell Guild (Australia)
• Gang Show
• Clement Roy Nichols

References

External links

• Scouts Australia
• Scouts Australian Capital Territory
• Scouts New South Wales
• Scouts Northern Territory
• Scouts Queensland
• Scouts South Australia
• Scouts Tasmania
• Scouts Victoria
• Scouts Western Australia
• Victorian Scout Heritage Centre
• Map of Australian Scouting
• Scouts Australia National Youth Council