{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"Mahroof Malik, OS Champion and Scout Adventurer","standfirst":"Mahroof Malik believes everyone should get a chance to explore the outdoors.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EMahroof brings together his love of the outdoors, nature and navigational skills in so many ways. He\u2019s a Group Scout Leader in Birmingham, teaches navigation for the \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://www.ukmsf.org/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 title=\u0022Muslim Scout Fellowship website\u0022\u003EMuslim Scout Fellowship\u003C/a\u003E and manages the footpath network for Birmingham City Council. Now, he\u2019s one of our Scout Adventurers as well.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E11-17 July is National Map Reading Week. We spoke with Mahroof about why he thinks getting outdoors is so important, how to get a Scout group map reading, and the reason he became an Ordnance Survey (OS Maps) \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://getoutside.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 title=\u0022GetOutside website\u0022\u003EGetOutside\u003C/a\u003E champion, too.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/17903/img_4023.jpg","width":3024,"height":4032,"altText":"Mahroof is in his hiking gear, with GPS, hat, walking poles and waterproofs. He\u2019s stood facing the camera, with cloud covered mountains and a small lake behind him.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHi Mahroof! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI grew up in inner city Birmingham and had fantastic teachers who understood the power of nature, which led me to find my passion for the outdoors, walking and hiking.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFrom there, I\u2019ve gone on to become a Group Scout Leader, where I promote and lead Beavers, Cubs and Scouts in learning to navigate and appreciate the outdoors.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMore recently, I\u2019ve excitedly become an OS Champion and one of the new Scout Adventurers. Amongst my many endeavours, I\u2019ve cycled from Land\u2019s End to John O\u2019 Groats and walked to the summit of Kilimanjaro.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u2019ve you done to teach young people about navigations in your Scouts group?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe\u2019ve done lots of activities that relate to mapping in all our groups. From simple games that get young children used to the compass directions to orienteering activities on camps, through to proper map reading skills.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI start by teaching very basic map reading skills to our Beavers, such as playing a game with compass directions, then we move onto looking at maps.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019m always keen to use a variety of navigation elements, including reading with and without a compass, and mental mapping.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMental mapping is a useful exercise, as they do this every day. They know on the walk to school that they go past the chip shop, walk by a friend\u2019s house and see the post box.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBy using natural features and local landmarks, young people can locate themselves on the maps and learn to read one to find their way around.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDuring every walk and hike we\u2019ve been on, I ask them to use the maps to find out where they are. However, I need it to be evidence based.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe\u2019ll stop and look, they\u2019ll orientate their map and find 3 or 4 things around them that match up to what we can see on the map.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHave your young people enjoyed it?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EYes! It\u2019s been a gradual process. We started by getting them to take maps on every walk, whether they use it or not, and it\u2019s taken them time to get to grips with it. However, as they\u2019ve started to understand map reading, every 5 minutes they\u2019re telling me where to go and relocating themselves on the map.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s so fantastic to see, and when they get it, they really enjoy the map reading process. I really enjoy teaching them these key skills and igniting their passion for the outdoors, too.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EIt sounds like you empower the young people to take the lead on these outings. Has your group ever got you lost?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ESo far, the young people have never gotten me or themselves lost. Not yet, anyway!\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHowever, if they did get us lost, if it was safe to, I\u2019d let them. It\u2019s when things go wrong that you start to really rely on your skills.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EGetting lost in a safe environment is important for young people to develop their map reading skills, so don\u2019t be too worried if young people don\u2019t always get it right. Follow their lead and let them correct themselves.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/17912/img_6437.jpg","width":3024,"height":4032,"altText":"Mahroof is stood on a rock pile on top of a mountain. There\u2019re mountains surrounding a lake behind him, beneath a blue sky. Mahroof has his walking poles, backpack and sunglasses.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHow else have you encouraged your local Scouts community to start map reading?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019ve started to run sessions for Scout volunteers in the Muslim Scout Fellowship. I offer training for leaders and volunteers to gain confidence in their map reading and navigation skills.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI try to get them to point where they\u2019ll be looking at and understanding all the features shown by the contour lines, as well as what the numbers on the lines mean, too. The reality is that we\u2019re a little ahead of ourselves to jump straight in with compass bearings.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EInstead, I get people to choose a route to walk along and, just like I do with the young people, I get them to use features they recognise along a route, such as paths, places of worship and other landmarks or following a river, fence or road and even things that tell them they\u2019ve missed their target.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThey notice what they pass along the way and see how they can relate that to what\u2019s on the map to find out where they are and even whether they\u2019ve gone too far. These are known as tick-off, handrail and overshoot features.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EYou\u2019ve got to get people to do it themselves, so they can confidently go out on walks or begin to teach it to their groups. And practice!\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/17913/img_6728.jpg","width":3024,"height":4032,"altText":"Mahroof is hiking in hot weather. He\u2019s wearing sunglasses and a hat, while stood in front of sandy rocks and sparse trees.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u2019s your top tip for anyone wanting to start map reading and learning to navigate?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMy biggest piece of advice is to buy or find online a map of your local area. There are 1:25,000 maps available for every part of the UK, so have a look and familiarise yourself on a 1:25k map.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETry to identify where you live, and then start to locate any local landmarks and familiar places, such as the local park, to see what they look like on a map.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EYou\u2019ll begin to recognise different things, such as map symbols or how roads are shown. You can then put this into practice when reading maps about places you might not be as familiar with.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI then get my young people to see if they can draw their own map of their local area. We look at their drawn map compared to an OS map and see how accurate they both are.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ESometimes the OS map includes things they haven\u2019t, or it might not include certain features that my group added to their map. We then chat through why they think OS Maps might have added or dismissed the different details, such as shop names or post boxes.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere are your favourite places to go walking in the UK, by yourself and with your group?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMy favourite place is Snowdonia. It holds very special memories of when I first visited the area as a young boy. I just love walking and being in that environment.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Lake District is always beautiful, too, and I really enjoy the rugged, raw terrains of Scotland, such as the Isle of Skye or Ben Nevis. We\u2019re very lucky actually, for a small island, we have amazingly diverse landscapes.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFor my group, our most recent walk was in Dovetail. It\u2019s a very popular walk because it has some lovely elements including the river Dove, trees, rocks, caves and of course the infamous stepping stones.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ESimilarly, we\u2019ve done hikes closer to home in the Country Parks just outside of Birmingham. These parks are great places to introduce our young people to hiking.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s important for people to know these places and just navigate themselves between the signposts, as I wouldn\u2019t send them into a remote area or have them completely reliant on maps for their first walk.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMap reading isn\u2019t the first phase, but it\u2019s about accessibility and knowing the environment and terrain. You get people to develop a love for outdoors and then start to grow the skills from there.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/17902/1c61da07-0809-47dc-90b2-3592a6741816.jpg","width":2000,"height":1500,"altText":"Mahroof\u2019s map is on the ground, on top of some moss, leaves and bark. His compass and phone, with the digital mapping app open, are led on top.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat do you think the benefits of map reading and being outdoors are?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThere\u2019s a great quote by George Bernard Shaw that says, \u2018We don\u2019t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing,\u2019 and I say to people, that\u2019s why I go outdoors, I like feeling like a kid.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019m still the same 10-year-old kid, and, although the outside of me has grown up, on the inside I still love being silly, having fun, climbing trees and clambering over rocks.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIt\u0027s great that Scouts still promote us having fun while being outdoors. There are lots of mental health problems that have become so much more apparent post-lockdown, so people being able to get outdoors is important.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHumans are supposed to be comfortable in a natural, outdoors environment, it\u2019s important to take people to nature and get them inspired and involved. \u0026nbsp;\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EUnderstanding maps and knowing the skill of navigation makes you feel a lot more comfortable in the outdoors because you can always get to where you need to be, especially if the conditions change for the worse.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI think there should be a huge emphasis on getting kids out into countryside and making it a regular part of their lives, whether it\u2019s walking, cycling or swimming. Just get outdoors, that\u2019s incredibly important, and it doesn\u2019t matter what you do.\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhy did you want to become an OS Champion?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI love maps. I love working with maps and I love teaching map reading, so when I first learned about OS champions, I wanted to get involved because OS Maps have such an important place in my life.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI wanted to share the love of mapping for the same reason that I became a Mountain Leader. I\u2019d been climbing and hiking for very long time and being out there doing lots of different things.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI started to notice that I couldn\u2019t see other Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people walking, and I wanted that representation to get bigger and grow.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EPeople then started asking me to take them out on walks and out into the hills. No one else was going to help them develop those skills, so I knew then that I had to. It felt like the baton had been passed to me, and I was pleased to take it.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBeing a Public Rights of Way Officer in Birmingham, having a geography background, and advising on BAME engagement in the outdoors for the British Mountaineering Council, made it feel like the natural next step.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s brilliant to just get involved. I want to help and get more people involved in being outdoors and feeling comfortable in that environment and maps are one of the keys to unlocking the outdoors.\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/17910/img_5364.jpg","width":3024,"height":4032,"altText":"Mahroof is out in a field, with some marshland behind him. He\u2019s looking at the map, while wearing his walking gear, boots, hat and sunglasses. He\u2019s wearing a blue waterproof and his walking poles are in his bag.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u0027s your proudest moment been when teaching others?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMy thing has always been to give other people skills to do things. I want to be the one to give\u00A0people the wings they need and how high they soar is up to them.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMy job is to be an educator, to teach others about the outdoors and inspire people to get started. I\u2019ve taken people rock climbing and they\u2019ve outshined me in a few weeks. It\u2019s brilliant, I love to see people starting their own adventure.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"type":"Promo","cta":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EGetOutside was founded by OS Maps as part of their long-term mission to help more people to get outside more often. As champions, Mahroof and others help to showcase the best of Britain, and they encourage people to get outdoors by sharing their stories and tips.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E","link":null,"colour":"#f1f1f1","title":"","image":null,"imageFocus":"","imageId":0,"imageKey":"00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000","imageCrop":"","gridType":"card","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"12 July 2022","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Meet our Scout Adventurers","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/about-us/our-people/scout-adventurers/","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Muslim Scout Fellowship","url":"https://www.ukmsf.org/","newWindow":true}],"relatedLinks":[{"caption":"","title":"Hiking","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/activities/hiking/","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Hillwalking","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/activities/hillwalking/","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Orienteering","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/activities/orienteering/","newWindow":false}],"id":50410,"nodeName":"National Map Reading Week","title":"Be inspired to get outdoors this National Map Reading Week","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/17909/img_5341.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1d9becd1ec461e0","caption":"IMG 5341","type":"jpg","size":1709149,"width":4032,"height":3024,"altText":""},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Be inspired to get outdoors this National Map Reading Week","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"GetOutside Champion, Mahroof Malik, explains why getting outdoors is so important.","browserTitle":null,"silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC81MDQxMCJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2022/july/national-map-reading-week/"}