Membership Policy (02/2019)

Subs are paid at the start of each term, and apply for the whole of the term. In the event that a parent wishes their child to leave any of the sections of the 1st Woosehill Scout Group before their normal leaving age, notice must be given to the Section Leader before the last session of the term in which they are leaving. This is to allow the Section Leaders to liaise during the holidays and if necessary consult the waiting list about filling the place for the next term.

If a child leaves partway through a term without any notice being given, no refunds of subs will be provided.

Waiting List Policy (05/2022)

You may apply to have your child put onto the waiting list once they are 4 years old.

When places become available they are first offered to the young people who have been on the waiting list the longest and who are aged between the minimum age for the section for which they have applied and the minimum age plus 6 months. If there are more places than can be filled on this basis we will offer places considering the effect on the group as a whole.

For instance, if we were to take Beavers at 7 yrs 6 months then they would only spend 6 months with the Beaver Colony and move straight to Cubs where there may not be a space. This is a consequence of our group being heavily over-subscribed.

We however make the following exceptions:

We contact parents (by phone or email) if a space becomes available, approximately half a term before their child is due to start.

Our waiting lists often exceed the number of spaces available and so we are not always able to offer a place. A child that does not obtain a place in one section will be held on our waiting list for the next age group. There is no need to reapply for each section.

If you wish to join our waiting list, please complete the Application Form.

If you have previously applied and now wish to be removed from the waiting list, please let us know enquiries form.

If you have registered your child on the waiting list for 1st Woosehill and you do not hear from us, please contact us via our General Enquiries form.

Personal Data Policy (05/2018)

We, 1st Woosehill Scouts, store the data you give us for the purpose of your and your child's safety, membership, or intended membership, of 1st Woosehill Scout Group and our safeguarding processes. We do not collect data from sources other than yourself and we only provide your data to the Scout Association, and the Disclosure and Barring Service, again for the purposes of your membership and safeguarding processes. We will also provide relevant information about you to other organisations if we are required to do so by law.

When you, as a leader, or your child moves between sections (Beavers, Cubs, Scouts) the information We hold on you and your child does not change however the data fields that record which section your or your child is associated with will change. Who has access to your data will also change depending on who in the new section needs access to it and who in the previous section no longer needs access.

We store your information on an IT system called On-Line Scout Manager in common with most scout groups in Berkshire. We also store some of this information on the Scout Association's Compass membership system and a system that manages our disclosure requests to the Disclosure and Barring Service. These systems comply with GDPR and the Data Protection Act. In technical terms OSM and Compass are the Data Processor and We are the Data Controller.

For events, such as camps, we may print your data from OSM and/or Compass or may ask you to complete a paper form. This is because in an emergency we may not have access to OSM from a campsite. These paper copies of your data are destroyed at the end of the event unless they are required for investigating an incident that occurs on the event when the data will only be kept for as long as required by any investigation.

For applications for membership or a DBS check we may initially collect data using a temporary paper form or electronic copies of identity documents such as passports. Once the information has been transferred to our or the Scout Association's IT systems these temporary copies are destroyed.

We do not keep your data on personal computers unless authorised by the Group Lead Volunteer for specific temporary purposes, for instance creating an email list for a specific purpose.

Your data we store is necessary for you and your child to be members of 1st Woosehill Scout Group and the Scout Association. We use it to contact you about scouting matters and incidents involving your child, for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults, for the payment of membership fees (subs) and in aggregated form for planning and management of 1st Woosehill Scouts and the Scout Association.

In particular, it is necessary that our leaders know about any medical conditions that your child has and medicines your child may need that are relevant for Scouting purposes. Sometimes, for instance, if you are assisting at camp, we may also ask adults if they have any relevant medical conditions. This data is held on OSM or temporarily on paper for events.

Because it is necessary that we store your and your child's data for safety and membership purposes you and your child would not be able to continue with your membership should you decide to request us to delete your data. You may request to end your membership and have your data deleted at any time by emailing [email protected].

Your data will in any case be deleted when no longer required for membership of 1st Woosehill Scout Group.

Some parents of past child members and other interested adults such as past leaders like to keep in touch and we keep their details on OSM. We will periodically ask these adults if they wish opt into us retaining their data.

Intending members, that is parents with children on the Waiting List, will periodically be asked if they wish to opt into us keeping their data for the purpose of being on the waiting list.

You can find out more about your rights under GDPR at the Information Commissioner's website: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/individual-rights/

Should you wish to exercise any of these rights in respect to your data held by us then please email us at [email protected]

Medical Treatment by Leaders (02/2020)

It may be that your child has a medical condition that Scout Leaders need to be aware of. This must be declared on the joining form. You must also provide details to the Leader in Charge of a section meeting/event if the condition requires any specific action to be taken to safeguard your child.

If your child requires anything other than simple first aid for unforeseen incidents or if your child has a pre-existing condition that may require treatment or first aid then the plan below must be completed and agreed with the Section Leader. It is of particular importance if your child is at a higher medical risk than the rest of the section.

In particular, the form below must accompany any medication that you provide for your child, which medication and form must be in a box or bag appropriate for the expected conditions.

In the event of a medical emergency involving your child, the scout leaders will act in accordance with their training, taking into account any information you provide on the plan.

It is your responsibility to ensure that any medication provided is in date, in good condition and sufficient to cope with a worst case scenario. Should medication be out of date, or not in good condition, or inappropriately packed then your child may not be able to attend the meeting/event. Should there be any issue with the medicine then, after consulting with your GP/consultant, you must discuss this with the Leader in Charge well before the session/event.

NB. The NHS now recognises that people with severe allergies that make them at risk of anaphylaxis require to carry two (2) epinephrine autoinjectors, these are also called epi-pens or epinephrine autoinjectors. In Scouting where we may be some distance from where a road-going ambulance can access in minutes, or where we may be in places that are difficult to find, we consider that carrying two autoinjectors is essential. If your child also carries corticosteroids for the treatment of anaphylaxis then they should also carry two doses of corticosteroids.

If and when your child's condition, required treatment or medication changes then revise this plan, give it to and discuss it with the Leader in Charge.

Medical Action Plan v1.1 Form 02/2020 (PDF) (DOC)

Duke of Edinburgh Volunteers

Scouting is a great way to meet the volunteering requirements of the DofE scheme. We have had many volunteers over a long period of time and many have enjoyed it so much they join the Scout Association and become adult leaders.

1st Woosehill Scouts welcomes DofE participants who wish to complete their volunteering requirement with us. While they are with us they are still under the direction of the DofE scheme and are insured by DofE not the Scout Association.

DofE volunteers in scouting are required to attend a short course to ensure they understand the basics of scouting and in particular our safeguarding procedures.

1st Woosehill Scouts will need some basic information so that we can connect with DofE supervisors and ensure that we treat volunteers appropriately. We collect this information on the form below which DofE volunteers must complete and return to the Group Lead Volunteer before attending a scouting session or event. Group Lead Volunteer can be reached at  [email protected]

DofE volunteers can be with us for 6 months for Silver and Gold and 3 months for Bronze. Bronze participants who wish to stay for 6 months can do so by arrangement with the Group Lead Volunteer in writing. Should volunteers want to stay longer than these periods they will need to join the Scout Association and 1st Woosehill Scouts.

When A DofE volunteer starts we will contact their DofE supervisor to inform the supervisor of the arrangement to volunteer and when they leave we will post a report on the DofE assessors' website so that their DofE supervisor can download it into the participant's eDofE record.

What are you waiting for, come and join our adventure…….

Registration form (Word Document) (PDF)

Scouting Scholarship (05/2020)

The purpose of this scholarship is to provide one young person with fully funded access to scouting.

This scholarship will apply to one young person only at any given time, and is funded by fundraising, personal and corporate donations.

The scholarship will include payment of subscription fees, 1st Woosehill Scout camps, financial contributions to external camps i.e. Jamborees, support with weekly activities and provision of uniform.

1st Woosehill Scout Group will provide financial support for the full time that they are at Beavers, Cubs and Scouts at 1st Woosehill Scout Group.

Attendance at section meetings is expected. Any prolonged absence will result in a review of the scholarship by the Scholarship Committee.

Applicants for this scholarship will be subject to the following criteria:

  1. Applicant must be between 6 and 11 years old on commencement of scholarship
  2. Applicant must live in Woosehill or Wokingham
  3. Applicants should only apply if their situation prevents them from taking part in scouting due to financial hardship

All submissions will be considered by the Scholarship Committee, which is a sub section of 1st Woosehill Scout Group Trustee Board. In the cases when the scholarship is currently being utilised, other submissions will not be accepted.  However, submissions for a new scholarship will be considered six months prior to the completion of the current Scholarship. We anticipate this will be when the young person completes their journey at the end of Scouts. In the 6 months leading up to the end of the existing scholarship, applicants will be considered and processed within eight weeks of initial contact with the Scholarship Committee.

If you feel you would like to be considered for this Scholarship and placed on a waiting list, please contact us. You will be notified during the 6 month period prior to the existing Scholarship ending.

Submissions can be received from Leaders and Parents in the first instance, but applicants would be welcome from Schools and other Child Agencies (including appropriate charities) in the local area.

In the first instance, contact should be made via our contact form.

This Scholarship is not transferrable to another scout group.

Key Policies

1st Woosehill Scout group operate in accordance with the key policies of the Scout Association.  These policies are:

Details of these policies can be found on the Scout Association website.