The Scout Association has today launched a new five-year strategy and refreshed its look in a bid to reach more young people and increase its number of volunteers.
Under the new strategy, Skills for Life, the charity aims to reach 50,000 more young people and recruit 10,000 more volunteers.
There will be focus on recruiting more volunteers from diverse backgrounds and the Scouts also aims to open 500 more units in areas of deprivation.
To attract more volunteers, the Scouts will be improving its technology and revamping its recruitment and training processes to make sure that it is offering a programme that will develop the practical employability skills that young people need today.
In an interview with Civil Society News, chief executive Matt Hyde called the growth of scouting over the last 13 years “one of the most uplifting stories in this country at the moment,” but added that the challenge now is “to keep the momentum going” and “keep moving with the times”.
The Scouts currently has around 160,000 volunteers – the highest in the charity's history – but still need more.
“We’ve still got a waiting list of over 50,000 people, and therefore ensuring we have enough adult volunteers to keep up with the demand is key,” he said.
Brand refresh
The Scouts has also carried out a refresh of its branding for the first time in 17 years to better reflect scouting in a digital age.
The new branding has gone live across online and social channels today and there will be a two-year transition period.
Hyde said: “We’ve seen the longest period of membership growth since the 1930s but there are still some outdated perceptions.”
The aim of the brand refresh is to “articulate the benefit of scouting by focusing on skills for life” and “also to attract and appeal to new audiences”.
Read more from our interview with Matt Hyde here.
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