Thinking of running something across the District? Brilliant, and thank you. Here is how to get it off the ground.

Building events beyond one Group is one of the most valuable things we do. Offering places out to other Groups creates networks and communities of Scouts and volunteers who can then do more together: bigger activities than any one Group could run alone, shared kit and skills, and leaders who know each other well enough to lend a hand when it counts.

We want Groups coming together with the minimum of fuss. Most of what follows is what you would be doing anyway.

The one difference is that once something runs as a District event, the Trustee Board carries responsibility for it. They have asked for a level of oversight on three things: the finances, the management of risk, and how it runs operationally, which the Programme Team supports. In practice that is usually one conversation and a short summary, not a form-filling exercise.

The short version: email dlv@lewishamscouts.org.uk with the five points below, as early as you can, and we will take it from there. The rest of this page is detail for when you need it.

What to tell us

  • Who is running it. A named lead, with a team around them.
  • What is happening. What you are putting on, for which sections, roughly how many people, and where.
  • When it is happening. The event date, and the dates that matter before it: opening bookings, closing them, taking payment, confirming numbers.
  • What it costs. An estimate of income and expenditure, and the price per person. Every event needs this, however small, and a rough early estimate is fine and expected.
  • What could go wrong. Safety, and alongside it the financial side: what happens if numbers come in low or costs run over, and what the fallback is.

For a straightforward event, that is a single page. An email is fine, and if you would rather talk it through than write it down, that works too.

Scale it to the event

  • A single day, no overnight, modest cost. An activity day, a competition, an afternoon at Frylands. The five points above on one page, with a simple estimate of income and expenditure, plus your risk assessment.
  • An overnight, several Groups, or significant money. A sleepover, a District camp, a skills weekend. The same points in more detail, a fuller income and expenditure breakdown, an outline programme, and the usual Nights Away paperwork and permits.
  • Major projects. Trips abroad, large purchases, anything running over several years. These need a fuller plan and Trustee Board approval, sometimes in stages, so start the conversation early.

If it is not obvious which of these you are in, ask and we will agree it with you.

Timeline

A rough countdown for an overnight event. Compress it for something smaller.

  • About a year out: hold the venue, agree the lead, and send us the date so it goes on the District calendar and other Groups can plan around it.
  • March and September: the annual District budget is set in March and reviewed in September. Getting your event in early, even as a rough estimate, avoids problems later. Being in the budget is not the same as being approved.
  • Six months out: proposal agreed, price per person set, places opened to Groups.
  • Three months out: bookings open, with a published closing date and payment date.
  • Three weeks out: the venue needs your programme, activity requests and risk assessments.
  • Two weeks out: Nights Away Notification submitted, and DBS and training in date for every adult attending.
  • Within six weeks after: receipts in, invoices settled, and a short note on how it went and what you would change.

If your event is closer than this, tell us anyway. It is nearly always better to start late than not at all.

Who signs it off

Most events can be supported by the Programme Team, the 14-24 Team or the DLV. Larger ventures go to the Trustee Board.

The DLV and the Programme Team stay in the loop on everything, so wherever your event sits you always have someone to go to. You do not need to work out the right route yourself: tell us about the event and we will point it in the right direction.

  • Events for under-14s: District Programme Team.
  • Events for Explorers and Network: District 14-24 Team.
  • Events across the whole District: District Leadership Team.
  • Adult training and recognition: Volunteering Development Team.
  • Larger ventures, or anything outside the agreed budget: District Trustee Board.

Nights Away and adventurous activity permits run separately through the usual route. One does not replace the other.

Money

  • Every event needs an estimated income and expenditure. However small the event, we need to know what is expected in and what is expected out. Early figures can be rough and will change.
  • Invoicing runs Group to District. Groups collect from their own families and members in the usual way, and the District invoices the Group. Send us a summary with the Group name, a contact and the amount, and we issue it through QuickBooks. Please avoid payments from individual families or members going straight into the District account, as they are difficult to match up.
  • Be clear about the price up front. Say what the cost covers, whether leader and helper places are included or charged for, and any discount or subsidy being applied. Groups plan their own budgets around what you publish, so it is much better to be transparent at the start than to adjust later.
  • Plan your contingency. The Trustee Board ultimately carries the burden if something goes badly wrong, but that is a backstop rather than a plan. Work out what a sensible contingency looks like for your event, allocate it in the budget, or agree it with the Programme Team as part of the wider programme budget.
  • Send receipts in promptly after the event so the accounts can be closed.
  • Cost should never keep anyone away. There is financial support available, both for individual families and for Groups who would otherwise struggle to take part. Ask as early as you can. The more notice we have, the more we can do, and the easier it is to build support into how the event is priced rather than handling it case by case at the last minute.

A note on Frylands

Direct costs for Lewisham District events at Frylands are covered by the District. There are indirect costs too, such as instructor time allocated alongside your own volunteers, and bookings the site could otherwise have taken. The site only stays as good as it is because we keep putting money back into it. We want events to be accessible, and we also want them to be sustainable, so where the numbers allow please build a contribution back to the site into the cost of your event.

How we can help

  • Working through the proposal with you, if it is your first one.
  • A template to start from, if you would find that easier than a blank page.
  • Invoicing and payment collection.
  • Getting the word out to the right section leaders across the District.
  • Finding extra adults to help run it, so it does not all fall on your Group.
  • Advice on permits, Nights Away and risk assessments while there is still time to act on it.

Get in touch

Get in touch and let us build more opportunities together.

Email dlv@lewishamscouts.org.uk.

This page is for volunteers in Lewisham Scout Groups. If you are a parent looking for events your child can take part in, please speak to your Group.