The Way Forward

New District Commissioner Updates

Bexley -

5 September 2011

19 September 2011 - 1

19 September 2011 - 2

24 September 2011

Bromley -

15 July 2011

17 July 2011

19 July 2011

3 August 2011

12 August 2011

19 August 2011

1 September 2011

18 September 2011

24 September 2011

Change Update 9th July 2011

Message from Mike Jackson, County Change Manager

The last four months have been very busy behind the scenes, firstly appointing Nick and Giles as DCs [Designate], then in June moving on to the conference and the County Executive Committee’s formal decision to move to a two District structure, and meanwhile continuing the process of appointing new DDCs and District Chairs.
 
At the County Conference last month the County Team worked on what sort of County organisation we needed to support the new Districts, recognising that Scouting happens primarily in Groups, and the District and County are there to support that delivery.
 
Over that weekend members of the County Team discussed in depth where functions should be placed and developed a number of possible groupings of functions which could form the basis for a new County structure.  Clearly the structure which supports eight small Districts will not be appropriate to provide support to two of the largest Districts in the Country.
 
So what happens next?
 
The newly appointed Deputy District Commissioners’ and District Chairmen’s first task will be to start building their teams.  This will require a great deal of individual discussion with current Commissioners and District Administrators as well as looking for new people to fill the gaps that will be left.
 
Whilst some current roles will not alter much, others will change significantly.  As an example the current sectional ADC role, which in many cases combines face to face support to leaders with the management of District events, will split into specialist programme support and youth events teams.  In addition the group support teams will provide totally new opportunities for volunteers who would enjoy supporting the management and development of Scout Groups.
 
Districts only exist to support Scouting locally, particularly within Scout Groups.  At the front line of our support structure are those of you who work as ADCs and District leaders to give personal support and encouragement to the leaders who actually deliver Scouting to our young people. Your work makes a huge difference to the value of the experience we give to our youth members.
 
So, in working out how best to use existing District level volunteers we must ensure that we build on the value of that work and think not only about what will provide the best Scouting for our young people but also – and possibly more importantly – what roles will give those volunteers the greatest motivation and satisfaction.  If you have a current District role, whether as a District Scouter, a Commissioner or an administrator you should be thinking about how you could make the best contribution to Scouting and what you would most enjoy doing for the next few years.  Equally if you have a role at Group or County level and are looking for a change, this is the ideal opportunity to consider whether you could make a contribution to and would enjoy being part of one of the new District teams.
 
Both DCs [Designate] have emailed, twice now, all of the existing ADCs. We understand that some have not received these emails. If you haven’t, then please contact either Nick or Giles.
 
The current District Executive Committees will also be coming together to form an interim Executive Committee for the new Districts so that decisions can be taken properly before October. This was discussed with the current District Commissioners this week and they will be supporting their officers to ensure this happens with the new DCs and to prepare the handover between now and when the new Districts come online.
 
Meanwhile we will build on the outputs of the conference and develop detailed proposals for the County organisation, as well as reviewing our implementation plans to ensure that the change to the new arrangements proceeds as smoothly as possible.
 
The key dates over the next few months are:
 
Early July  Deputy DCs and District Chairs appointed
 
June to September DDCs & D Chairs plan the detailed design of District Structure with DC and build up their teams
 
By end of September ADC appointments confirmed
 
1 October Membership is transferred from old Districts to New Districts and closing process for old Districts begins.
 
Early October EGMs of new Districts to appoint DEC and make key administrative decisions.
 
Line management of ADCs transfers from old DCs to new DDCs at suitable times to be agreed
 
Late October  Closing EGMs of old Districts
 
 
New District Teams
 
The two Search Groups formed to nominate potential candidates for the Deputy DCs and District Chairs, and passed myself and the two new District Commissioners (Designate) the short-lists to approach for interviews.
 
I am pleased to announce that we have appointed to all of the roles available. They are as follows –
 
Bexley
Deputy District Commissioner (Programme) – Geoff Amass
Deputy District Commissioner (Youth Events) – Chris Hayes
Deputy District Commissioner (Group Support) – John Baxter
District Chair – Caroline Newton
District Vice Chair – Cavell Burchell
 
Bromley
Deputy District Commissioner (Programme) – Steve Pegram
Deputy District Commissioner (Youth Events) – James Allen
Deputy District Commissioner (Group Support) – Gary Peppiatt
District Chair – Colin Goodwin
 
I’m sure you will join me in welcoming them to the new teams and wish them well in their mission to build their teams and support for the Scout Groups in the two new Districts.
 
They have all written a short resumé, below, by way of a short introduction to themselves.

So as we get closer to the formal change a lot more will be happening, and above all there will be plenty of new opportunities for all of us – let’s make the most of them!
 
If you want any more information please contact your new District Commissioner, the Change Manager, or the County Commissioner.
 

Nick Crowe – bexleydc@glsescouts.org.uk, 07812 681255
Giles Barnett – bromleydc@glsescouts.org.uk, 07785 574721
Mike Jackson – change@glsescouts.org.uk, 020 8658 7746
Ben Richardson – countycommissioner@glsescouts.org.uk, 07880 966226

 
Geoff Amass – Deputy District Commissioner [Designate] (Programme), Bexley Scouts
 
I first joined Scouting as a young person and have many happy memories from my time from as a Cub, Scout and Venture Scout and at the first opportunity I took my first adult appointment as ASL in my group. I changed my role to VSL as my group flourished and the VS Unit was formed and then after a few years, due to a change in personal circumstances the troop was left without a leader and I became SL. A few years later, also joined the Erith & Crayford District team as a District SL. I left my group when I was asked to take on the full time role of ADC(VS) , and from there took on the challenge of District Commissioner. When my tenure as DC ended, I again worked closely with the Scout section in the role of ADC (Scouts) until I started in my current role as ACC(Scouts). 
 
 
Steve Pegram - Deputy District Commissioner [Designate] (Programme), Bromley Scouts

I was a bit of a late starter when it comes to Scouting and joined the Chislehurst Fellowship in 1995 after hearing from friends about the fun activities they got up to.  Following my helping out a District Venture Scout camp to France in 1997 I took up a role as a Venture Scout Leader.  I often deputised for the ADC VS working on District and County Teams and when the changes took place in 2001, I took up the opportunity to be the District Explorer Scout Commissioner.  After taking an active part in the Distrist Team for eight years I was delighted to take up the challenge of being District Commissioner for Chislehurst in May 2010.  During this time I have had the opportunity to learn much more about the younger sections in Scouting and their needs, to add to the knowledge of the older sections. In my other life I’m a Quality Assurance manager for a furniture and home ware retailer.  Much of this job, like many, is about effective communication, and setting and improving standards.  I hope that I bring some of my skills needed in work to my Scouting. I look forward to taking up the exciting  challenge of DDC (Programme support) for the new Bromley Borough Scout District.
 
 
Chris Hayes – Deputy District Commissioner [Designate] (Youth Events), Bexley Scouts
 
I have been involved in Scouting within Bexleyheath District since 1978, initially as a Cub, Scout and Venture and then became an Assistant Scout Leader at the age of 19. I then spent almost a decade being a Venture Scout Leader before for the past 8 years being ADC Scouts in Bexleyheath District. I was a member of IST at Eurojam in 2005 and the World Scout Jamboree in 2007 as well as being part of the UK Contingent team at 3 Australian Ventures and been part of teams organising Troop and Unit camps in the UK and around Europe.
I’m a qualified Accountant working in Central London for a small practice and hobbies include travel, walking, watching sport (including a season ticket at Chelsea) plus of course Scouting!!
I look forward to working with you all and continuing together to provide the youth membership with the events they want.
 
James Allen - Deputy District Commissioner [Designate] (Youth Events), Bromley Scouts
 
James began his Scouting in 1980 as a Cub and then Scout at the 14th Bromley.  After a break of a couple of years, he returned to the 14th Bromley Venture Scout Unit and its Cub Pack as an Assistant Cub Scout Leader.  He spent a year as a Scout Leader in New Zealand and continued Scouting both in Bromley and Exeter as an Assistant Scout Leader through the university years.  Upon his return to Bromley in 1995, he took up the role of Assistant District Commissioner (Scouts) and has maintained that role ever since.  In addition, he has been a Venture and Explorer Scout Leader for six years and, five years ago, his Scouting career came full circle when he returned to the 14th Bromley as Scout Leader. James has a passion for events, developing and leading large-scale events for Bromley.  These have included sports competitions, overnight Moonwalk, the explosive Robot Wars, training courses for Patrol Leaders and a Centenary competition on Brownsea Island.  International Scouting is high on the agenda as James has led numerous camps and expeditions to France, Germany, Spain, Austria, Holland and Australia.  One of James’s many highlights of the past twenty years was a weekend of learning and remembrance for Scouts in Dunkirk.  He has led a playground-building project in a remote village in Hungary and a school-building project in The Gambia.  James has led the fund raising of over £100,000 for both Scouting and other charitable causes including over £20,000 for Demelza House Children’s Hospice.

In his spare time, James is Director of Special Educational Needs, leading the development of provision at Riverston School, a non-selective independent school in Greenwich.  Along with his sister, James also runs HNT Cancer Support, an organisation raising the profile of and money for research and treatment of head, neck and throat cancers.
 
 
John Baxter – Deputy District Commissioner [Designate] (Group Support), Bexley Scouts
 
Whilst attending a parent come and join in evening at Cubs I was asked if I could help out by being a parent rep and the old “it will only take a few minutes each week” came out. How could I refuse only to find I was then part of the Executive Committee and fundraising as my enjoyment grew so did my involvement by becoming GSL in 1996 a role that I still hold although I did manage a 2 year break. I am also a LTM and assist with leader training and have had the pleasure of running and helping on a number of courses with our new leaders.
My wife is ADC Beavers but neither of our two sons has remained in Scouting. I retired early in 2009 after 43 years progressing from Apprentice to Contracts Manager, then into running the Hire Company before moving on to training in the running of projects all for the same company.

 
Gary Peppiatt - Deputy District Commissioner [Designate] (Group Support), Bromley Scouts
 
I am married with 3 Children, a son aged 20 and 2 daughters aged 17 and 11. I moved to Orpington in 1972 from Sutton, Surrey and went to primary school at Vine Road and then on to Charterhouse Secondary. I got involved in Scouting when my son joined 3rd Orpington Scout Group as a beaver. A short time after him joining, the Group needed help with leaders so I offered my services and in 1997 became BSL. In 2001 I was asked if I would take over the role of GSL and more recently, I  put myself forward for the role of LTM for Orpington District. I started my working career as a television engineer with Granada and moved through  the fields of servicing many different appliances. Today the company is called Acentic and we install and service Pay TV systems in hotels across the UK and Europe. I have worked for them for 33 years. My interests include football and ski-ing. I have enjoyed my time in Scouting where I have worked with some very talented and committed leaders both at Group and District and more recently with the training team.
  

Caroline Newton – District Chair [Designate], Bexley Scouts

Despite desperately wanting to join her local Scout troop from an early age, Caroline's Scouting career started at the age of 15 when she joined Venture Scouts.  She has been Assistant Beaver Scout Leader and Assistant Scout Leader with 1st East Wickham. More recently, Caroline has been Assistant Explorer Scout Leader and District Explorer Scout Commissioner in East Wickham and Welling.  For the last year, Caroline has been District Chairman. In 2007, Caroline was part of the International Service Team at the 21st World Scout Jamboree in Essex. Caroline works for the Institute of Chartered Accountants as European Affairs Manager, managing relationships with members and stakeholders in the region. In May 2010, Caroline was elected as Councillor for St Michael’s Ward in the London Borough of Bexley.  She is a member of the Children’s Services and Education committee and recently chaired an enquiry into provision of activities for young people.
 
 
Cavell Burchell – District Vice Chair [Designate], Bexley Scouts
 
Cavell Burchell is an Assistant Headteacher at Beaverwood School in Chislehurst. His involvement with Scouting began in the mid 1960s as a Cub with 3rd Welling (Jubilee) before moving up (briefly) to 3rd Welling Scouts. Cavell’s association with Scouting resumed in 1992 when his eldest son joined 2nd Welling (St Johns). His other 3 sons did likewise and still remain involved today.  He and his wife Trudy-Rose supported the group in a variety of roles and Cavell succeeded Derek Howell as Chairman of the Group Executive Committee in 2005. Outside Scouting Cavell has been active locally and nationally with The Royal Life Saving Society. He has chaired a number of   County, Regional and National Committees and was a member of the UK Management Board for 10 years. Cavell is looking forward to the challenge of supporting the District Committee members and Bexley Scout Groups establish the new District framework.

Colin Goodwin – District Chair [Designate], Bromley Scouts

Scouting has been an important and integral part of Colin’s life since he started as a Cub with the 23rd Bromley in 1968. After Scouts and Venture Scouts he became venture Scout Leader (1981/93) and led several expeditions both in the UK and Europe. Having married Sandra (then ACSL, & GSL’s Daughter!! and now herself joint GSL) and following the arrival of a Daughter and Son, Colin stood down as VSL but remained involved in Scouting and at different times was Group Treasurer, member of the District Executive and founding Chairman of a Scout Fellowship. Following a tragedy within the Group Colin was drawn back to a leadership role as Troop Leader (2003/07). After successfully recruiting a new Troop Leader, he then took on the position of Bromley District Chairman in 2007. Away from Scouting, Colin is a Chartered Surveyor and Senior Property Fund Manager with a Pan-European Investment Company.

County Conference 2011 Output

Output from the County Conference has been collated and is available in the following Discussion Document. Once the changes to the Districts has taken place, and the support for them is apparent, the County Commissioner will review the support structure and provision and make necessary changes to the teams.

Change Update 23rd April 2011

Output from the Borough Development Days

Please find below the notes taken at the two Borough Development Days

• Bexley
• Bromley

Change Update 11th March 2011

Message from Ben Richardson, County Commissioner

Change Update 7th March 2011

Message from Ben Richardson, County Commissioner

After careful consideration, I have decided appoint Nick Crowe as the new District Commissioner for the Bexley Borough District and Giles Barnett as the new District Commissioner for the Bromley Borough District. Both Nick and Giles bring a huge skill set and talent to the role, and I will now be working closely with them to identify others from across the Districts to support and build the two new Districts.
 
The change will be very new to everyone, including me. For the initial period, of up to the first year, Nick, Giles, Mike and I will be working hand in hand in designing the new set-ups, whilst the new DCs get to know the volunteers in the Boroughs. We will be writing transition plans for the new Districts, incorporating the feedback and ideas generated at the Development Days on the 12th and 19th March. We will then continue to use the Search Group process to identify candidates for the key roles on the new Districts teams - and then those that can form part of the teams to provide the three strands of support that our new Districts will deliver; Programme, Group Management and Group Governance.
 
I'm sure you'll have the chance to meet them soon, if you haven't already, and welcome them as your new DC.
 
We'll continue to communicate with the membership every fortnight to update on the changes as they develop.

Change Update 3rd March 2011

Message from Ben Richardson, County Commissioner

I have now received short-lists from both the Search Groups for the new DC of the Bexley and Bromley Borough Districts. Along with Mike Jackson, our Change Manager, and John Withey, our County Appointments Advisory Committee Chairperson, I have interviewed those from the short-lists that were happy to consider taking on the new roles. Following this, I met with both Search Groups to feedback my thoughts on their selections and to achieve a greater understanding of the process they undertook.

I hope to be a position to announce the new District Commissioners very soon.

The next step will be the District Development Days -

12th March - 9.30 - 17.00 - 3rd West Wickham Scout Group HQ, Greenacres, Tiepigs Lane, West Wickham, BR4 9BT- for -

- Beckenham District

- Bromley District

- Chislehurst District

- Orpington District

19th March - 9.30 - 17.00 - Kemnal Manor Technology College, Sevenoaks Way, Sidcup (parking at the rear of school in The Avenue) - for -

- Bexleyheath & District

- East Wickham & Welling District

- Erith & Crayford

- Sidcup District

These days are the start of bringing together everyone in each Borough to start talking about how we get from four Districts providing very different support to one District providing the three support stands (Programme, Group Management and Group Governance). We have already met with District Chairpersons and District Appointment Advisory Committee Chairpersons to look at the options, and now is the time to bring everyone else into the conversation to look at other areas - programme, communication, administration, structure, roles etc. We've done a lot of talking about the change and the new DC roles, and now is the time to start doing some planning. The feedback from the days will feed into the transition plan that the new DCs, Mike and I will draw together and also to the County's provision review in June. However, the feedback will only be complete if as many people as possible attend - the date has been around for a while - and I would also ask that Group Scout Leaders encourage their Chairpersons to attend, as well as their leaders and helpers. Have your say in the new set-up of the Districts - don't rely on others to do it for you.

Please book into the relevant day for you (even if you can't be there all day, please come for as long as you can) here - https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dGUwTmFIT3d0SDZrMHdQSTh0ZFJERlE6MQ.

It is essential that you book please - don't just turn up on the day - and please help those without internet access to book their place.

I'm confident that with your support we will really be able to make the difference needed to better support and sustain the existing and new Scout Groups to deliver a high quality programme to our young people, and to increase the availability of this to more and more new members.

I look forward to seeing you on the 12th or the 19th.

Change Update 21st February 2011

Message from Mike Jackson, County Change Manager

During the week commencing 7 February Ben (assisted by John Withey and me) interviewed the candidates put forward for the new District Commissioner roles by the two search groups.

Several issues arose which needed further reference to the search groups, who we will be meeting this week.  At present these discussions must remain confidential, but we are committed to carrying out the appointment process as openly as possible and will ensure that you are kept up to date with what is happening.

Meanwhile Les Dobbs, the acting County Chairman has held meetings with current District Chairmen and John Withey, the County Appointments Chairman, has met the current District Appointments Chairmen.  These have been exploratory meetings to collect information and gain a greater understanding of the issues which are likely to be faced in bringing the District administrations together.  

In due course the information gathered will be extremely useful to the new District Executive Committees.

Change Update 9th February 2011

Message from Mike Jackson, County Change Manager

I am pleased to report that the two Borough search groups have completed their initial task and submitted their nominations for the new District Commissioners to Ben.

Interviews will be held over the next week so we hope to be able to announce who is successful very shortly.

These appointments will move us from talking about change to implementing it. 

Firstly, if either or both of the new appointments are currently District Commissioners they will have to make interim arrangements for leadership within their current districts so they can concentrate on their new task.  Then over the next few months – with support from the County and the search groups - they will be building their new teams and planning the migration to the new structure.

We will use these bulletins to keep you informed as the change proceeds, but if you need any more information please contact me on change@glsescouts.org.uk.

Change Update - 25th January 2011

Message from Ben Richardson, County Commissioner
 
The two Search Groups for each District have now met to consider nominations for the role of District Commissioner. I will have very shortly two short-lists from the recommendations they have made, and will be in touch with the potential candidates to see if they would like to be considered for the role. I will then meet with those that do and discuss the role and how they see the new infrastructures forming and support required to support Scout Groups. After this I will then either pass my recommendation to the County Appointment Advisory Committee for review or ask the Search Groups to consider their recommendations again. Once I know more I will keep you updated.

We intend to have two days, one for each Borough, to further work and plan the work that needs to be done to achieve the transition. Any member of each of the current Districts will be able to attend, and contribute to this. These days will be planned and implemented with the new DCs after they have been appointed. So that you can get the dates into your diary -

- LB Bexley (currently Bexleyheath & District, East Wickham & Welling, Erith & Crayford and Sidcup Districts) - 19 March 2011

- LB Bromley (currently Beckenham, Bromley, Chislehurst and Orpington Districts) - 12 March 2011

The details and venue of the days will be announced when we have appointed the DCs and planning has taken place. This is another opportunity for you to take an active part in the shaping of your new Districts, so don't let it pass.

Change Update - November 2010

Message from Mike Jackson, County Change Manager

The County Change process has been moving slowly since the summer, for various reasons. However we are now moving the process forward and this seems a good time to let everyone know where we are and the outline programme for the rest of the work.

Search groups for the new District Commissioners have now started work and we have invited nominations for suitable candidates. If you would like to be considered or if you want to nominate someone else who you think would be suitable, the necessary information is on the change section of the County Website.

We would like nominations as soon as possible and in any case no later than 17 December. The search groups can then put forward a recommended short list by mid January and we would hope to make the appointments in early February

The key supporting appointments for the new Districts – Deputy District Commissioners and District Chairmen can then be made in the period up to April.

Clearly we will not be in a position to transfer membership and operations to the new District by 1st April as we had hoped so we intend to put the “go live” date back to 1 October. This will allow the new District Commissioners - with County support - six months to manage a transition to the new structure.

Finally, once the new Districts are operational we will need to make consequential adjustments to the County’s own support structure.

I will be providing further updates as the process continues but meanwhile, if you require any further information please contact me on change@glsescouts.org.uk

Downloads:

• DC Nomination Letter
• DC Role Description

Search Group Members:

Bexley

• Luke Robertson
• Allan Bunclark
• Di Sprowles
• Gill Emmett
• Ian Kirk
• Kevin Brooks
• Lisa Mason
• Nick Tully
• Richard Willgoss

Bromley

• Andy Howard
• Gwyn Muckelt
• Andrew Watkins
• Chris Elmer
• Ron Ockleford
• Chris Jones 
• Bruce Manning

Change Update - July 2010

Message from Mike Jackson, County Change Manager

The change process has moved a long way since it kicked off in January.

Although it was triggered by the Regional Review, which recommended a move to borough-based Districts, it is now very clearly a County project and as a consequence the emphasis has moved from simply aligning boundaries with local authority areas to taking the opportunity to develop more effective support structures.

During April we held District Meetings and one to one meetings with GSLs and District Team Members. These were focused on finding out what support they needed from the Districts and County and provided very useful feedback.

The County Conference in May was attended by the County Team, DCs, ADCs and key trustees and advisers. We used the feedback we had obtained from GSLs as a basis for considering new structures. Although there were quite naturally varying views on the way forward there was also a great deal of agreement. The starting point for discussion was that Scouting is provided to young people by volunteers working in Scout Groups, Explorer Scout Units and Scout Networks. The prime role of the Districts and County is to ensure that those front line volunteers get the support that they need to do the job well. Thinking about the way we are currently organised it was clear that our structures are basically designed in the 1960s although needs have changed drastically since then. For example, communication has got a great deal easier with HQ sending emails direct to local volunteers, but on the other hand the average “life” of a volunteer has reduced so recruiting and supporting volunteers has become more challenging.

We agreed that we are good at providing programme support (visiting leaders and providing additional activities), not so good at management support (making GSLs’ and other managers’ jobs easier) and very weak on providing governance support (helping executive committees understand their role and comply with the increasing complexities of charity law and POR). We were concerned that we are not effective in managing and supporting our managers. In particular, our DCs are responsible for managing GSLs but – because of the way that Districts are currently set up – they do not have enough time for this important aspect of their role.

We then went on to look at possible structures for delivering support. It became clear that different areas of support need to be delivered in different ways and this led to the concept of “clusters”, which had featured in the earlier consultation documents, becoming irrelevant. For example, many aspects of programme support might be better provided through geographical sub-areas, whilst management support to GSLs could be better allocated on the basis of the needs of the particular Group and the skill sets and availability of the supporter.

Since the conference we have reviewed the output and held further discussion on possible structures at the DCs’ meeting on the 29th June. We have now established the principles on which District structures will be based but we will not be in a position to finalise them until the new DCs have been appointed and we have reported back to GSLs.

So our key task at present is to recruit the DCs. We have developed a role description appropriate for the new Districts which is currently with DCs for comment. We hope to go through the recruitment process over the summer with a view to making appointments in early autumn. We can then, working with the DCs of the new Districts, agree the structures and report the results back to the GSLs, probably at meetings in October.

County Conference 2010 Output

Output from the County Conference has been collated and is available in the following Output Document

Conference Overview

Message from Mike Jackson, County Change Manager

At the County Conference over the weekend of 15th and 16th May about 50 members of the County and District teams put in a great deal of work to develop ourchange proposals. We need to do a lot more analysis before we can give a full report, but I thought it would be helpful to give you some idea of what we discussed and the themes that emerged.

All agreed that Scouting primarily happens in Groups and the role of the Districts and Counties is to support those Groups. So although the need for change was triggered by the boundary review it would be pointless developing new structures unless they will help the Groups to continue the good work they have been doing and provide even better Scouting for more young people.

We recognised that our support structures are largely unchanged from the 1960s. But society, communication systems and the type of volunteers we attract have changed radically since then so the current arrangements are not the most effective for today’s needs. As we develop our proposals we need to make sure that we plan for the future, not the past, and retain sufficient flexibility for further change.

We felt that we are good at providing programme support (visiting leaders and providing additional activities), not so good at management support (making GSLs’ and other managers’ jobs easier) and very weak on providing governance support (helping executive committees understand their role and comply with the increasing complexities of charity law and POR).

We were concerned that we are not effective in managing and supporting our managers. For example our DCs are responsible for managing GSLs but cannot do it well – not because they lack ability, but because the way that Districts are set up does not allow them enough time.

Over the weekend we identified a large number of issues which concerned delegates. These included very detailed points such as the County should not just talk about adult recruitment but get into the Districts and the Groups and actually do something, to risks to local identity will Groups names, scarves and badges be changed (answer: not unless they want to). There were also governance worries such as: will theCounty take over District funds and assets on closure? (to which the answer is that District assets are held in trust for the benefit of Scouting in their area; they should not be transferred to the County or to individual Groups but to the new District so they can be used for their original purpose.) All the concerns raised will be properly considered as we move forward.

Finally, working in Borough teams we started to design new District structures taking account of the work we had done. These will be developed further as the process continues.

So where do we go from here? Over the next few weeks we will collate and analyse the huge amount of material we collected and circulate it across the County. Then the County Change Team will develop a proposal which will be presented to GSLs who represent our ultimate customers – the Groups and the young people they serve. We can make further modifications in the light of the GSLs feedback and the plan will be finalised with the new DCs and District Chairmen when they have been appointed.

GLSE Scouts - Consultation Output

• District Appointment 1 to 1's output
• District Consultations Questions and Answers
  • Beckenham
  • Bexleyheath
  • Bromley
  • Chislehurst
  • Erith and Crayford
  • East Wickham and Welling
  • Orpington
  • Sidcup

South London Boundary Review – The Way Forward for GLSE - March 2010

Message from Ben Richardson, County Commissioner

Following the decision by Dean Milton, Regional Commissioner (Greater London), to merge the existing Districts to follow Local Authority Borough Boundaries from the recent boundary review, I have spent time discussing the options with the District Commissioners and County Team. The following proposals are a result of these discussions.

How the County moves from 8 Districts to 2 Districts is open for discussion. The proposals and timetable enclosed are for consultation - with workshops being held in each District in March, along with one to ones for everyone holding a District appointment (including Group Scout Leaders) in April.

The County Conference this year (normally for the County Team, County Executive Committee and District Commissioners) is open to District Chairman, Secretary and Treasurers, Assistant District Commissioners and Local Training Managers as well, as it will focus on the changes ahead.

The proposed ‘go live’ date for the new Borough Districts is 1st April 2011 ensuring everything is in place, as much as possible, so the transition across is as smooth, as possible.

The County’s Senior Management Team has attended a Change Management course, delivered by an external provider. This can be arranged for District Commissioners and other management, if necessary.

A traditional structure will clearly not work for either District, as they will be managing 40+ Scout Groups - so the proposals explore other methods of supporting, developing and growing Scout Groups. The actual delivery of Scouting will not change in the main, and District activities can hopefully become a lot stronger.

Districts provide different functions and services to the County and will continue to do so moving forward. As part of the review, I will look at the County’s structure and support to see if anything needs to be altered. Should the County’s boundary change in 18 months time, then we will need to review this again.

No permanent decisions have yet been made by myself or the County, and I do not intend to do so until everyone affected, or that wants to, has had the opportunity to pass feedback and ideas, allowing the experience and skill within the membership to constructively contribute to this process.

My apologies for the time in issuing this proposal; I didn't govern the issuing of the Regional Commissioner’s email. I would have much preferred to have prepared this before any communications were issued, avoiding a lack of answers being available. However, once we start to move through the process, it will be conducted professionally, properly, thoroughly and openly.

Please take time to read through these proposals and pass any feedback you have at one of the workshops across the County or to the Change Manager, after they have been appointed.

Supporting Document

• Proposal Document
• Proposed Structure A
• Proposed Structure B
• Proposed Structure C
• Traditional Structure

FAQ

Q – I thought the new structures would mean less people?

A – it has not stated anywhere that this would mean less people involved in the support / management structure – it allows for people to be in the right place to support people, i.e. growth and development.

Q - How does this benefit the young people?

A – Having a sound structure will ultimately benefit our young people, as one of the aims of this is to grow opportunities for more young people to join, and for current activities and events to be open to more of our current membership.

Q - If one volunteer leaves because of this, has this failed?

A – No – change is always difficult. Sometimes people will choose that this is not for them. However, that does not mean it is incorrect move forward, as HQ have asked us to do. We will measure the successes and failures of this change, and ensure we respond to them positively. However, that means everyone has to play their part – if not it will be harder and ultimately affect the young person’s experience in Scouting – not an acceptable outcome.

Q - If this does not work, what damage could it do to Scouting in our area?

A – The delivery of Scouting is not affected by this change, therefore should not damage the experience of a young person’s Scouting. If it does, we will ensure this is looked into and resolved as quickly as possible.

Q - How can we move this on or sell it when Districts do not have the tools to do it with?

A – Workshops are being run in each District so that anyone affected / interested has the opportunity to pass on their feedback. The County will be fully supporting this process, with the appointment of a Change Manager to overview and co-ordinate it. Nothing will be moved on in isolation – Districts will work with the County, as a team, to ensure that everyone is up to speed and clear with what is required, and when.

Q - Why was the true intent of the survey not made clear from the beginning?

A – all the information passed by the Regional Team was issued as requested. The County Team and District Commissioners were not aware of anything that wasn’t already published.

Q - Scouting is not a paid profession and is purely voluntary and people are not overly impressed with the way this is being handled.

A – The County Team, nor the District Commissioners, did not govern the process or communication that has been conducted thus far. However, moving forward, the process will be carried out professionally, clearly, openly and thoroughly.

Q - Why was the email sent out with so many unanswered questions in it?

A – The County Team, nor the DistrictCommissioners, did not govern the issuing of the Regional Commissioner’s e-mail and therefore we are trying to do things as quickly as possible. It would have been much better to have prepared the proposals and consultation before any messages went out avoiding lack of answers being available for the membership. However, once we start to move through the process, it will be conducted professionally, properly, thoroughly and openly.

Q - Is there missing correspondence as the two e-mails don’t seem to make sense?

A – The Regional Commissioner’s e-mail stated that the County boundaries would not change at this time and would be reviewed in 18 months time. It did suggest that there would be ‘step’ changes in the meantime, which could influence any further boundary changes. Therefore the County Commissioner’s plain English response in translating this could have been surprising.

Q - How is the new set up supposed to work, where will the support at ground level be coming from?

A – The new management and support structures are part of the proposal and feedback and ideas are welcome before actually agreeing anything.

Q - Supporting adults is one thing, but how will this support the young ones? Events for example – children and their parents like smaller events and do not want to be one of 400 people.

A – There is no evidence to support this, and feedback from District Teams is that events are not supported enough, so an increase in potential participation should be welcome.

Q - Will ex District members, presuming they stay on, be expected to fill the huge gap now vacant between leaders and the new team?

A – Without knowing the new structures, it can’t be assumed that there is anymore of a gap than at present. Current District teams are not full to capacity, nor District Executive Committees, therefore those affected will be offered a role within the new structure; whether they decide to take it on is their choice.

Q - How will funding work?

A – There should be provision for a financial strategy and fundraising plan for each Borough. This will be reviewed and planned in the months up to the ‘go live’ date of 1st April 2011.

Q - Capitation fees? Should go down.

A – If everyone declared the correct numbers within sections during the census then capitation should decrease. Whether the capitation decreases under a new Borough structure will be discussed before going into the new structures.

– What happens to halls and landcurrently owned by Districts?

– Equipment?

– How quick and personal willthe new support be?

– How will small localisedissues be dealt with?

– How ill newDistrict meeting work and will anything get achieved?

– Sad about this as we will losethe local management of the District and it will all be more anonymous.

– Just because this works in oneCounty does not mean it will work in ours.

– Are we really “that broken”?

– Your email, quote “From DeanMilton's communication earlier this month you will see that he has decided on option three. This means that for GLSE we will merge the 8 Districts (currently 4 in each Borough) into 2 Districts that match the boundaries of the London Borough of Bexley and Bromley.” However, the earlier email does not state this.

– People are quoting you assaying something along the lines of you should be reading between the lines. Surely this is wrong and people should be able to totally trust communication as sent out by County. If not, maybe we should be misreading everything, POR, communications etc……

– Quote “I appreciate thisdecision could cause some concern…..” is being viewed as a massive understatement.

– Quote “I have already had theopportunity to discuss this with my Senior Management Team, County Executive Committee, County Team and District Commissioners” – some DC’s are denying they know anything about the contents of your email and also as to having been consulted by your good self. People would like to know what has really happened.

– Quote “This will allowsufficient time for proper consultation, appointments to be made and the wind up of the current Districts” – there is a very strong rumour doing the rounds that the position of Borough Commissioner has already been taken. It will be interesting to see if Nick Crowe is the man.

– Your one to one consultations– are these really to discuss the way forward or are they just to tell most people that their position is now redundant? Not the right word as we are not salaried but….

– How can any kind of discussion involve proper consultations etc when it is overly clear that decisions have already been made?

– You ask us to carry on asnormal. How can anybody properly plan when so much is apparently up in the air?

– With only 3.2% of surveysbeing returned, how can such a dramatic decision be based on such a small return?

– The original email really doeslean towards a County review. I for one would like some guidance into where I should have been misreading things so as to reach this conclusion.

– With such a poor return, howwas the outcome reached? Was there any personal “input” from outside the collated replies?

– Where in the survey does itmake reference to the District boundary review as nobody can find it?

– The original email states thepotential release of up to 200 leaders for development of the movement. Are we saying that we have a surplus of 200 people doing jobs that are not really there?

– Is it not just a littlearrogant to presume that all these people will stay with us? I for one have not spoken or heard about anybody being happy with this. In the grand scheme of things, I have not spoken to that many, but I have spoken to more than 3.2% of 200 so this could be misread as a fair summary of how everybody feels.

– Quote from the original “Imade clear from the outset that I would only consider ‘step change’ in terms of changes to boundaries or changes to existing county structures where “there are clearly identifiable, achievable and measurable benefits to the delivery of Scouting in Greater London.” I also made clear that “If the review identifies that existing structures and support mechanisms work, are sound and are fit for purpose then we will not be proposing any change to existing structures, processes and boundaries.”” – is this a step change?

– Quote from the original “Iacknowledge the need to address areas for improvement particularly within South and South East identified as part of this review and within existing county development plans and that this can, at present, most effectively and efficiently be done using existing structures” – is this really be driven by HQ/Regional or is this being driven by County as this certainly reads as not being HQ/Regional, at present?

What about current stock of District badges?

I appreciate there are likely to lots of cost implications in moving forward, including badge stocks. We will identify all of these and ensure there is a sensible and practical approach to this. It may be that we consider offsetting the cost of new District badges for the initial run so as not to cost Districts directly.

Last updated on 27 September 2011 by Ben Richardson

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GLSE Scouts: Everyday Adventure for Girls, Boys and Adult Volunteers in the London Boroughs of Bexley and Bromley