It’s only 9 weeks until the next fund raising event on Saturday the 25th November which will be the Group’s “Christmas Fair”. Please put the date in your diary so you can attend, have some fun and buy some bargains!

Could we please just remind you that we would be very grateful for any donations of unwanted gifts or nearly new items of toiletry/jewellery items and complete toys and jigsaws which can be delivered on a weekly basis to the HQ when your son/daughter goes to their Scout meeting.

All monies raised at this event will go directly to the Group Funds which are used for the maintenance of the HQ and general running of the Group.

Your support would really be appreciated.
David Wilcox
Fundraising Committee Chair

We’re holding our AGM this year on Friday 15th September at 8pm at the Scout HQ, Homemead Road, Bromley, BR2 8BB.

All parents, Young People and volunteers are invited to join us and reflect on some brilliant moments from the year.

The group has taken a big step forward with our HQ Improvement Project today. Our planning application has been formally submitted to Bromley Council for their consideration. Full details can be found here.

What are we planning to do?

We are planning to repurpose the existing lobby, disabled toilet and boys/gents toilets into a single set of unisex toilets with fully enclosed cubicles. We will also be creating a new disabled toilet where the entrance to the stairs currently is. Finally we plan to build a small extension on the Southborough Lane side of the HQ which will be a lobby with a fully accessible ramp.

Why are we planning to do it?

The make up of the Scout group has developed over the years, so our facilities need to develop as well. Some of our sections have as many female members as male members, and its not practical for all of our female members to use a single disabled toilet. We are also conscious that our HQ does not have a permanent accessible entrance for those with limited mobility – this can be off putting for new members, parents and individuals who wish to support fundraising events. In essence we want to be an inclusive Scout group for our local community.

What are the next steps?

We hope to hear back from the Bromley Council Planning team in the next couple of months with a decision of whether we can proceed with the works. That will give us the green light to start planning the works in more detail, start the mammoth fundraising task, completing grant applications and then get started on the works.

How much will it cost?

Now we have detailed plans we can start to develop a detailed estimated cost, but we envisage all of the works will cost over £50,000. The good news is we have already made some progress with this and as of January 2023 have over £13,000 ringfenced for these works.

How can you help?

There are a number of ways in which you can help, including:

1. Keep an eye out for a number of fundraising events that will be organised to support this project.
2. Let us know of any fundraising ideas that you may have.
3. If you are aware of any grants that you think might be suitable for us to apply for then please let us know.
4. If your Employer runs matched funding schemes and/or corporate volunteering opportunities then please get in touch – there are a variety of ways in which this can be of use.
5. If you know of any local construction / building companies who specialise in constructing small extensions and/or bathroom renovations, please pass their details onto us.
6. In due course we may look to do some of the simple preparatory works ourselves, so please keep an eye out for working parties that may be arranged in the future.
7. If you would like to join the small working group that is looking into the fundraising and then delivery of the works, then please get in touch.

This has been a result of a lot of hard work by a number of volunteers – and is only the start of a long journey ahead of us. Thanks to all those who have inputted on this to date, and those who will support us in this exciting venture going forward.

More details can be found on the dedicated page of our website. Should you have any specific questions or suggestions you can contact David Goodwin on admin@23rdbromleyscouts.org.

Our sections have all had their final meeting of term, so another successful term has come to an end. Thank you to all of our volunteers who put so much time and effort into providing an excellent programme for our Young People.

Scouting doesn’t fully stop over summer though, a number of our sections will be going away on summer camps over the next two months. Our volunteers will also be starting to plan ahead of another exciting term of Scouting.

Alyssa Ranasinghe, Callum Hall, and George Miles will also be representing the group at the 25th World Scout Jamboree in South Korea. You can keep up to date with their adventure by following their Unit Facebook Page: GLSE- Unit 34 WSJ 2023. We hope you all have a fantastic time, and we can’t wait to hear all about it when you return.

With the summer holidays fast approaching a lot of local children will be without their daily hot meal at school so if you are able to donate to our food hampers it will be greatly appreciated. The collection box is in the Scout Hut. Thank you for all your support.

In late June a number of Scouts and Explorers from the group took part in the Bromley District Moonwalk event. It takes place every two years and is an overnight incident hike – teams set off around 9pm on the Saturday night and had to find over 20 different bases spread out across the vast expanse of Broadstone Warren Campsite. Each base had its own challenge to complete, and teams were scored for their success, teamwork and attitude. The teams had to return to the main camp by 4am – then after a few hours sleep the teams were back up for breakfast, to strike camp and travel home.

Well done to everyone who took part – its a tough challenge to take part in. Congratulations in particular to the Edward, Duncan, Matthew and Henry from the Explorer Unit who were crowned Explorer Moonwalk Champions!

The Second Hand Uniform Sale that a couple of our parents organised was a great success, so much so that most of the items were sold at the Coronation on the Green event.

If you have any second hand items that you would like to donate to the group for resale then please leave them in the box at the HQ. The resale of unwanted uniform and camping gear raises money for the group, and helps do our bit for the environment.

Scouting really is for people of all ages, and the fun doesn’t have to stop when you leave Network aged 25. The Scout Group have a ‘Fellowship’ made up of people of all ages who have an interest in Scouting – it includes existing leaders, former leaders, former members and parents of our previous members.

They organise a variety of different activities – for example they enjoyed an evening stroll through Hawkwood and Petts Wood ending up at the Tiger’s Head in Chislehurst. Below are a few photos.

If you are interested in joining the ‘Fellowship’ then please do get in touch.

The stage we use for our Pantomime and Gang Show performances every year is in need of some tender loving care. The carpet in particular has had its fair share of feet walking over it and is starting to look a bit sorry for itself.

We were on the look out for a new carpet that we can lay later in the year when we put the stage up and reached out to a number of companies to see if they could provide us what we needed. Huge thank you must go to Sommer Event Flooring who have kindly donated us a new carpet for our stage absolutely free of charge, including delivery from their Midlands warehouse!

The Scout Group and the Pantomime Society are really grateful to Sommer Event Flooring for their very kind donation – it has saved us hundreds of pounds.

More details about Sommer Event Flooring can be found online at: https://www.sommer-eventflooring.com/en/

The 23rd Bromley were delighted that a number of our volunteers were chosen to support the Coronation celebrations for King Charles III.

They were part of 540 Scout members across the UK, overseas territories and commonwealth Scouts who helped ensure everything ran smoothly. They were nominated and then selected from 1000 Scouts.

They spent a few days spent at Giwell Park (the home of Scouting) for training and meeting other team members, before helping at a variety of events in London over the weekend.

Matthew Higginbottom, aged 20 said: “As a Scout, I promise to do my duty to the King, therefore I was privileged to have had an opportunity to fulfill that promise during such a momentous and historic occasion. My duties were to provide assistance and wayfinding to the public during the screening of the concert in St James’s Park on Sunday evening. I was able to contribute to the smooth running of the event and ensured that everyone was able to enjoy the celebrations. This opportunity also allowed me to make new friendships with Scouts from across the UK and Commonwealth as we celebrated together at Gilwell Park over the course of the weekend with a variety of activities.”

Charlotte Miles aged 19: said “I had the amazing opportunity to attend the Kings Coronation in London and volunteer at St James’ Park for the Coronation Concert screening. I was stationed at an information point to help the public with directions and providing information about the event. I also gave out flags and emergency contact wristbands to families. I feel extremely grateful and privileged to have been selected to represent Scouts at this historical event, as it was such an incredible opportunity that I will never forget! As well as the Coronation, I also really enjoyed staying at Gilwell Park for the weekend and meeting all the other Scouts from the UK and Commonwealth. It was great to learn about others experiences of Scouting across the world and come together to share stories and songs!”