{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"","standfirst":"A range of new volunteers have got involved in the pilots for 4 and 5 year olds: parents, teachers, charity workers, and at least one budding father getting childcare experience on his road to adoption. We look at who\u2019s getting involved and what is and isn\u2019t working out.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/5056/71764186_10156652074496313_793790280779169792_o.jpg","width":1880,"height":1250,"altText":"Early years volunteer reading a story","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EMore than half of those volunteering in the pilots for 4 and 5 years olds are completely new to Scouts. What\u2019s interesting is the range of volunteers getting involved through the three different models being trialled.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe\u2019ve seen people who work in the early years profession embrace the Scout programme in some of our partner-led pilots, parents volunteering through our family-led models, and a few Beaver Leaders so enthusiastic about the Scout-led model that they\u2019ve stepped up to volunteer with the even younger section too.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHere, we look at the different types of volunteers taking part, and weigh up the challenges and opportunities of their involvement, should we decide to do Scouts for 4 and 5 year olds.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EEarly years professionals\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAt our pilot in Exeter, a partnership has formed between Scouts and early years professionals at the Action for Children Centre. An example of a partner-led model, this pilot is run by the individuals in the organisation who are delivering the Scouts programme in their own setting.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ENot all of these partnerships have worked out as smoothly though. One of our partner-led pilots has decided to leave the project as our safeguarding policy requires they do a separate DBS check, above and beyond the checks that the preschool had in place. A new group has now replaced this pilot.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAnother issue that\u2019s come up with the partner-led models is that when the programme is run in external settings without the additional features of Scouts \u2013 things like Scout scarves and the Scout promise \u2013 the quality just isn\u2019t as good.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThrough their ongoing monitoring of the pilots, the \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022http://www.crec.co.uk\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ECentre for Research in Early Childhood Development\u003C/a\u003E has found that in some of these external settings the children weren\u2019t aware of the Scouts connection, raising concerns about \u2018how the model can engage the children (and parents) in the broader Scouts movement, (rather than merely completing Scout written activities in their usual early years environment);\u2019 and how we could continue to put in place and monitor ongoing quality control and early years best practice.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EParents volunteering with their children\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe pilots are taking place in communities underrepresented in Scouts, and so many families getting involved are unfamiliar with the Scouts programme. Add to that the age of the young people and it\u2019s easy to see why many parent volunteers are helping children to engage and settle.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAlthough parent volunteers are a huge help across the Scouts, some believe children\u2019s growth and independence improves when parents aren\u2019t there. Amanda Wallace, a leader from the 13th Southampton pilot explained that while one mum who\u2019s completely new to Scouts is volunteering with her child, another mum is volunteering with the Cubs section because \u2018she felt it was important to give her son taking part in the pilot some independence.\u2019\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EParents getting involved more widely\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAt 13th Southampton they\u2019ve had three adults join the Group Executive Committee with more and more showing interest in volunteering in other areas of Scouts.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe\u2019ve also seen how, even when parents don\u2019t volunteer, the pilots create opportunities for parents to socialise before and after meetings, helping to form a greater sense of community.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESeasoned volunteers\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAt the Scout-led pilot at 64th Birmingham, Beaver Leaders have stepped in to run Scouts for 4 and 5 year olds too. Experienced volunteers offer valuable support for new volunteers finding their feet but considering the hours that can go into volunteering for just one section, is volunteering for two too much? Paul Little, Group Scout Leader in Birmingham said:\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u201CWe were concerned that the team we\u2019d identified to take it forward [four Beaver leaders] would end up having to run it for the next 12 months and we wouldn\u2019t recruit any more leaders. We run the [pilots for four and five year olds] just before Beavers, so it\u2019s just one night for the four Beaver leaders who were keen to be a part of this. We didn\u2019t want to place a massive burden on existing leaders.\u003C/em\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EAnd so, from the first night we asked the parents if they wanted to stay and get involved. The first activity we ran was on first aid skills, where the children learn basic first aid skills like how to call an ambulance, how to put their parents in the recovery position and learnt to wrap them in bandages. The parents saw that it can be fun and engaging, and that they don\u2019t need to be an expert or have magical skills to help out. Some of the parents had so much fun they kept coming back week after week.\u003C/em\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EWith their children at that age, parents are really keen to be involved and see what the young people are getting up to. The family diary isn\u2019t that busy so what we\u2019ve ended up with is a core of around five parents that are here every week, taking on leadership roles and going through training.\u201D\u003C/em\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EThose looking for experience working with young people\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWhen Squid (as he\u2019s known in Scouts) began his journey to start a family and adopt a child with his wife, they needed to get experience working with children. Squid said \u2018my first reaction was to reach out to Scouts.\u2019\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe timing was perfect \u2013 his request coincided with the launch of a pilot for 4 and 5 year olds in his area, and soon he was volunteering. After a year with the group, the couple were matched with their own child but before moving on to focus on their new family, Squid said:\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u0022Over this year I\u2019ve watched, and been privileged to be a part, as every single one of the [young people] has embraced a new version of Scouts. Friendships have been forged, shyness has been overcome and a multitude of wonderful personalities have shone through.\u003C/em\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThey\u2019ve practiced crafts, sung songs, played games and learned a number of life skills that some of them may never have come across otherwise. They\u2019ve made me laugh, and shown amazing insights, and sensitivities. I\u2019ve learned from them every week and I am very grateful.\u003C/em\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EMy journey with [the Early Years pilots] has come to an end, for now, as my wife and I have been lucky enough to be matched with our own child, and my attentions must be focused elsewhere. I\u2019m sad to be leaving this thriving, joyous bunch of people, as I\u2019ll miss them all, but I sincerely hope that one day in the not too distant future I can come back, [and] that I can introduce my own daughter to this fabulous world.\u0022\u003C/em\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBecause Scouts offers a safe and supportive environment to work with children and learn alongside experienced volunteers, Squid\u2019s story got us thinking, could budding parents looking for experience working with young people be a recruitment focus?\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EConsidering all the options\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe pilots aren\u2019t only helping us to make sure we\u2019re building young people\u2019s skills and confidence and making a difference in communities, but by attracting a range of volunteers, they\u2019re also helping to give us an idea about how a new section could affect volunteer recruitment.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThis summer a decision about whether or not to go ahead with Scouts for 4 and 5 year olds will be considered by the Board. And so, over the next few months, we\u2019ll be chatting to members throughout the movement so we can feed back your thoughts. We\u2019d love to hear what you think. \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/32b8dca7f1cc4111b9038a2e0b546707\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EGet in touch with us here\u003C/a\u003E to share your views.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"07 January 2020","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[],"relatedLinks":[],"id":50747,"nodeName":"Volunteers involved with the early years pilots","title":"What\u2019s working and what\u2019s not working in our pilots trialling Scouts for 4 and 5 year olds?","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/5056/71764186_10156652074496313_793790280779169792_o.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1d9becd05f6be10","caption":"Early years volunteer reading a story","type":"jpg","size":310366,"width":1880,"height":1250,"altText":"Early years volunteer reading a story"},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"What\u2019s working and what\u2019s not working in our pilots trialling Scouts for 4 and 5 year olds?","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"With more than half of the volunteers being completely new to Scouts, we take a look at who\u2019s getting involved and what is and isn\u2019t working","browserTitle":"Volunteers involved with the early years pilots","silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC81MDc0NyJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2020/january/early-years-pilot-volunteers/"}