{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"Allan Simpson","standfirst":"Allan Simpson is our Candidate for the European Scout Committee. If elected at the 25th European Scout Conference in Vienna in July, he plans to support Member Organisations to deliver the Scout programme for a diverse and growing community of young people across Europe.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","image":"/media/jn5hn305/allan-simpson.jpg","width":2100,"height":1400,"altText":"The image shows Allan Simpson stood outside with grass and trees in the background. He\u0027s standing to the right of the photo frame and he\u0027s looking directly at the camera and smiling. He\u0027s wearing a navy jumper and a red, white and navy Scouts necker.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EWhat\u0027s the European Scout Committee?\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://www.scout.org/where-we-work/regions/europe/governance\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EEuropean Scout Committee \u003C/a\u003Eis a board of six volunteers, elected from across Europe. It\u2019s responsible for the strategic development and growth of the movement.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ECommittee members provide support and direction to Member Organisations (MOs) and work together to enable more young people to benefit from the transformational impact of Scouts.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EA little about me\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019m honoured to be standing as a candidate for the European Scout Committee.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ESince joining \u003Ca href=\u0022/beavers/\u0022 title=\u0022Beavers\u0022\u003EBeavers\u003C/a\u003E at the age of six, Scouts has given me the confidence and skills to go out into the world. I remember my first time on a patrol camp with fellow Scouts, gaining the sense of freedom and responsibility that comes from cooking for ourselves and managing our own campsite. Not to mention the award we got for our efforts!\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThese positive experiences spurred me on to continue in the movement as a volunteer, supporting many different Sections. Today, I\u2019m proud to support \u003Ca href=\u0022/explorers/\u0022 title=\u0022Explorers\u0022\u003EExplorers\u003C/a\u003E, young people aged 14-18, to lead change and gain the skills they need to thrive. I also support Scouts as a Support Team Leader in Western Lakes.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019ve been privileged to volunteer with the European Scout Region since 2018. I\u2019m currently the Coordinator for Organisation in the European Scout Region, led the development of the region\u2019s Social Impact Service, and was part of the European Conference Planning team for Split, Croatia, in 2019 and Rotterdam, the Netherlands in 2022.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"quoteText":"I\u2019m so pleased to endorse Allan for his candidacy for the European Scout Committee. He has so much experience as a local, national and international level and has the right skills and motivation to succeed. Working together with Scout colleagues across the Region, I know he\u0027ll revitalise, refocus and reconnect the region to support more young people.","attribution":"Dwayne Fields, UK Chief Scout","gridType":"quote","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EWhy I\u2019m standing\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs a local, UK and European Region volunteer, I\u0027ve really enjoyed working with a diverse range of people and listening to their views on the future needs of Scouts.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI believe the European Scout Region is at an important turning point. My volunteering experience within the region has highlighted three key areas to me which need change. We need to revitalise, refocus, and reconnect our region to make sure it\u2019s focused on development and growth.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Scout Association is the largest Member Organisation in the European Scout Region. As an organisation that\u0027s undergone transformation in the last decade, we have an opportunity to share our experience and, importantly, learn from our European partners.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch4\u003EThe three key areas\u003C/h4\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"accordion","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","showExpand":true,"items":[{"gridType":"accordionItem","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EWe live in a challenging world. Now, more than ever, we should be proud to speak up about our values, keeping them front and centre as we engage with the issues affecting young people today.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFrom climate change to conflict, unemployment to technological change, our values can guide us, enabling young people to be the change they want to see.\u003C/p\u003E","label":"Revitalise"},{"gridType":"accordionItem","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003ETo support this, it\u2019s essential to refocus our efforts at a regional level. Take our Operational Framework, for example, which supports European Region volunteers to deliver the Regional Scout Plan and World Scouting\u2019s strategy.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe can improve its delivery by making sure the outputs of the Framework directly support the needs of member organisations, both today and in the future.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ECo-creating solutions within the region and with strategic partners such as the Council of Europe, European Union and other youth organisations can increase volunteer engagement and make sure there\u0027s meaningful impact for member organisations.\u003C/p\u003E","label":"Refocus"},{"gridType":"accordionItem","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s time to reconnect. We need to break down barriers between the region and Member Organisations, so that the region is engaged in the issues facing Member Organisations today.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOur voice can be so much more powerful, and more clearly heard, if we speak together on the issues that really matter such as driving for dialogue and peace.\u003C/p\u003E","label":"Reconnect"}]},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EA clear vision for the region\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMy vision is to accelerate change, responding to the needs of young people across the region today. I\u2019m guided by my North Star: to help lead a region focused on supporting Member Organisations to deliver the Scout programme for a diverse and growing community of young people across Europe.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETogether, we can empower Member Organisations and inspire young people across Europe, making sure Scouts drives positive change for years to come.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"type":"Promo","cta":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EThe 25th European Scout Conference will be held from 19\u201323 July 2025 in Vienna, Austria. UK Scouts will be sending a delegation, putting forward Allan as a candidate for the European Scout Committee. You can follow Allan\u2019s progress on \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://www.facebook.com/AllanSimpsonScouts\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EFacebook\u003C/a\u003E and \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://www.instagram.com/allansimpsonscout/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EInstagram\u003C/a\u003E.\u003C/p\u003E","link":null,"colour":"#f1f1f1","title":"What happens next and how you can help ","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":"22 May 2025","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"European Scout Committee","url":"https://www.scout.org/where-we-work/regions/europe/governance","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Follow Allan\u0027s progress on Facebook","url":"https://www.facebook.com/AllanSimpsonScouts","newWindow":false}],"relatedLinks":[],"id":86005,"nodeName":"Allan Simpson: Our candidate for the European Scout Committee","title":"Allan Simpson: Our candidate for the European Scout Committee","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/jn5hn305/allan-simpson.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1dbcb16bcde5cd0","caption":"Allan Simpson","type":"jpg","size":1478567,"width":2100,"height":1400,"altText":""},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Allan Simpson: Our candidate for the European Scout Committee","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"Read about Allan Simpson\u0027s mission to help revitalise, refocus and reconnect the European Scout Region.","browserTitle":null,"silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC84NjAwNSJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2025/may/allan-simpson-our-candidate-for-the-european-scout-committee/"}