Boys AND Girls

Scouting is Growing!

Joining Scouts (or Cubs or Beavers) may be one of the most important decisions you ever make for you child. Scouting is unique. We like to think that some kids learn more important life lessons than they do in school. We know that some less sporty kids get the majority of their exercise at Scouts. Many learn to learn... because they are making their own decisions about badges, and advancement and self-determination in Scouts, and have a level of control over their Scouting life that they don't have at school. Whether it's an overnight sleepover at 6 year old, or building a school in Africa at 16 years old, many parents tell us that Scouts was the best thing that ever happened to their child.

Bring Balance to the Force

A lot of people still assume Beavers, Cubs and Scouts are for boys, and Rainbows, Brownies and Guides are for girls. Well... Girl Guiding UK is still a single sex organization, but the Scout Association is not. We first admitted girls into Venture Scouts in the 1970s, and girls into other sections in the 1990s. As of 2007, our 100th anniversary, the last single sex Scouts groups were converted to coed groups.

Start 'em young

Six-year olds hardly notice the difference between boys and girls. But unlike in school, where boys and girls tend to stop talking to each other as they get older, Beavers, Cubs and Scouts will always be enjoying working together with challenges and games in small mixed groups. Boy or girl—it's much better just to make friends with kids who like to do the same things, get out and about, and maybe push themselves. It's the best place to grow up making friends of both sexes.

No Make-up

We work with Guiding in Histon and Impington. We're trying not to steal members from them. (So far we haven't upset them!) But across the UK, most Scout groups have discovered that the girls that choose Scouts are a different bunch from those that choose Guides and Brownies. We're not a sports team... but you can expect go out in the mud and the rain sometimes, to get pushed to your limit, to work together, to compete, to learn to look after yourself, and to be looking forward to next week the moment you walk out of the door.

Girls In The Lead / Where Girls Grow Strong

Many of our ideals are the same as Guiding. From 10 years old, Scouts work together in Patrols under a Patrol Leader. We try to empower the Scouts to run their own troop and their own programme. Most patrols run some kind of regular activities - social and adventurous. We have a troop newspaper, written and edited (mostly) by the Scouts themselves. The Scouts have recently organized their own hikes and fishing trips. And about half of the troop recently came to clean up Histon Brook.

Progress Report

Not all sections in Histon have girls yet. We have female members from Scouts (aged 10) upwards, but we're still working on getting the message out to the younger age groups. That's why we wrote this page - but please help us by telling your friends.

Interview Us!

• Read the paper!
• Contact us
• Come along to a meeting