Scouting facts - Did you know?

Community based facts

  • Approximately 110,000 adults support Scouting in the UK (Leaders, Commissioners, parent helpers etc)
  • Adults working in Scouting contribute massive free youth work to their local communities

A leader would typically give time in the following way:

Sectional meetings - two hours a week over 42 weeks 84

A couple of weekend camps96

Planning and District meetings36

Training6

Day trips - three per year36

Admin/planning - two hours per week84

Total average number of hours per person per year342 hours

Every volunteer gives 42 working days

A total contribution per person of £3,488.40

(If paid at first step Locally QualifiedNJC rates of £10.20 an hour)

Total contribution for all adults working in the Movement£383m - over £1/3bn

The number of volunteers working for Scouting is larger than the workforces of the BBC (24,000) and McDonalds (67,000) combined.

  • In a five-year period Scouting trains 70,000 adults in basic life saving. (CRP)
  • Scouting is the largest Membership organisation in the world working for peace.
  • Scouting is the only organisation to operate in all but six of the world’s 216 countries and territories.
  • There have been enough people involved in Scouting in the UK since 1907 (10 million) to fill the new Wembley stadium 111 times over. That’s approximately 1/6 of the population of the UK. It’s also more people than live in the London today (approximate population seven million).
  • During the Kosovo crisis Scouting responded very quickly. Within days it had opened up hundreds of Scout HQs across the UK to help collect thousands of tons of clothing.
  • Each year 10,000 Scouts from the UK travel to every continent in the world to work on community projects.
  • Every year JoTA and JoTI bring more than 500,000 young people together across the globe.
  • In the last 15 years, UK Scouting has raised over £500,000 to support development projects and other charities around the world e.g. The Queen’s Jubilee fund, RNID, Sherpa 88, Water Aid, Unite.

Adventure based facts

  • More young people do adventurous activities as Scouts than with any other organisation.
  • No other organisation offers such a range of challenging or exciting activities as Scouting.
  • The youngest person to walk to the South Pole was a Scout (Andrew Cooney).
  • Each year 20,000 Scouts take part in the fitness challenge badge (and achieve it!)
  • Each year Scouts undertaking the Queen’s Scout Award walk the equivalent distance of once around the world.
  • Each year Scouts spend over 2 million nights away from home doing adventurous activities.
  • 11 of the 12 people to walk on the moon were once Scouts.
  • You are never more than 10 miles from a Scout Meeting Place – adventure is accessible.