Sovereign Young Leader ESU

We welcome Young Leaders from other Districts and orgnisations such as Girl Guiding, Cadets, or those completing the Duke of Edinburgh Scheme needing to undertake service.

Under the Young Leader Scheme, you may attend regular sessions with a Scout Group providing that you complete Module A of the Young Leader Scheme in order to fulfil the requirements of the service.

Young Leaders must be between the ages of 14 and 18 without exception.

Upon turning 18, if a Young Leader wishies to continue volunteering they must progress through to becoming an adult volunteer and complete the relevant training.

Note: All your Young Leader training will help you sign off your adult training where appropriate with your assigned Learning Assessor when you become an adult volunteer.

The Young Leader Scheme is recognised by the Institute of Leadership and Management as a Development Programme. The ILM is one of the UK’s leading providers of leadership and management qualifications.

This accreditation shows the quality of the Young Leader Scheme, to any external organisations that Young Leaders might apply to in future. This reflects the value of the skills learnt through the scheme to employers. It is one of the ways in which Young Leaders can use their training to gain externally recognised awards.

Young Leader training is broken up into Modules and Missions.  There are a ten of modules that are designed to cover all aspects of training.  They help Explorer Scout Young Leaders become aware of, and learn how to deal with various different facets of leadership within the Scouting Movement. The modules are designed to be flexible and encourage innovation, so be as creative as you can!

To be a Young Leader, there is some mandatory training (Module A) that you must complete within the first three months that covers some of the basics you need know before taking on a leadership role. This is integral as the module provides detailed information about safeguarding and child protection. A young person is more likely to disclose to someone closer to their age. It is therefore important that the Explorer Scout Young Leader is equipped with the right skills and knowledge to deal with any situations that arise.

This training covers:

• What your role as an Explorer Scout Young Leader entails
• Understanding how local Scouting is organised
• Understanding the purpose and methods of Scouting
• Understanding how our Child Protection Policy applies to you as a Young Leader and how we keep young people safe
• Understanding our rules and how these effect your actions

There are some additional modules that allow you to take your skills further and if you complete all them, can also gain you an award – which looks great on a CV or personal statement!

Apart from Module A, Explorer Scout Young Leaders are free to choose which modules they wish to work on and they can be completed in any order.

There are also four missions to be completed alongside the ten modules These missions are designed to allow the Young Leaders to put the learning from the Modules into practice. By doing so, you will gain in confidence and become an integral part of the leadership team within your Section and Group.

Completing the scheme entitles you to the coveted young leader belt.

Young Leaders should wear the Explorer Scout uniform shirt or blouse and one of the following neckers:

• Sovereign YL ESU
• Scout Group
• Local ESU

Note: If you are doing Young Leaders to complete DofE only, and not staying on past your duration/time to complete your volunteering section of the award; this is optional. But if you are staying on, the above applies.

You can purchase uniform here: https://readingscoutandguideshop.co.uk/

Young Leaders are effectively Explorer Scouts who choose to devote a large proportion of their time in Scouting to service in another section and may or may not wish to be part of an Explorer Scout Unit or attend regular Explorer Scout meetings.

All Young Leaders must within Reading Central District be a member of the Sovereign Young Leaders Explorer Scout Unit.

Life can be busy, and after all we are all volunteers. If you choose to stop being a Young Leader, please make sure you do the following:

1. Tell your Section Team Leader and Group Lead Volunteer at the Scout Group
2. Email [email protected] to let the unit know that you have stopped.

We need to know who is where and who is active for insurance purposes. Please make sure you let us know as soon as possible.

We only communicate any training and event opportunities to Young Leaders who are registered with the Sovereign Young Leader ESU.

By registering with us, you are automatically add to any communications relating to being a Young Leader.

Please note: If you sign up to an event or training without registering, you will not be allowed to attend.

All Young Leaders must be registered with the Sovereign Young Leader ESU.

On this page, there is a section called: “Registering as a Explorer Scout Young Leader“. All registrations should go through this form to ensure all the right notifications and processess are triggered.

This form can be filled in by anyone. It is better if this is filled in by the parent or young leader is possible.

If a Young Leader is already an Explorer Scout member in a local unit, they should use this process also. We will then make sure all OSM records are updated and shared with the relevant section.

Please ensure that the Young Leader or parent has the email address of the Section Team Leader and knows the Scout Group and Section they will be volunteering with. If added, Section Team Leaders will be notified of any new Young Leaders who have registered, along with any other additional instructions needed to help support the Young Leader.

Finally, once registered – the Sovereign YL ESU will share the OSM record to the relevant Scout Group section. Please do not chase the local ESU’s to complete this task.

Just like adult volunteers, each Young Leader will have their own unique mix of skills, knowledge, and experiences. Check in with where they’re at, where their skills are, and what they want their time as a Young Leader to look like.

Of course, becoming a Young Leader can feel a bit daunting too. Give them the opportunity to let you know if they’ve got any worries or concerns, or if there’s an area, mission, or module they’re feeling less confident about.

Once you know your Young Leader, you can support them to get stuck in (without being thrown out of their depth). They might want to start small, and that’s OK.

When they’re ready, Young Leaders can lead games and activities and take part in planning and delivering part of the programme. Don’t forget to show them all the stuff that’s there to help, too. The programme planning tool is ideal for module H (Programme planning) and the missions – Young Leaders can filter by games or activities, and use the off-the-shelf programme to get started.

After a while, once they’ve found their feet, Young Leaders may want to take on an even bigger challenge, such as setting the theme for a whole camp or gaining a leadership permit for an activity. The key is that you’re there every step of the way, encouraging them to give it a go.

For further information for Section Team Leaders and Team Members about the Young Leader Scheme and your responsibilities, please click this link.

Scouts can request to return to their old Scout Troop to volunteer as an Explorer Scout Young Leader (ESYL). However, it is highly recommended that they have a break of 12 months before doing this. This extra time allows them to develop their skills, and gives the old Troop extra time to accept and adjust to the fact they are now an ESYL with different responsibilities.

Having a reasonable gap will mean that the ESYL won’t just be seen as another Senior Patrol Leader when they return and are supporting their peers.

We also highly recommend considering volunteering with a different group. This helps young leaders to see how different groups and leaders do things differently. The have lots to gain from this as well of course things they can bring with them from their old troop.

The length of time is no earlier than 6 months.

Young Leaders get a lot out of being volunteers, but they also give their time, skills, and energy. Don’t forget to say thank you – and make it specific, thanking Young Leaders for their contributions (whether it’s a fun game, a thoughtful activity, or a brilliant attitude).

As an adult volunteer, you’re perfectly placed to help Young Leaders reflect and recognise their successes. We all like to be encouraged, and it’s important that all volunteers recognise the stuff they’re really good at, whether they took the time to encourage a Cub to get back up and try again, or thought on their feet when a game didn’t quite work.

Take some time to think about anything that didn’t go to plan too. It’s helpful to create an environment where all volunteers (including Young Leaders) can talk about the times things go wrong. Sometimes activities are too tricky, games don’t capture everyone’s attention, or behaviour is challenging, and that’s OK. It’s a chance for people to look back at what happened, see others people’s sides, and try something different next time.

Reflecting doesn’t have to be a formal discussion – it could be a quick chat while you’re packing away equipment, or you could sit down and make it visual with pens and paper.

The Young Leader training scheme is designed to benefit adult volunteers, young people in sections, and Young Leaders; we’re really thankful to the adult volunteers who take the time to make it work. At the end of the day, everyone’s a winner: sections get the benefit of talented young people, ready to share their skills and experiences (and be a great, approachable, role model). Adult volunteers get an extra pair of hands, another perspective, and the chance to help the leaders of the future.

And finally, Young Leaders get not only the fun of getting involved, but the skills they need for college, university, the job interview, the important speech, the tricky challenge, and the big dreams (in a nutshell, the skills they need for life).

Young Leaders have a position of responsibility, but they’re still aged under 18, so adult volunteers need to follow the ‘Yellow Card Young People First’ code of practice (download it here) and Safety and Child Protection Policies.

Young Leaders are “ratio neutral” – so they do not count as an adult or a young person for activity ratios.

If you’re staying anywhere overnight they need separate accommodation from both the young people in the section and the adult volunteers.

The Orange Card is the ‘Young People First’ code of practice for Young Leaders (download it here) – make sure all Young Leaders have a copy, and that they understand it too.

When Young Leaders attend Module A – a copy will be given digitally, and they will be fully trained on these topics.

When the Explorer Scout Young Leader (ESYL) takes part in a camp or residential, consideration should also be given to the sleeping arrangements. The ESYL should have their own separate accommodation. They should not share with adult leaders, or with the young people in the section as part of a planned camp.

Young Leaders are part of the 14-24 District Team and they are responsible to the Sovereign YL Explorer Scout Unit for any support, training, registration, and leadership. To seek advice, you can contact the District Explorer Scout Team Leader (YL) on [email protected].

For anything relating to Scout Group operations and management, this sit with the Group Lead Volunteer.

If it is unclear who you need to speak to relating to the query you have, please contact Kris McCabe, 14-24 District Team Lead.

Please speak to Kris McCabe, 14-24 District Team Lead for an informal chat.

Please make sure tht you have discussed the idea with your Group Lead Volunteer in advance.

Young Leaders who are registered will be emailed regularly about upcoming training and events.

It is therefore important for Young Leaders who are not registered to do so quickly, as they miss the next opportunity for Young Leader modules.