JENNY’S JOURNALIT’S that time of year when we start looking at how much we have grown asa County. Although not all the figures are in yet, some Districts have doneexceedingly well. We shall have to wait a little longer to see how the Countyhas done as a whole.

One of the highlights so far this year has been watching the JamboreeContingent work together. We really have a great bunch of young people andLeaders going to Japan to represent Suffolk.

Suffolk will also be well represented on the International Service Team.Keith Gleen, John Mabb, Barry Thomas, Tom Nunn, Matt Meyrick, PaulGoffin, and I have all been selected. I am so excited. We are all preparing forthe adventure of a lifetime. Our tasks will be many and varied. Someonementioned toilets but I am sure there will be some more fragrant (?) roles aswell - I hope!

Nicola Day has stood down from her role as Network Commissioner andis returning to grassroots Scouting. Nicola has worked hard to get Networkstarted in Suffolk and has left an excellent legacy. Matt Gilbert has now takenon the role.

John Mabb will be leaving Suffolk very soon to live in Hampshire but I ampleased to say that he will continue as the editor of the County News. We wishhim well for the future.

There seems to be some misunderstanding with Leaders’ interpretation ofwhen the additional alternative version of the Scout Promise should be used.In the case of young people, it is important that they choose and make aPromise that they are comfortable with and they can be proud to live by. Therole of the Leader is to make young people aware of the options, explain whatthe Promise means, what the options for alternative wording are, and If theyoung person expresses a wish to explore alternative wording, depending ontheir age and maturity, discussing the decision with parents or carers.Ultimately the decision as to which version of the Promise young peoplemake lies with the young people. However, in the younger sections, parentsshould be aware of the Promise chosen before the investiture ceremony. Ifyou have any questions please contact your District Commissioner for guid-ance first.Happy ScoutingJennyMullan, County Commissioner

ADVENTURES OFFSHORE INVITATIONSUFFOLK County Explorer& Network Leaders are invit-ed to an Open Evening andSail with AdventuresOffshore on one of their SailTraining yachts ‘OffshoreScout’.

Meet in Ipswich Docks onthe evening of Wednesday7th May with a short sail onthe River Orwell returningat approx. 22:00. This willgive an insight at howAdventures Offshore operateand what they have to offer.

Numbers are limited sofirst come / first served withapplications to Keith Trevorrow

keith.trevorrow@btinternet.com

GET SUFFOLK'S UNITWSJ BADGE NOW

TOWARDS the end ofMarch the officialSuffolk Unit badgefor the 23rdWorldScout Jamboree2015 will be on sale.The badge was cho-sen following a com-petition within the Unitand the fantastic winning design wasproduced by Jade Marsh, 36th Ipswich.

The price for the badge is £2 and itcan be worn on uniform. Please showyour support for our 36 young people bywearing this unique badge on your uni-form.

To place orders please email info@wsj2015.co.uk

KEEP SMILING FOLLOWING the suc-cess of SMILE '13 lastyear a similar event willbe held at Hallowtree on26th/ 28th September2014. SMILE '14 will fol-low much the same for-mat with Leaders fromall sections working together in"patrols" with the guidance of an expe-rienced "patrol leader" to complete vari-ous Scouting tasks and activities includ-ing large scale pioneering. In addition,and running concurrently, SMILE PLUSwill also be held which takes the con-cept of SMILE '14 to a new level. SMILEPLUS is designed for those who havealready attended SMILE '13 or whoalready have considerable outdoor skillsin activities such as orienteering,bivouacking and survival.

Booking is now available via theSuffolk Training Manager online sys-tem and places are limited on bothcourses.

March/April 2014

County NewsCounty NewsSuffolk Scouts

www.suffolkscouts.org.uk

The next issue of County News isMay/June 2014. Copy is required by2nd May 2014.

We welcome any Scouting storiesand can polish up the words if yougive us the basic facts. And we likepictures, too!

Send everything to:john.mabb@suffolkscouts.org.uk.

AWARDSBar to the Award for MeritStephen Taylor, GSL 1st Thurston, Bury St Edmunds

Award for MeritMark Miller, SL 1st Boxford, Sudbury

A QUALITY COUNTYIF you didn’t know it already, Suffolk is a Quality Countyand that’s official! Suffolk Scouts now hold the QualityStandard, awarded by Community Action Suffolk (CAS)and can use their quality mark.

To gain the accreditation Suffolk Scouts had to produceevidence that we had robust and rigorous processesthroughout Scouting in Suffolk. These processes had tocover Safeguarding, Health and Safety, Staff Support andDevelopment, and Organisational Management. A smallteam of CountyScouters have been working with CAS overthe past 18 months to ensure that we met the criteria laiddown by CAS. It hastaken rather longer thanexpected not leastbecause the organisa-tion changed fromYoung Suffolk (who hadpreviously awarded theQuality Mark which wefirst gained in 2007) tothe much larger umbrel-la organisation,Community ActionSuffolk. The final sub-mission was made lastSeptember and after alengthy review period,we passed with “flyingcolours!” It was notedthat the evidence wasmuch stronger this timeon ensuring thatprocesses are imple-mented at Group andSection level.

So what does this mean for you? Firstly, and mostimportantly, it is an independent endorsement of the qual-ity of Scouting that you all deliver every week. It reflectsexceptionally well on what we do, in whatever role we havein Scouting and wherever we do it. Secondly it is often acriteria asked for when applying for grants, particularlyfrom public bodies such as local councils. Other organisa-tions are also likely to accept the standard and it is worthquoting it when you apply.

I’d like to thank Tina Vickers and Graham Parker fortheir help and patience in what has been an interesting, iflengthy, experience!

If you would like more information please contact me.Keith Gleen, Deputy County Commissioner (Development)

I. FOLLOWSUFFOLK Scouts have taken on the challenge to involveour young people right through the Movement. Explorerand Network Scouts will get the opportunity to see and takepart in the big decisions and gain an insight into the skillsand opportunities in becoming a manager.

Our Commissioners, Jenny, Keith, Peter and Leighwant young people to step up and join them as they travelabout the county providing support to the Groups andDistricts.

Young people can choose to follow whicheverCommissioner from whom they feel they would most gain. ● Jenny, our County Commissioner, works closely withthe Districts and her Deputies and Assistants to provideexcellent Scouting across Suffolk. A great opportunity tosee the vast amount of projects going on from developingour campsites to recognising the achievements ofLeaders.● Keith, our Deputy County Commissioner forDevelopment, supports Groups and Districts in their driveto become bigger, better and provide Scouting to morepeople. A role which sees exciting projects from buildingnew facilities to recruiting more Leaders ready to inspireyoung people.● Peter is our Deputy County Commissioner forSafeguarding and Group Scout Leader support. He helpsGSL’s deal with the nuts and bolts of delivering Scoutingand also deputises for Jenny whilst she is away. ● Leigh is Deputy County Commissioner and is responsi-ble for Adult and Young Leader Training within Suffolk.This means getting the very best out of our hardworkingLeaders. Leigh is also Explorer Scout Commissioner andsupports water activities in the west of Suffolk.

Explorer and Network Scouts will take part for up to aterm in activities, visits, projects and presentations. Wewould love our young Commissioners to share their expe-riences and it could even be an opportunity to sharpentheir CV!

To take part, young people should visit the County web-site Youth Involvement page (via the training tab) and com-plete the web form or email niall.scouts@gmail.com formore information. Niall Pettit, County Scouter (Youth Involvement and Explorer Belts)

ORWELL DISTRICT CUBS PRESENTGIFTS TO BERGHOLT WARD,

IPSWICH HOSPITALAT the Cub Scout District Carol Services held in Ipswich,monetary collections were taken up to help the Children’sWard at Ipswich Hospital. During February half term,some Cub Scouts and Leaders from Orwell District pre-sented gifts that had been purchased with the moneyincluding pushchairs, highchairs, mobiles, portable DVDplayer and small toys.

The photograph shows Sister Farrence (the children’sunit sister), Sue Agar (ACC Cubs ), David Gingell (GSL 6th

Old Felixstowe & DCSL), Jo Cracknell (ADC Cubs), Callumand Milly (51st Ipswich), Breena (6th Ipswich Monday) andLily (51st Ipswich).Jo Cracknell, ADC (Cub Scouts), Orwell District

March/April 2014 Page 2

WAITROSE CUSTOMERS GIVECLAYDON SCOUTS CHRISTMAS

CHEER!THE charitable customers of Waitrose dug deep in theirpockets and donated almost £1,000 over a day at their storebased at Futura Park.

Saturday 21st December is one of the busiest shoppingdays in the calendar and 1stClaydon Scout Group were onhand to provide assistance to busy shoppers by volunteer-ing to pack bags at the checkout.

As part of the Waitrose community initiative, KatieAves, Personnel Manager agreed to the Group packing bagsto raise funds. Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, Leaders and parentsall volunteered for the day to help out, much to the relief ofbusy shoppers and Waitrose Partners.

Over the day, customers donated £943 to the Group.Katie commented “We are always pleased to support localcommunity groups. We are pleased that the second visit bythe Group has proved even more successful.”

Terry Sutton, Group Scout Leader commented “This isa great result for us and all the hard work that was put intoit. The funds will go on continued maintenance of our halland equipment. Additionally some of the money will fundpart of the active weekly programmes we run for ourBeavers, Cubs and Scouts.”

Terry went on to say “We’d like to thank Waitrose andtheir customers for their support. We doubled the amountraised compared to earlier in the year.”Mark Pearson, AGSL, 1st Claydon

COUNTY AWARDS EVENT FORYOUNG PEOPLE

ON Sunday 29th June 2014 we’re hosting an awards eventwith a difference!A formal event where you will be person-ally congratulated by the County Commissioner forScouting in Suffolk combined with a day out at Suffolk’slargest theme park.What’s Happening?

The event starts at 10am when the park opens. EachScouting District will be allocated a time slot when theyoung people will meet in the palladium building to be spo-ken to and personally congratulated by the CountyCommissioner, other Leaders and their family and friends.The rest of the day is free for you to roam the park, enjoy-ing the variety of rides, activities, food and other fantasticfacilities Pleasurewood Hills has to offer.

A list of each District’s time slot will be published near-er the event date and available on arrival at the park.

For further information on the park’s location and facil-ities please visit www.pleasurewoodhills.comWho Can Come?

Anyone! The young people attending this event musthave gained their Chief Scout’s award after Easter 2013, bein Scouting uniform (with the relevant award badge sewn

on!) and accompanied at all times by atleast one paying adult. They are alsorequired to attend the award event atthe allotted time for their District,again with at least one responsibleadult accompanying them (any additionalfamily are welcome, but not required to attend the actualaward event)

There are no limits on how many additional family,friends and Leaders can come along.This is an event for the young peopleinvolved in Scouting in Suffolk andalthough very welcome to attend,Leaders are not required and do nothave to accompany or take responsibilityfor the young people attending from their sections.How much does it cost?

If ordered through us in advance, the young peoplereceiving the award enter free. Anyadditional family, friend or Leader thatwishes to attend is at a discounted, flatrate of £11 per person.

Please note: Free entry for theaward recipient is conditional on themwearing their Scouting uniform. Discounted ticket pricesonly apply if ordered, in advance, through Suffolk ScoutingAwards. Ticket applications must be received no later thanMonday 9th June 2014 and once purchased arenon- refundable. Additional tickets can bepurchased on the day from the ticketoffice at Pleasurewood Hills but thepark’s standard admission prices willapply.How To Apply

Simply download and complete the ticketapplication form on www.suffolkscouts.org.ukand return it no later than Monday 9th June 2014. Receipt ofall applications will be acknowledged by email so pleaseensure your email address is written clearly.

An envelope containing the day’s pro-gramme, admission bands and park map willbe available to collect from a designatedScouting desk by the main entrance.Contact Us

If you have any specific queries notcovered in the information above, pleasecontact us.By Email: awards@suffolkscouts.org.ukBy Phone: 07850 919085By Post: Suffolk Scouting Awards, County Office, 143 Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 5BS

FROM THE EDITORYES, it’s true what you read in Jenny’s Journal. I amupping sticks and moving from Suffolk to Hampshire. Butnot, I assure you, to join the UK’s largest Scout County,although I hope to find a niche there in time.

No, it’s more important than that. It’s to marry LizBennett (many will remember her as Suffolk’s ChildProtection Co-ordinator and further back as GSL of 1st

Hadleigh) in August. My house sold rather quicker than Iimagined possible and directly I have an exchange of con-tracts, I’ll live with Liz until the house we are purchasingnear Eastleigh is actually ours. My famous au pair was alittle taken aback by the speed of events, but she’ll survive,I’m sure.

Motivated by Keith Gleen’s adventures, we are follow-ing Route 66 in the US in April but will be back on the firstMay Bank Holiday weekend expecting to see plenty ofcopy/pics for the May/June issue of County News. Yes, I’llstill be editing from deepest Hampshire and may send theodd piece about what’s happening down there.

So as Vera Lynn used to sing, ‘until we meet again,’John Mabb

March/April 2014 Page 3

BENTLEY Copse in Surrey may appear to be a slightlyunusual destination for the hardy folk that make up theCounty Mountaineering Team, but there’s cheese straws in‘them thar hills’ and we all know that there is nothing thatRoly Dakin and Dave Ward won’t do for a bit of cheese! Sotrue to the spirit of Wallace and Grommet (not sure who iswhich), and armed with a map of the Surrey Downs (andkeeping a careful lookout for cookers on skis), we set offthrough the beech woods. Up and up we pedalled, squelch-ing through the mud, leaves and pony poo, before reachingthe old fort on Holmbury Hill and being treated to terrificviews south across the rolling sun-lit fields of Sussex.

Then, breath finally caught, down we zoomed alongsome fantastic single track that bounced and weaved as wehurtled through the trees. Finally, when all blood had beenshaken from our hands, we reached the road again and tar-mac. Oooh! It was lovely and despite the pot holes we madegood progress through Holmbury St Mary until we turnedoff for the ascent of Highashes and Leith Hill, where LeithTower loomed impressively up out of nowhere like a lunarrocket fuelled with hot chocolate and some cracking frothycoffees. Here we were treated to views North and South andthe last rays of the autumn sun that managed to dry out atleast some of the bog that we’d collected on our adventuresso far.

Full of froth and chocolate we headed back into thetrees and through some cunning route-finding arrived

again at Bentley Copse. There began a whirr of pasta,Bolognese and apple crumble-making, which gave us thechance to catch up on Charlie’s extreme filming.Unfortunately, mounting his camera on the handlebars ledto some extreme close-ups (unintentional?) of Roly’s rearend, which would have required censorship had it not beenfor the lack of light (apparently due to a lunar eclipse) andthe amount of giggling going on as we reached the footageof Charlie falling off !

The next day was a more measured affair as we againhit the dizzying heights of the Surrey Downs (should becalled ups I’m sure), before swooshing down some boggysections as our search for cheese continued. Then, all of asudden it dawned on us: a thou-sand cyclists can’t be wrong,and so we set our course forPeaslake and the village storewhere coffee, cake and cheesestraws (in equal measure) pow-ered us back up the hill toBentley Copse and journeysend.

Thanks again to Roly andDave for organising anotherGrand Day Out.Andrew Waller, Extreme Biker(yeah right!)

COUNTY MOUNTAIN BIKE WEEKEND, NOVEMBER, NORTH SURREY DOWNS

March/April 2014 Page 4

SCOUT AND GUIDE WET WEEKEND 2014AT RAMSHOLT 11th - 13th JULY

Have fun at camp and on the water with on-site evening activities and 5 water-based activity sessions over the weekend.

Cost is £25.00 per Scout / Explorer / Guide / Senior Section

All groups must be accompanied by a Leader (that must have a currentGuide/Scout Association CRB/DBS), who will be responsible for them onsite, when walking the mile to and from the river and at lunchtime. Numbersare limited to a maximum of 6 per Scout, Guide, Explorer or Senior SectionUnit, and will be allocated on a first come, first served basis (if places are stillavailable nearer the date, extras will be allocated). All participants are to takepart in all activities and must be able to swim 50m in clothing appropriate tothe activities. The camp is a green field site. OS Ref. Explorer197 324422. Each group cater-ing on gas stoves.Return to: County Office, 143 Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 5BSby 5th April 2014.or telephone Jo on 01394 448846 for further information.

March/April 2014 Page 5

www.ipswichgangshow.org.uk

Great School Theatre, Great School Theatre, Ivry Street, IpswichIvry Street, Ipswich

16th 16th -- 19th April 2014 19th April 2014 -- 7.15pm7.15pm Matinee Performance 19th April - 2.15pm

Tickets available from Craftability, St Lawrence Street, Ipswich

Or by calling our Box Office: 01473 657082

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With support from the pp

2014

IPSWICH SCOUTS & GUIDES PRESENT

--------------------------------- ---------------------------------

SCOUT AND GUIDE WETWEEKEND 2014

Name of Unit_______________________________________

_______________________________________

No. of places _________ Extras__________

The Unit would / would not be interest-ed in central catering if it was to beorganised. How many?____________

Please send the appropriate remittancewith the application form. Fee enclosed

£_____________________

Cheques payable to Suffolk ScoutsWater Activities

Name and address for further communi-cation_________________________________

_______________________________________

_______________________________________

E-mail ________________________________

_______________________________________

TelephoneNumber_____________________

_______________________________________