{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"Julian Blake, The Catalyst","standfirst":"The COVID-19 pandemic has compelled the Scouts into asking some big questions about its future and responding with answers that draw on creative and super-practical thinking.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EWith face-to-face meetings suspended, the 113-year-old charity has had to accelerate its use of digital to provide different ways of providing experiences, delivering meetings and rapidly transforming operations.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EResponding to the COVID-19 lockdown, in March Scouts unveiled #TheGreatIndoors, a new online package of ideas and activities \u201Cto inspire young minds at home\u0022. As chief Scout Bear Grylls concluded, the resource would help whole families \u201Cstay busy, focused and cheerful\u201D. Meanwhile Scouts internal systems, already being readied for digital change, have accelerated towards new ways of working through technology.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/5909/tgi-2-1.jpg","width":1200,"height":628,"altText":"","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EChallenge and response\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EChief digital officer Lara Burns pulls no punches when explaining the scale of the Scouts\u2019 challenge. \u201CWe can\u0027t do what we are here to do,\u201D she says. \u201CDeliver scouting to hundreds of thousands for young people across the country and help them develop skills for life. Our finances are stretched, which will potentially affect our ability to deliver scouting in the long term.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CStaff are working remotely. Board meetings have gone all-digital, and will not go back to earlier ways of working any time soon.\u201D\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EShe says the movement\u2019s rapid move to digital service delivery came from the grassroots rather than the centre. With most Scouts sites closed, the movement led the shift to \u2018Scouting by Zoom\u2019, with volunteers delivering weekly online meetings locally.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CAt a national level, we used Zoom - and we\u0027ve been able to repurpose content and launch amazing social action and fundraising campaigns\u201D says Burns.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://www.thecatalyst.org.uk/case-studies/scouts\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 title=\u0022Scouts (The Catalyst)\u0022\u003ERead more about the digital impact during COVID-19 on The Catalyst\u003C/a\u003E\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"24 September 2020","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Scouts at home","url":"#","newWindow":false}],"relatedLinks":[{"caption":"","title":"Activities and badges to do at home","url":"#","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Staying safe online","url":"/volunteers/staying-safe-and-safeguarding/safeguarding-in-the-programme/scouting-online-safely/","newWindow":false}],"id":48572,"nodeName":"How the Scouts went through \u2018digital transformation by pandemic\u2019","title":"How the Scouts went through \u2018digital transformation by pandemic\u2019","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/5869/switch-off-challenge.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1d9becd084ce310","caption":"Switch Off Challenge","type":"jpg","size":193419,"width":1920,"height":1080,"altText":""},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"How the Scouts went through \u2018digital transformation by pandemic\u2019","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"The movement\u2019s rapid move to digital service delivery came from the grassroots, with a shift to \u0027Scouting by Zoom\u0027. ","browserTitle":null,"silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC80ODU3MiJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2020/september/delivering-scouts-digitally/"}