The Scout Association has several key policies known as the POR or Policy, Organisation and Rules that all members, adults and young people alike, are expected to follow. In addition to these, the 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group has adopted several policies regarding how we handle things like your data, member behaviour, attendance, the waiting list, and financial hardship.
The POR is a regularly updated document describing how Scouts is structured, organised, led, managed and governed. In particular are the policies that govern the work of Scouts which apply to all Scout units. Local policies are allowed to be developed by Scout units so long as they do not conflict with the POR.
Our Anti-Bullying and Harassment Policy and Procedures outlines what bullying and harassment is, what we do to prevent and stop it from happening, and how to report it. The reporting procedures direct the reader to the appropriate policy under which their report will be managed.
The full policy details including expectations, reporting, and response advice can be found at scouts.org.uk.
We pride ourselves on our inclusivity and we do our best to make sure all our members can take part. There’s a lot of flexibility within the Scouts programme to meet individual needs, whatever that may be.
The scouts.org.uk has helpful information about what to do to join in and where to find the Scout’s Additional Needs Grants Programme to help your your person join in if the 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group needs equipment, translaters/signers, and or learning for volunteers.
We are committed to creating the safest possible environment for young people to thrive and enjoy Scouts.
All adults in Scouts must follow our Safeguarding Policy and Safeguarding Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct is a pocket-sized yellow card which is shared with all adults who interact with young people – regardless of their role. It outlines expectations for adult behaviour, what they must and must not do, and explains what to do if there’s a safeguarding concern. Check out a digital copy of the Yellow Card.
We have in place robust and clear ways to report safeguarding concerns. If anyone has a safeguarding concern, including parents, carers and young people, no matter when it happened, they must report it to the UK Headquarters Safeguarding Team. This message is consistently reinforced to everyone involved in Scouts.
You can report a safeguarding concern by using our online safeguarding reporting form. You can also:
In an emergency outside the above times, you can contact the UK HQ Safeguarding Team by calling +44(0)345 300 1818.
If a child or young person is at immediate risk of harm call 999 or 112 and ask for the police.
If you would rather speak to someone outside of Scouts, you can also call the NSPCC on +44(0)808 800 5000, use the NSPCC whistleblowing advice line or email at help@nspcc.org.uk.
If it’s not a safeguarding concern but you’re unhappy with anything else relating to your child’s time in Scouts, you should raise it immediately with your local Scout volunteers, no matter how trivial it may seem.
If you’d rather speak to someone else, contact the UK Headquarters Scouts Support Centre on +44(0)345 300 1818.
Additional information about mandatory safeguarding learning, the vetting process, and more can be found at scouts.org.uk.
In addition to the Scout Association’s key policies known as the POR or Policy, Organisation and Rules that all members, adults and young people alike, are expected to follow, the 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group has adopted several policies regarding how we handle things like behaviour, attendance, the waiting list, and financial hardship.
We believe in supporting young people to learn from mistakes, but we will always prioritise the safety and wellbeing of the group as a whole. Good behaviour is one of the principle building blocks of any strong, safe, and effective group activity, and we are committed to creating a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment for all young people and volunteers.
To uphold our values and ensure the well being of everyone involved, we have adopted a ‘Zero Tolerance’ Behaviour Policy toward the following behaviours:
In the event that we have to respond to challenging behaviour the following series of steps will be followed:
At each step in the escalation plan concerns from all involved will be taken seriously and addressed promptly.
This statement describes how your personal data will be handled by 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group. You can see details of how to contact us below.
We take our responsibilities for the way we store, secure and use your personal information seriously, and always seek to respect your privacy and to meet our legal obligations.
These obligations include the General Data Protection Regulation, the UK Data Protection Act, and other regulations and legislation relating to privacy and communications.
In this Policy notice, we explain the purposes for which we use personal data and the legal basis for that use. We explain our responsibilities for collecting data and what happens if you fail to provide data we need or provide incorrect data. We also set out our approach to sharing data and why we do so. Finally, we advise you of your various rights and how to exercise them.
4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group are a registered charity SC031040. The Data Controller for 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group is the Executive Committee who are appointed at an Annual General Meeting and are Charity Trustees. The Chair of the Charity Trustees is listed in About Us.
From this point on 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group will be referred to as “we”.
Being a small charity we are not required to appoint a Data Protection Officer.
We process personal data for the following purposes:
Our legal basis for processing personal data is legitimate interest to ensure that we can safely deliver Scouting to the members within 4th/85th Dunblane Scout Group.
There are certain activities we undertake, such as photography at events, which involve us in processing data for purposes outside our strict official authority.
In these cases the processing we carry out is necessary for the purposes of our legitimate interests as an organisation, and we assess those interests as not adversely affecting your fundamental rights and freedoms.
We will sometimes ask you for your permission to use or process your personal data.
In these cases we will be clear about what you are giving consent to, and you will always have the option to withdraw that consent.
What happens if you don’t give us data If you do not provide us with information we will be unable to process leader and volunteer applications or provide you with information that is relevant to your role within Scouting.
Where we get data from Our information about you will normally be supplied by you or by the online membership database for UK Scouting adult volunteers. In the case of adult members and volunteers, data may also be provided by third parties, such as Disclosure Scotland.
How is your data held We take your privacy seriously and data is held password protected online or for paper forms in locked filing cabinets.
Who has access Access to data is restricted to those who need it to carry out their role within the District. All leaders are required to complete a training module on handling of personal data.
Who we share data with and why Where we share or consider sharing your information we will always assess:
How long do we keep your data? Data is held only as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected and destroyed either by permanently deleting or by shredding
You have the right:
Where we are processing data for other purposes than the performance of a task carried out in the public interest, you have the right to receive the data about you in a structured, commonly-used machine-readable format.
If you would like a copy of some or all of your personal information or to seek to exercise any of the rights listed above, please email or write to us at the following address:
Mr G. Cuthbertson
District Secretary
1 Doune Road
Dunblane
FK15 9AR
Email groupscoutleader@dunblanescouts.com
Your rights to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Officer
The UK’s designated supervisory authority is The Information Commissioner.
Their details are:
Helpline: 0303 123 1113
Email: casework@ico.org.uk
Website: https://ico.org.uk
Scouting is very popular in Dunblane. As a result, we have a substantial waiting list, which unfortunately means we can’t always offer a space to potential members as soon as we would like. Numbers are driven, to a great extent, by the number of volunteering adults we have. If you are interested in getting more involved, whether just on occasional nights or on a regular basis, please contact the Group Scout Leader on groupscoutleader@dunblanescouts.com.
The purpose of the Waiting List Policy is to:
It is difficult to predict the number of vacancies that will arise on a regular basis. However, movement between sections generally take place at the start of the four main terms (August, October, January and April), and this is when vacancies are more likely to arise.
Wherever possible, parents will be given an indication, when they first enquire, of the current waiting time. However, because of the many factors involved, it is not possible to send regular updates on wait times until their child comes to the top of the list. At that point, the Membership Secretary will provide the details to the Section Leader, who, in turn, will contact parents to make the necessary arrangements.
Children can be added to the list at any time, provided they are over five (5) years of age.
If a place is offered and declined (or not acknowledged within one month), or a child leaves the Group and subsequently asks to return, they will re-join the waiting list at the bottom.
If a child fails to meet the standards required by their section (in particular attending meetings and events, but also other factors, such as behaviour and paying membership fees), their place may be withdrawn and offered to someone on the waiting list.
The maximum number of members in each section will be set by the Group Scout Leader in consultation with the section leaders and respecting the limits defined in the Scout Movement recommendations.
Priority Priority will be given as follows:
Coming Soon
Whilst attendance at weekly section meetings is not compulsory, it is very difficult to execute activities that have been prepared for a full attendance when members do not attend.
If a member cannot attend a meeting for any reason, we ask that the section leaders be informed as soon as possible.
If a member does not attend for three consecutive weeks, without informing one of his/her section leaders in advance, it will be assumed that he/she no longer wishes to be a member. If they then subsequently return, they will be put on the waiting list and given a place when one is available.
If a member does not attend for four non-consecutive weeks within a term, without informing one of his/her section leaders in advance, you may be contacted to ask whether he/she wishes to remain a member. If he/she wishes to remain a member, he/she will be placed on the waiting list and given a place when one is available.
We are fully aware that our members are involved in many other extracurricular activities and would never expect them to forego these in place of Scouting. What we do request, though, is the courtesy of notification to allow us to provide the best programme possible.
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