Dear Parents and prospective Scouts,

This note is intended to help provide some of the information you need as a newcomer to the Scouts. It contains information specific to our Scout troop and supplements the information in the pocketbook you are given when you join, in www.ScoutBase.org.uk and in our own web page www.25thdundeescouts.org.uk

Trial period

A few weeks is allowed when you first join us for you to see if you really do wish to be a Scout. Once you have made the decision to join us you can be invested (the joining ceremony), for which you will need to have a uniform and be ready to pay your subscription if you are not already a Cub or Scout. If after the trial period you decide not to join then we will wish you all the best and you will have nothing to pay.

Uniform

We have three levels of dress:-

Activity                 General clothes which can get dirty and which are suitable for the location and weather. Worn most of the time apart from special events and when arriving or leaving troop nights and camps.

Normal Uniform    Scout shirt; neckerchief; trousers or tracksuit bottoms; trainers or shoes; record book. Worn to – but not during – troop nights and camps and for most visits.

Full Uniform         As normal uniform but with school trousers or kilt and shoes. The aim being to be smart and to give a good impression. Worn at special events when we are in the public eye, such as church and fund raising.

For troop nights we wear normal uniform with a T-shirt under the shirt so that shirt and neckerchief can be taken off for activities.

Until you are invested you can: continue to wear your Cub uniform if you were a Cub; wear activity clothing; wear Scout uniform (without badges and neckerchief – we give you these during the investiture) when you have bought it. To be invested you will need to have bought your uniform; the Guide shop at 6 Panmure Street in Dundee and The School Wear shop in Commercial Street are open during the day; or you could use www.glasgowscoutshop.com which is the mail order side of the Glasgow Scout shop.

Subscriptions

We have an annual subscription of £60 which runs from the beginning of August to the end of July.

If you are already a member of the Scout association – either because you are coming up from the Cubs or because you are transferring from another Scout troop – then your subscription is already paid up to next April.

If you are new to the Scout association then we ask that you pay for the number of complete months remaining before the next subscription is due. For example if you join in the middle of January then we would ask you for seven months (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun and Jul) being 7/12 of £60 which is £35. A few weeks is allowed when you first join for you to see if you really do wish to be a Scout: if you do then payment is required before, or shortly after, you are invested to cover the period from when you first joined.

Cheques for subscriptions should be made payable to the ‘25^th Dundee Scout Group’.

Other Costs

We charge for camps, visits and activities at cost, plus a contribution for minibus and leaders’ costs (leaders usually pay for food but not accommodation as they are already giving up their time and often petrol). Other costs, such as hall heating, badges, leader training and so on are met from your subscriptions or through fund-raising activities by the group.

Cheques for camps and visits are usually payable to ‘25^th Dundee Scout Group’.

Information

There is some information we need to know, including: Doctor’s name and practise; any allergies; whether we can give paracetamol in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions; any special dietary needs; home and alternative contact numbers. I will ask you to fill in a contact sheet when you join (unless I had a contact sheet from the Cubs), and ask you to check it about once a year. The contact sheet also contains a history of the camps they have attended and badges and awards gained.

The medical information in the contact sheet is used in the event of first aid being required.

Please ask for a copy whenever you need one, especially if there are changes to be made.

Behaviour

We aim to be a friendly and happy troop, with an active program and without unnecessary discipline. Bullying and unruly behaviour are not accepted.

Occasionally there are youngsters who are unable to fit in with this, in which case we will immediately deal with it through the parents. If no solution can be found then, ultimately, we will ask the youngster to leave.

Normally the Scouts can make as much noise as they want; however, to ensure that we do as much as we can in the time available we do ask that the Scouts be quiet when a leader needs to talk to them or during an activity where they need to hear.

When we are away they need to behave appropriately; this is especially true of places where the general public are present such as Youth Hostels.

Visits

Parents, please let me know if you would like an opportunity to chat in peace (it is very hard to have any but the briefest of conversations during a troop night) then we can arrange a suitable time at home or after a Troop night. It gives you an opportunity to ask any questions you may have, and me a chance to explain how the Scouts work.

Contacts

Contact information is shown at the foot of the front page of this note.

If you have any questions at all then please do not hesitate to ring me.

Best wishes for a happy time in Scouts,