{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"Nicola Hilliard, Creative Content Producer","standfirst":"Honiton Scouts have been working with local care homes, planting flowers for a dementia caf\u00E9, celebrating carers and growing food for the community. We caught up with them to find out more.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003EWorking with local care homes\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHoniton Scouts have been working hard to bring smiles and joy to local care homes.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn 2022, Honiton Scouts decided to start their St. Georges Day parade at one local care home and finished it at another, as they wanted to get their local community involved. Both the residents and Scouts alike really enjoyed their day.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe residents loved watching the youngsters arrive. The residents were all sat behind the main window, smiling and waving Union Jack flags at them, as the young people happily got into their sections. The parade was ready to begin and, when they began walking, all the young people waved back, too.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWhen we got to the next care home, again we were happily greeted by the staff and residents, who were smiling and waving. They watched as everyone renewed their promise, too.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJohn, a resident, talked to some of the young people. He told them of the days when he was a Cub, many years ago, and about what he did in Scouts. He got to answer lots of excited questions, too. Everyone finished the afternoon with a drink and yummy biscuit.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThey gave the care home residents at both home some Nemesia plants. They were put into a pot, alongside a picture of a dragon, which was added in on a bamboo stick. All the young people coloured in the dragons themselves and the Scouts thought it would be a lovely reminder of such a brilliant day for the residents. They were told they flowered for a long time and were beautiful, so it was a great success, too.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/20081/john-is-wearing-glasses-and-smiling-at-the-game-he-is-holding-a-pot-of-flowers-made-by-the-scouts.jpg","width":2048,"height":1760,"altText":"John is wearing glasses and smiling at the game. He is holding a pot of flowers made by the Scouts","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003ESupporting the Memory Cafe\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Scouts also get involved with Honiton Memory Caf\u00E9, which was set up in 2010 and is volunteer led. It\u2019s a friendly meeting place for people who\u2019ve a new diagnosis of dementia or who\u2019re experiencing difficulties with their memory.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EEvery year the Scouts make gifts for the Memory Caf\u00E9 members Annual General Meeting (AGM). They usually decorate plant pots and plant bulbs in them, as it\u2019s something the cafe can keep for quite a few weeks and enjoy. They\u2019ve done this for a few years now and each year they always get told how lovely the flowers are. Everyone always has fun making them, too.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003EThanking young carers\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHelen, the 1\u003Csup\u003Est\u003C/sup\u003E Honiton Scouts leader, was lucky enough to be invited to the Honiton Carers as a guest speaker. She gave all the carers a certificate and a small bunch of flowers each to say thank you for the outstanding work they do. Helen told us that everyone really enjoyed hearing about the fun things that the Beavers, Cubs and Scouts had been up to, too.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/20083/val-smiling-at-the-camera-and-holding-the-carers-certificate-and-small-bunch-of-flowers-given-to-each-carer.jpg","width":1536,"height":2048,"altText":"Val smiling at the camera and holding the carers certificate and small bunch of flowers given to each carer","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch3\u003ECreating a community garden\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHoniton Scouts have also just started a Community Garden behind the Beehive, a community building that lots of groups use. They got together with staff at the Beehive to clear a piece of ground. The Scouts then planted runner beans, tomatoes, courgettes, radish and lots of other tasty things. They also planted a hazel tree there, which became their Jubilee tree. The best bit is that anyone in the community can help themselves to anything that\u2019s growing there. It\u2019s helping their Scouts to learn about growing plants, how to garden and where food comes from, too.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/20082/a-potted-plant-made-by-the-scouts-with-a-picture-of-a-dragon-stuck-into-it-on-a-bamboo-stick-the-dragon-has-been-coloured-in-red-blue-green-and-yellow-by-the-scouts.jpg","width":1536,"height":2048,"altText":"A potted plant made by the Scouts with a picture of a dragon stuck into it on a bamboo stick. The dragon has been coloured in red, blue, green and yellow by the Scouts","caption":"","link":null},{"type":"Promo","cta":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EWell done to everyone at Honiton Scouts. You\u2019re doing a fantastic work to help people in your local area and bring smiles to people\u2019s faces.\u003Cspan\u003E\u00A0 \u003C/span\u003EYou\u2019re inspiring both your community and us, and you all should be very proud!\u003C/p\u003E","link":null,"colour":"#490499","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":"16 March 2023","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Community Impact Badge","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/staged-badges/community-impact/community-impact-stage-1/","newWindow":true},{"caption":"","title":"Different ways to celebrate St George\u2019s Day","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2020/january/celebrate-st-georges-day/?preview=true","newWindow":true},{"caption":"","title":"Event planning and safety","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/volunteers/staying-safe-and-safeguarding/safety/event-safety-and-planning/","newWindow":true}],"relatedLinks":[{"caption":"","title":"Grow a wild community garden","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/activities/our-wild-community-garden/","newWindow":true},{"caption":"","title":"Connect with older people in your area","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/activities/company-and-kindness/","newWindow":true},{"caption":"","title":"Make some cards to show you care","url":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/activities/cards-that-care/","newWindow":true}],"id":48748,"nodeName":"Meet Honiton Scouts, the local community heroes","title":"Meet Honiton Scouts, the local community heroes","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/20082/a-potted-plant-made-by-the-scouts-with-a-picture-of-a-dragon-stuck-into-it-on-a-bamboo-stick-the-dragon-has-been-coloured-in-red-blue-green-and-yellow-by-the-scouts.jpg?cc=0,0.11833333333333333,0,0.45979166666666665\u0026width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1dab8009c0401b0","caption":"A Potted Plant Made By The Scouts With A Picture Of A Dragon Stuck Into It On A Bamboo Stick. The Dragon Has Been Coloured In Red, Blue, Green And Yellow By The Scouts","type":"jpg","size":465801,"width":1536,"height":2048,"altText":"A pot plant sat on a table. There\u0027s a coloured in picture of a dragon attached to a bamboo gardening pole that\u0027s stuck into the plant pot. The dragon is blue, red, green and yellow!"},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Meet Honiton Scouts, the local community heroes","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"From connecting with care homes to community gardening, Honiton Scouts have been working hard to bring smiles and joy to their local area. 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