From the Chief Commissioner
Hi everyone, hope you are having a great month!
Welcome to another great month of Scouting!
Last month we welcomed our new General Manager, Trevor O’Hara. Trevor will bring his strong Scouting knowledge of over 30 years to the role, along with his extensive experience externally and in the not-for-profit industry. There is an article here which provides more details. Trevor commenced on 22 April 2025.
Over the last month we have seen Scouting in Action across the state in many activities.
Over the Easter weekend we had Kiwi Woggle – a Scout Patrol camping competition that has been running for 79 years. This year Way out West was the theme, hosted by D’Aguilar Range District at the Woodford Showgrounds. Over 130 Scouts participated over the weekend and congratulations to Koala Patrol from Stafford Scout Group who were the winners this year.
Units/Groups and Districts across the Branch supported Anzac Day Services and Marches, taking the time to reflect on the sacrifices of so many allowing us the freedoms we have today.
There were RAW weekends in Far North Region, the 100th Rudd Cup held in Capricorn District, where Green Fairy Queens Patrol from Gracemere Scouts was successful, plus lots of Unit and Group Activities over the long weekends.
Scouts Australia released a New Code of Conduct in February 2025. This code needs to be completed by all adult members by 1 August 2025. It will become a mandatory module going forward. You can jump into your training record and login to complete. Please make that time as soon as you can.
Further one of the components that we are seeking to address is the issue around more Leader support. Accordingly, over term two and term three we are asking District Commissioner’s and Section Support Leaders to arrange a visit to each Unit to check in and see what else we can be doing to support our Leaders in their roles.
These teams will be asking four questions and recording responses via an App to allow us to understand what we need to be doing more of – to support Leaders.
- What feedback came from youth members?
- What feedback came from adult leaders?
- What feedback came from the parents?
- What support does the Unit need (if anything) to shine and “be their best”?
Please note that this visit is one of coaching and support – not an audit.
I have also taken the opportunity over the month to highlight the importance of District/Region Training meetings. These meetings are a chance to participate in training, but also collaboration with other Leaders where program idea/concepts may be shared. All focussed on support for Leaders and better program outcomes for members.
We are now kicking off our Annual Report Presentations (ARP’s) over the coming months. These reports are a great way to engage the local community and share with them what your Group/District/Region has been doing over the last year.
It is a great opportunity to engage your local Councillor, State Member and or Federal Member of Parliament. If you do, give them a job – make a small speech, present some certificates or even a badge.
If your young person is still wearing their AJ2025 event badge – it now needs to be removed from their uniform, please.
Have a great month and good Scouting!