This is our plan to support North Yorkshire’s 96 Scout Groups to deliver safe and enjoyable experiences as part of our 12 Districts. This is all about helping Groups lay out a roadmap to develop their volunteers, grow their Scout Group, and help Young People access great programme.

We know that sometimes POR and the national Scouts website can be difficult to navigate, so we have done our best to distil this information down to a few bullet points – we are calling this Milestone One. Obviously, Groups still need to familiarise themselves with POR and ensure they follow the clear rules of our organisation.

After crossing ‘Milestone One’, the District Lead Volunteers and County Lead Volunteer would like all Scout Groups to work towards Milestone Two as part of their continuous development.

Milestone Three is a standard that a Group may choose to aspire to. Aiming for ‘Milestone Three’ will help the Group Team to deliver professional Scouting experience to their volunteers, young people, parents, and the wider community.

For those Groups looking to be recognised for the work they are putting in to aiming for these milestones, the District Lead Volunteers will work with the County Team to ascertain the journey each Group is on as part of the next Census exercise in January / February 2026. Awards will then be presented in Spring 2026.

Milestone One

This is what is expected of a Scout Group, as it is what we should all be doing already as per POR. Groups are expected to attain this by December 2025

• Premises and activities are being delivered safely and all members are following the rules of The Scout Association (POR). 
• Sections meeting regularly.
• All volunteers are up-to-date on basic learning and training requirements as outlined in ‘Growing Roots’
• Group Lead Volunteer in place. 
• Group Trustee Board, comprising a Chair, Treasurer, Group Lead Volunteer, and additional Trustees, meets termly to ensure the Group is safe, legal, and compliant. 
• Group Leadership Team in place and meeting termly. 
• Annual General Meeting (AGM) is held every year and their Annual Report & Accounts are being submitted to the District Treasurer (and Charities Commission for those with a charity number) on time. 
• Group Lead Volunteer attending district leadership meetings. 
• All Group volunteers understand ‘Our Volunteering Culture’ and are applying it to the way they volunteer with The Scouts. 
• Meeting place notice boards display a poster version of the Yellow Card. For hired premises, this could instead be blu-tacked to the door at the start of each session. 

Milestone Two

We believe this is something all Groups should be aspiring towards in the long-term, to ensure we are continually aiming to deliver great experiences we can for our volunteers and young people. 

• All points under ‘Milestone One’.
• Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs, & Scouts meeting during term time. 
• The Group Leadership Team is completing all the tasks it has been asked to by The Scout Association. 
• The Group Trustee Board is completing all the tasks it has been asked to by The Scout Association. 
• Young members engage in a diverse range of safe activities throughout the entire year.
• The Group Lead Volunteer is convening termly meetings of the Group Leadership Team to discuss the operational management of the Group. 
• Group Lead Volunteer is actively participating in the District Leadership Team and advocating for District, County, and national Scouts initiatives. 
• Team Leader in place for each section. 
• There is sufficient cover in place to ensure there are enough volunteers to continue to deliver safe Scouting when team members are unavailable. 
• Group is regularly hosting family events and / or attending community events to ensure a positive image of Scouting exists in the local community. 
• Support Team in place for occasional tasks, such as looking after equipment, helping with communications, organising events etc. 
• Group participating in District opportunities and events. 
• Section Team Leaders are offering their members the opportunity to attend major North Yorkshire events for their section, such as Damboree, CubJam etc. 
• Group successfully welcoming in new members regularly and advertising spaces when required. 
• Group is managing a waiting list, join requests, section size planning, and considering growth opportunities. 
• A minimum of one Nights Away Permit per section leadership team recorded on the Membership System. 
• All Young People across all sections have the opportunity to attend nights away events (including Squirrels).
• All Young People across all sections have the opportunity to work towards the appropriate Chief Scouts Award. 
• Premises (if owned) are correctly signwritten with the up-to-date Scouts Brand.
• Scout Group uses professional name.surname@groupname.org.uk email addresses for all internal and external communications. 
• All group files, emails, and domains are managed securely using a suitable online collaboration suite, such as Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. 
• Scout Group uses the correct Scouts Brand on all documents, communications, vehicles etc. 
• The Scout Group is working towards producing a Development Plan. 

Milestone Three

Those wishing to hit this milestone should be conscious that it may take a number of years. 

• All points under the ‘Milestone One’ and ‘Milestone Two’.
• The Group Lead Volunteer is embodying a positive community amongst the group’s adult membership by bringing volunteers together for social opportunities. 
• The Group holds a partnership agreement with an Explorer Scout Unit. 
• The Group Lead Volunteer or their delegate is holding annual reviews with each of their adult volunteers to discuss volunteer development opportunities. 
• The Scout Group Trustee Board and Leadership Team are working together to ensure there is a succession plan in place for the Group Lead Volunteer, Group Chair, and all Team Leaders. 
• The Scout Group has a published Development Plan, is following its aims, and is regularly reviewing it to ensure it remains relevant and inline with the direction of the District, County, and The Scouts HQ. 
• The Group has identified in its development plan how it is working towards expanding and/or renewing its assets to better deliver Scouting. This could be looking at the purchase of better tentage & camping kit, new transportation (trailers/minibuses/vans etc), or any other equipment that can better support volunteers to organise more programme opportunities. 
• At least one Young Leader recorded on the annual census as volunteering with each Squirrel, Beaver, Cub, & Scout Section.
• Each section records at least 12 young people on the annual census. 
• 25% of the total number of members in each section are recorded on the annual census as having completed the appropriate Chief Scouts Award. 
• Young People in each section get the opportunity to attend the following number of nights away opportunities per year: 1 for Squirrels, 3 for Beavers, 6 for Cubs, 10 for Scouts/Explorers. 
• The Scout Group maintains at least one promotional post per month on an external social media presence, for example a Facebook Page, Instagram, Threads, or X.
• Adult volunteers from the Group have attained (or are working towards obtaining) adventurous activity permits.