1st Keyworth Scouts are always keen to take part in new initiatives and this year the Woodland Trust are hoping to get 10 million trees planted to capture CO2 from the atmosphere and encourage biodiversity. Our local Keyworth Parish Council obtained 500 tree saplings from the trust so we requested six trees for the Elm Avenue Allotments. The Scouts hold one of the allotments where Explorer Scouts can fulfil the Skills Module of their Duke of Edinburgh Award; each week they work for one or two hours learning how to sow seeds, nurture young crops and look after them until it is time to harvest. As part of their maintenance of the allotment site they have planted Wild Cherry and Silver Birch trees. Sectional Assistant Richard Lumb is pictured with Explorer Scout Ben Turnbull planting these new trees. The saplings will grow quickly and have been chosen to blend in with the allotment site. Other residents in the Keyworth village have a wide choice of trees including oak and rowan; the Woodland Trust will also supply community groups with enough mixed saplings for a ‘productive hedge’ which will attract birds, insects and small mammals to promote biodiversity by providing food, shelter and safe corridors for movement. 1st Keyworth Scouts provide adventure and life skills to young people through a balanced programme of events and experiences. Groups range from Beavers aged 6 to Explorers aged 16, and new leaders are always welcome within Rushcliffe District Scouts. Richard Lumb, Sectional Assistant
Keyworth Beavers were lucky enough to be invited to a camp at Kinoulton village hall with the Kinoulton Beavers. I was very excited to pack my bags as I have never had a sleepover with the Beavers before. We said goodbye to our parents at 11am. The first task we were given was to draw a picture on a piece of paper with our name on it. This was so that we knew where to sit, and so that our chairs could be moved around for us to meet and sit with different people at every meal time. Our next task was to make a bug hotel. We used bamboo, hay, leaves and twigs to make a comfy habitat for creepy crawlies in an old plant pot. We were soon getting hungry and now it was time to make pizzas for lunch. We rolled out the dough, spread on the tomato sauce, sprinkled on some cheese and toppings and made a sticky mess! The pizzas went into the oven to cook. Whilst we were waiting, it was time to have a go at archery! This was my first time and unfortunately, I didn't manage to get an arrow to stick to the target! The pizzas were ready! Yum yum! In the afternoon, we had three more activities left to do. Making a sock rabbit with rice! playing life sized hungry hippos (which I loved) and then lighting a camp fire and toasting marshmallows. At last it was dinner time and we had one of my favourite ever dinners, bowtie pasta, cheese and tomato sauce, yummy! After dinner it was time to get our camp set up ready for bedtime. We picked out a space on the floor, rolled out our mats and sleeping bags and went outside to sing songs with the leaders before we got ready for bed. It was really fun getting to sleep in a room with all my friends, although I think I only slept for about two hours! I woke up really early on Sunday morning and my friend William gave me some sweets before it was time for breakfast! I had two sausage cobs and a bacon one! We all got ready, brushed our teeth and played one last game before it was time to get picked up, fresh and ready to go and play in a rugby tournament! I had a really nice time and loved my first Beaver camping experience. Harry - 1st Keyworth Beavers
Our luck held for another year and we had a dry, not too cold evening with only light winds. With the predicted increase, yet again, in the number of teams we re-used a set of routes from a number of years ago, and a brand new six mile route with a total of 28 teams. To help manage the increased number we drummed up support from the scout troops and explorer units so we could run incident bases on both routes including two food bases and deployed more than 50 staff on the night and our thanks to all these volunteers (well nearly all volunteers, a few were volunteered!) We always advertise that the bases may educate, entertain and test the young people and this year we had country code questions (need to be more difficult next time), the problem of getting the fox, a chicken and bag of grain across a river (2 lengths of rope, some carpet tiles and a good dose of imagination), vegetable identification (didn’t they do well!), Black Bart’s Treasure, dry skiing with up to four on a pair of skis, and a “bomb” base. We also laid on a surprise base towards the end of each route titled silent zone – it appears some Scouts and a few leaders don’t seem to understand it applied to all in a team! We always award points for timeliness between bases and points for teamwork and success at the tasks set as most of the young people seem to enjoy the competitive element, with four “classes” this year: Scout 6 mile route accompanied by an adult, Scout 6 mile route unaccompanied, Scout 10 mile unaccompanied route and an Explorer 10 mile unaccompanied route. We know where next year’s routes will be based but are obviously saying nothing for many months to come although the diary has already been consulted. Fiona Burrows and Alan Hubber
On Thursday 1st February, there was a scary set of visitors to our scout hall for 'Meet the Creatures' night. There was a rat, a tarantula, a few snakes, a bearded dragon and different lizards. Dean, who was the creature's handler, brought them all in and we sat in a circle while he introduced them. Dean told us what they would eat if they were in the wild including snakes which would eat mice. He told us all the the creatures were safe and not poisonous but it was still really scary when he got them out of their boxes. I was allowed to hold the snake and it went round my neck. The snake felt smooth, cold and the colours were beautiful. Next i held the tarantula and it was really hairy and was crawling across my hand and up my arm, it was tickly. There was a lizard and this just kept walking around the hall and other scouts were enjoying watching this. Dean brought some water along because they need to drink a lot and he sprayed them with water as well. At the end of the evening, Dean got the creatures back in their boxes and we all said a big thank you. I will remember this evening for a long time