{"content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EThis is my first Annual Report as Chief Executive. It\u2019s humbling, returning to Scouts after some time away, to be reminded of the incredible difference Scouts makes to young lives.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EYoung people need Scouts more than ever. With over 10 million children in the UK saying they\u2019re unhappy with life, Scouts offers a sense of fun, friendship and possibility. As we heard at our national conference in January, what young people need most is \u2018trusted adults and safe spaces\u2019 \u2013 exactly what our volunteers offer across our 7,000 Groups.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn my first 100 days in the role, I had excellent conversations with volunteers from across the UK. I\u2019ve heard how and where we can best use our time and resources, acknowledging we can\u2019t do everything.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs a team of volunteers and staff, we must be practical and honest about the financial challenges we face. Returning to our pre-pandemic membership levels is still a work in progress, and costs are increasing. To make sure we\u2019re sustainable for the future, I\u2019m focused on refining our operating model so we can run a balanced budget and support the movement long term in creating the right conditions for growth. Thank you to all our people for their continuing support during this time of change.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThank you as well to those supporting volunteers with our membership system. We\u2019re all too aware of the challenges this is presenting, and we\u2019re working hard to resolve these. We\u2019re sorry for the extra work this has created locally. We know there are still outstanding delivery issues and we\u2019ve prioritised these.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe continue to be grateful for the generous support of funders and partners to enable our ambitions for young people. This year has included the largest ever donation to Scouts, \u00A33.5 million from Omaze, as well as continued investment from the Department for Culture Media and Sport\u2019s Uniformed Youth Fund of \u00A32.8 million to support Scouts and Explorers growth. This is making a vital difference, helping us create new places in new communities. Our Squirrels numbers are climbing,\u0026nbsp;and continued growth of Explorers is an encouraging sign too.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs ever, recruiting and supporting adult volunteers remains critical to supporting young people. Our work developing and delivering improvement to our\u0026nbsp;volunteer experience will help us achieve this \u2013\u003Cbr\u003Ecreating the conditions to make it easier and more rewarding to volunteer.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAlongside this, we\u2019ve worked hard this year to help everyone in our movement understand what they need to do to keep our young people, volunteers, and staff safe. We\u2019re committed to a continuous journey of learning and improvement, and we\u2019re grateful to the partners who\u2019ve given critical scrutiny to help us progress.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EPlanning for the next strategy is well underway. Thank you to the tens of thousands of young people and volunteers who\u2019ve contributed so far, including those who attended our national conference in Birmingham. The future belongs to our young people,\u0026nbsp;so thank you for helping them.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFinally, let\u2019s not forget the incredible impact we make \u2013 like supporting Cub, Luke, who has autism and Tourette\u2019s syndrome. He gave a talk to his fellow Cubs to help them understand more and work towards the Disability Awareness Badge. This is just one story among thousands, showing how Scouts builds confidence, kindness and self-belief. It\u2019s also an indicator of our commitment to inclusion. Scouts really is a place for all.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EYour belief and dedication to Scouts remains undiminished, and together we\u2019re changing lives for\u0026nbsp;the better.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAidan Jones, OBE\u003C/strong\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EChief Executive\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null},{"type":"TwoColumnLayoutBlock","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","image":"/media/oc0ifu43/cub-scout-luke.jpg","width":1280,"height":720,"altText":"Cub Scout Luke smiles at the camera while wearing a green top and maroon and white necker.","caption":"Luke, Cub Scout","link":null}]},{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","image":"/media/on4lghe0/cubs-disability-awareness-badge.jpg","width":1280,"height":720,"altText":"Round badge featuring a line illustration of a wheelchair user and the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower icon.","caption":"Disability Awareness Badge for Cubs","link":null}]}],"config":null}]},"prev":null,"next":{"link":"/about-us/our-impacts-and-reports/scouts-annual-report-2024-25/renewing-our-promise-to-help-other-people/","title":"Renewing our promise to help other people"},"allParts":[{"link":"/about-us/our-impacts-and-reports/scouts-annual-report-2024-25/refocusing-our-priorities/","title":"Refocusing our priorities"},{"link":"/about-us/our-impacts-and-reports/scouts-annual-report-2024-25/renewing-our-promise-to-help-other-people/","title":"Renewing our promise to help other people"},{"link":"/about-us/our-impacts-and-reports/scouts-annual-report-2024-25/our-purpose-and-method/","title":"Our purpose and method"},{"link":"/about-us/our-impacts-and-reports/scouts-annual-report-2024-25/skills-for-life-our-plan-to-prepare-better-futures-2018-2025/","title":"Skills for Life: Our plan to prepare better futures 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