{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"Scott Robinson, Deputy County Commissioner \u0026 Transformation Lead","standfirst":"We caught up with local leader, Deputy County Commissioner \u0026 Transformation Lead, Scott Robinson to find out about how he\u2019s been leading change in his area. As we transform our programme to make Scouts more accessible, easier and welcoming, Scott is one of the first leaders to help implement this.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EHi Scott, first tell us what is local scouting like in your community? \u202F\u00A0\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019m a member of Belfast County Scouts, where I\u2019ve been volunteering for five years. It\u2019s an amazing community where we know there is support available when we need it most. People make Scouts what it is, and we are grateful to have so many volunteers who give countless hours to a growing movement in Belfast.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs expected, the pandemic had a huge impact on us. We\u2019ve been working alongside Districts to help our Scout Groups bounce back to pre-pandemic numbers, while at the same time getting the opportunity to open new Scout Groups in new areas.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EWhich of the changes do you think is going to have the biggest positive impact in your County?\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EI really think that the transformation project will help enhance our current culture. The changes in how we look at our teams will help to reinforce that we are a team-led organisation. I also think it\u2019ll make a huge impact to change how we first welcome our new volunteers into the organisation through that initial welcome conversation. The thought of every volunteer knowing their role, their value and their impact will truly, in my eyes, deliver a team approach and sustain the movement as we go into the next strategy.\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EWhat\u2019s been going well with the changes so far?\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EI think for us, it\u2019s been going well by keeping the message consistent and meaningful. We\u2019re making sure that everyone knows that we\u2019re on a journey of change and showing them how this will benefit them in the long run.\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EWe\u2019ve done this by reinforcing how the new membership system will reduce admin processes for our volunteers. We\u2019ve also been explaining the variety of roles parents/guardians can take on which are flexible, which means we can better help share the workload of volunteering.\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EWhat challenges are you facing?\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003ENo matter where you are, you will face one or two hiccups along the change journey \u2013 it\u2019s natural and to be expected. One of the hiccups we\u2019ve had is with a few people telling us that they prefer the title of Commissioner and that no matter what a system says, they will remain using the title.\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EOf course, this was a tough one to deal with as you are working with volunteers who believe that the title was a sense of achievement or identity. However, once we spoke to them more about the bigger picture of being part of a team, and showing that we are part of a team, we\u2019ve found people naturally start to come round.\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EWhat success are you seeing with the early changes?\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EAs a Group, we were struggling to get volunteers to move through their journey to become full status. When we looked into this, we found one of the changes we could implement that could make a big impact was reviewing what we could do with the Appointment Committees. As a bit of a trial, we made the conversation more of a \u201Cget-to-know-you\u201D chat over a cup of tea/coffee rather than an interview style format.\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EThe result was incredible. We found that both parties left the meeting more enthused. It was a great opportunity to create an initial connection and at the same time it helped to build the new volunteer\u2019s network within Scouting. Since making this change, we\u2019ve seen a positive result in the amount of people going through to full status, and most importantly, a made a meaningful difference to a new volunteer\u2019s first experience of Scouts.\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch4\u003E\u003Cspan data-contrast=\u0022none\u0022\u003EThank you!\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cspan data-ccp-props=\u0022{\u0026quot;201341983\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559739\u0026quot;:0,\u0026quot;335559740\u0026quot;:240}\u0022\u003E\u00A0\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h4\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"type":"Promo","cta":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EIf you\u2019ve any questions about delivering change in your local area as a Transformation Lead, get in touch with the Scouts\u2019 Change Team at \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:transformation.leads@scouts.org.uk\u0022\u003Etransformation.leads@scouts.org.uk\u003C/a\u003E.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDo you want to share your story? Get in touch with \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:transformation.leads@scouts.org.uk\u0022\u003Etransformation.leads@scouts.org.uk\u003C/a\u003E with the subject line, Transformation Lead Spotlight.\u003C/p\u003E","link":null,"colour":"#ffb4e5","title":"If you\u2019re a Transformation Lead leading change in your local area","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":"17 August 2023","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Volunteer Experience","url":"/volunteers/volunteer-experience/","newWindow":false}],"relatedLinks":[{"caption":"","title":"Looking to the Future: Coventry","url":"/news/2023/june/looking-to-the-future-in-coventry/","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Our Volunteering Culture","url":"/volunteers/running-things-locally/our-volunteering-culture/","newWindow":false}],"id":76657,"nodeName":"Looking to the future in Belfast","title":"Looking to the Future: Belfast","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/20491/all-about-great-volunteers.png?cc=0,0,0,0\u0026width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1db78820f135b50","caption":"All About Great Volunteers","type":"png","size":1129845,"width":1920,"height":1080,"altText":"Colourful graphic showing a group of volunteers with text saying \u0027All about great volunteers\u0027."},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Looking to the Future: Belfast","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"Belfast talks about how changes are helping them to boost their welcoming volunteering culture. 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