Adventure and Friendship: 2nd Llandaff Scouts

2nd Llandaff Scouts have been part of the north Cardiff community for generations. Mike Walker invites you to listen to their story

Scouting in Llandaff has been part of the community for over a century.

Established in the early 1900s, the Llandaff group has survived two World Wars. Our Scouts have been air raid wardens and even held pivotal roles in the D-Day landings. One of our ex-Scouts used to run St Fagans Museum and another designs products for Apple.

Scouting changes lives. Every year, over 100 Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, and Explorers from Gabalfa to Whitchurch, get the opportunity to discover their potential and to benefit from a positive, supportive environment to learn how to make a difference.

We have met on the Belle Vue Crescent site since the 1970s. In 2017, we faced one of our biggest challenges when with the help of the community, we raised over £200,000 to purchase the site and the Old United Reformed Church, which is now our Forever Home and also widely used by the community.

Our Beaver Colony is the youngest section of the 2nd Llandaff Scout Group; for both girls and boys aged between six and eight. Beavers meet on Thursday evenings at 6.30pm throughout the school term.

The Beavers enjoy all that Scouting has to offer – outdoor activities, being creative, exploring the local community, and surrounding natural environment. Each year we offer a residential opportunity to experience the excitement of a night away with friends whilst taking up new challenges working towards additional badges.

During their time in the Colony, the Beavers will also have the opportunity to try a wide range of different activities through our varied programme, as well as going on trips and days out: TechniQuest, Forest Farm, trampolining, international Jamboree on the Trail are a few examples.

We occasionally link up with our Cub Packs and connect with District Events; St David’s Day, swimming gala, mini-multi sports affording extra opportunities outside of our section. Beavers are easily recognised by their distinctive turquoise sweatshirts!

The Cub Section is the second section of the Scouting Movement for boys and girls aged 8-10½. Cubs run on Monday evenings with many young people. In fact, we have enough young people on our waiting list to start a second pack but need more adult help. Cubs are introduced to exciting outdoor skills and take part in adventurous activities, as well as camps and residential experiences.

We normally run around three camps/residential weekends a year which often involve two nights away. There are lots of badges to be earned which foster self-belief and confidence and pride when the Cubs complete them.

Our Scout Troop welcomes girls and boys aged 10½ to 14, many of whom started as Beavers. All young people in 2nd Llandaff are encouraged to take part in a wide range of activities as part of their programme, including adventurous activities such as climbing, as well as scouting skills such as camping, survival, cooking, team, and personal creative and physical challenges.

Thunderous Taiho Explorer Scout Unit meets in the Llandaff North Scout Hall on a Wednesday Night. TT ESU is the newest Unit in the District. We currently have 28 explorers aged 14-18.

The Unit tries to focus on skills, maps, tents, fire – and is out most weeks walking somewhere or burning something! We camp regularly, including Winter Camps, as well as attending bigger events like Evolution camp in Cirencester and Wings2020 in Windsor (international Jamboree in UK.

During the last year, we have delivered a lot in what has turned out to be a very challenging year.

Most sections have camped and the numbers of young people achieving their top awards has increased. Our Explorer Unit completed back-to-back Gold Duke of Edinburgh Canoeing Expeditions, over a gruelling ten days in Scotland last October.

However, we continue to struggle on so many fronts and we desperately need more adult support. We are still repaying the money we borrowed to buy the Hall seven years ago, and that adds more overhead in terms of managing rentals to pay the bills. In addition, both buildings are in need of a bit of TLC.

Finally, we don’t have a permanent Cub Leader currently and there is a real likelihood that Cubs will not re-open in September. We need help from the Llandaff North community to allow us to continue delivering a diverse and exciting outdoor adventure programme in a safe and secure environment. If your young people are enjoying Scouting, could you spare a little bit of extra time to help us keep going?

Right now, we are desperately in need of help to:

• Support in tip runs and tidy days to keep the site safe for everyone
• Join our Trustee Board and help shape the group for the future
• Become a Cub Leader in September
• Help with Scout related admin
• Join a Tidy rota to look after the two buildings
• Organise a BBQ for parents and Leaders at our AGM in September
• Help with site maintenance including painting, building and cleaning

2nd Llandaff Scouts make a positive difference in our community and improve the chances and outcomes of young people from every background. We are privileged to work with young people at the most important time in their lives: childhood.

If you’d like to get involved in this traditional part of community life, you can find us at www.2ndllandaff.org.uk or you can contact Mike on email at mike.walker@northscouts.org.uk or phone/Whatsapp 07940 951795