Welcome to Ripon and District Scouts

The first Scout meeting in April saw the Scouts of Boroughbridge meeting promptly at the Army Logistics Corp Barracks at Dishforth, ready for action and to meet Artificer Staff Sgt Trevor Holden. When Trevor was previously stationed in the area, he had become a helper with Boroughbridge Beavers and during his subsequent posting to Wiltshire, had persuaded the Army what a good idea it would be for them to sponsor the Scout Mechanics Badge, being an engineer himself.
And so it came about that Trevor, now back in North Yorkshire, was able to liaise with Dishforth personnel to teach and test the Scouts for the Activity Badge.
Learning the basics of the what lies under a vehicle’s bonnet turned out to be similar in principle, whatever the size of the vehicle. Four-stroke engines and alternators, radiators, fans and coolants, gearing, clutches, power assisted steering devices and even windscreen washers proved to function in similar ways, whether on army supply lorries, Land Rovers or instructors’ cars! Even tyre changing and oil checking followed similar procedures. 
With the bonus of being able to look over and climb inside a variety of army heavy transport, the evening was a great hit, with everyone in the troop having learnt a great deal in a short time and even having the privilege of badges being presented by Trevor himself.

This, from Anne & Mike Collins at 1st Boroughbridge:

"Recently, fifteen of the Scouts from Boroughbridge Troop were able to take part in an overnight 'Spring is Sprung' Hike, starting out from Roecliffe at  the usual meeting time where the Scouts were divided into teams and given their instructions. 

The first team of 4 experienced Scouts set out alone with map and route card they had prepared a few weeks earlier and had soon disappeared into the night. What should have been a well-lit evening with a full moon was, in fact, pitch black with no moon or stars visible at any time, so even more of a test of their navigation skills.
 
The other teams followed at intervals, each with a Leader or Young Leader shadowing to make sure no-one finished up in Harrogate by mistake. The route took each group from Roecliffe crossing fields and woodland and eventually through the Staveley Nature Reserve before sanctuary was found at the Village Hall. The damp darkness was ideal for toad-spotting and with an expert Scout naturalist on hand, many amphibians were rescued from underfoot and carefully replaced into the grassy banks of the River Tutt.

After refuelling on hot dogs and hot chocolate, the Scouts bedded down and enjoyed watching the film of 'Swallows and Amazons' from the comfort of their sleeping bags.

Next morning, up and about by 7.00am, Trangia stoves were lit and bacon sizzling for an early breakfast, as several Scouts had to be collected promptly in order to get to their regular sporting activities.  Two hours later, there was no sign the Scouts had ever been in Staveley and all were well into enjoying the rest of their weekend, with another Night Away and Hike on their record cards and memories of an exciting evening exploring the countryside in the dark."

Fifteen members and friends of the local DAS (District Active Support) Unit recently visited Allerton Waste Recovery Park which brings together state-of-the-art technologies to make the most of rubbish from homes in York and North Yorkshire. They learnt that new facility is reducing the amount of household waste going to landfill in the county by a massive 90%!!

The visit, which was VERY informative and took around 2 hours included a presentation, which gives an overview of what they do there. This was followed by a site tour, where they could see the 'mechanical treatment hall' and 'energy from waste' control room.

Open since March 2018, the site is operated by Amey on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council and the City of York Council. The facility deals with ‘black bag’ waste (that’s the rubbish left over after you’ve recycled).

As well as helping to prevent 90% of household waste from going to landfill, it generates enough energy to power the equivalent of 40,000 homes – that’s a town the size of Harrogate.  Some of the energy produced within the facility is used there, but the majority goes to the National Grid.

Allerton Waste Recovery Park brings together three state-of-the-art technologies – mechanical treatment, anaerobic digestion and energy from waste. It was the first in the UK to have all these technologies on one site!  A massive 1.5km of conveyor belts transport the waste after it arrives at Allerton Waste Recovery Park – that’s three times the length of the building. While it passes along the conveyors and through the mechanical treatment technology, the waste is sorted and they can pull out any recyclables such as plastics and metals which have accidentally been thrown away. These items are sent off-site for recycling. The technology also takes out food waste. This goes into the anaerobic digester, where it stays for around 20 to 25 days. The digester works like a giant compost heap and helps them create renewable energy.

Finally, any remaining items are burned at a minimum of 850˚C and used to generate electricity. They have two operating lines in their facility and each is fed via a giant crane grab – each ‘grab’ of waste weighs between five and seven tonnes (which is about a yellow dustbin wagon full!). The energy from waste facility operates 24/7.

The DAS members learned a lot on the tour and now are all 'even more' committed to the 4 R's in waste prevention - Reduce, Re-use, Recycle and Recovery!

Thanks must go to the facility for welcoming us and to Alex for organising the visit!

Intrepid Scouts ignored the weather forecasts to arrive at the Annual District Backwoods Cooking Competition recently, where Colin and Clare Slator, on behalf of Boroughbridge Group, were ready to welcome the 65 youngsters to a seemingly empty field.
The 65 Scouts, representing 8 troops and working in patrols averaging 4 members, were able to roam the area to find their ideal spot to make their base. Areas were turfed with penknives, wood piles made from scavenging dead wood around the field and food bags distributed.
Getting fires to actually light in gusting woods and sleet showers is no mean feat, but with smoke giving way to flames and eventually dying down to embers, it was time for each patrol to show their culinary skills. 
With sausages, bread rolls, bananas, chocolate and marshmallows, no one would starve, but the real skill was in preparing and cooking the rabbits and pigeons, not something most Scouts have the opportunity to do very often. 
Cooking methods varied from spit roasting, skewering and foil wrapping the meats and other ingredients as the only utensils available were the Scouts’ own knives and a roll of aluminium foil in each Patrol’s bag.
With time of the essence, most Scouts got to eat something cooked, though several fund they could safely eat their dessert as raw ingredients!
The ingenuity, skill and amount of help needed from adults were all taken into account to calculate the winning Patrol being Merlins of 1st Boroughbridge, who received the District trophy.
This ever-popular event is a real test of team work, as well as requiring backwoods skills of fire making, food preparation (luckily not catching it) and cooking. The erratic weather in no way put the youngsters off their mission and thanks were given to Colin and Clare for again providing a great event.

Late addition is an Email from a parent. ‘Just to say thank you to everyone involved yesterday. J had a fantastic time & has talked non-stop about skinning rabbits & what pigeons taste like. We are truly grateful to all the volunteers who make activities like this happen.‘

After 9 successful years managing and administering the County's "200 Club", Ian Hick has been awarded a commendation from the County Commissioner on stepping down from this role.

Ian has ensured that the "200 Club" continues to raise funds from members and supporters not only in North Yorkshire but across the country. For his enduring support to Scouting in this role he has the sincere thanks of the whole of the North Yorkshire County.

Ian, as you will know has been in the past, a N.Y. County Secretary and a N.Y. County Treasurer, and is still continuing as a valued member of the N.Y.County Appointments Advisory Committee and is also a respected District Active Support Member in Ripon & District.

CONGRATULATIONS must go to Ian from the whole District as well as the whole County

The Boy Scouts, as it was called in the beginning, was started by Lord Robert Baden-Powell in 1908 after a successful 'test camp' on Brownsea Island in 1907.

Some 5 years later, Scouting tentatively started in the wider North-Western District of Yorkshire West Riding in 1912. Captain Boyd Carpenter, was the, then, District Commissioner and covered the huge Parliamentary area of Skipton, Keighley, Otley and Ripon. Later it became District No 4 Yorkshire West Riding. 

In 1919 it was decided that a Ripon Local Association should be officially formed in 'Yorkshire North Riding' and was called 'District No 5 - Ripon, Masham and District'. Captain Coates J.P, of Holmfield House, Ripon, was the, then, District Commissioner.

The local Associated was formed on 21st August 1919 by an Inaugural Meeting at which the Bye-Laws were adopted and submitted to Scout Headquarters in London. These facts have been checked out by Peter Ford, a Heritage Research Officer with the Scout Association in our UK Scout HQ at Gilwell Park.

This officially means that 2019 is the 100th Year of Scouting in the present District which is now called 'Ripon & District'. So, for 100 years, Ripon & District has created a strong foundation of leadership, service, and community for thousands of the local young people, both boys and, more latterly, girls. Through a century of "Making a Difference" we can now celebrate the incredible impact of what a 100 years of living the Scout Law has done for our local and wider communities.

As Scouts we are constantly guided by our values, which are:
Integrity - We act with integrity; we are honest, trustworthy and loyal.
Respect - We have self-respect and respect for others.
Care - We support others and take care of the world in which we live.
Belief - We explore our faiths, beliefs and attitudes.
Co-operation - We make a positive difference; we co-operate with others and make friends.

This is what we do - let's keep doing it, and let's keep on celebrating it!

North Yorkshire Scouts Litter-Pick & Recruitment Week 2019

On Sunday 2 June 2019, the County plans a litter-pick across the entire Scouting County of North Yorkshire to mark the beginning of Volunteers' Week. It's hoped that Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, Explorers, adult helpers, supporters and leaders from every section in every Scouting District of the County will collect litter on this day showing Scouts cleaning up North Yorkshire and our community spirit at its very best. A uniformed badge will be given to all young members who take part, for which there will be a competition to design an appropriate badge. The impact we could have across the County is considerable and so all Districts and Groups are requested to engage fully with this exciting initiative and to avoid all local Scouting activities on Sunday 2 June 2019.

Following the litter-pick and throughout the following week, which is National Volunteers' Week, the County will embark on a dedicated recruitment campaign for young members and leaders. Once again, it's hoped that all Districts and Groups will take part in this campaign at the same time to maximise impact and to achieve some amazing results.

No excuses and plenty of time to plan these events into your programmes, so put these dates in your diary NOW!