CASE STUDY
The Scouts is an organisation known worldwide for its adventurous programme and leadership opportunities. Yet, there are still barriers which Scouts Scotland is keen to address.
In June 2025, West Lothian District helped support 46 Scouts to gain their Expedition Challenge Award in the Pentland Hills getting them one step closer to their Gold Chief Scout’s Award.
The Gold Chief Scout’s Award is the highest award a Scout can earn, completing 9 Challenge Badges as they progress through Scouts. The Gold Chief Scout’s Award is often used as an indicator of a good experience and measure of success as earning the award ensures they have done many of the core activities which make Scouting so beneficial to our members.
In West Lothian it was identified that completing the Expedition Challenge Award was a barrier to Scouts earning their Gold Chief Scout’s Award. There were several reasons for this, including volunteers lacking the time or experience to organise an expedition, not having enough Scouts ready for the challenge to form a team, or not having sufficient equipment to run a lightweight expedition.
The Expedition Challenge requires Scouts to undertake training in navigation, emergency procedures, and to be familiar with the kit they use. Scouts then undertake a two-day expedition or exploration with a team of Scouts. During the expedition, the Scouts are required to play a full part in the team, navigate throughout the day and cook at least one hot meal. Upon completion, they provide an individual report back on their experiences, encouraging reflective learning, which is so important to effective development.
With this in mind a group of Scout Leaders from West Lothian pulled together to arrange a District two-day lightweight expedition to give everyone the change to complete their challenge badge. Invites were sent out to every Scout Troop in West Lothian and 8 participated, sending a total of 48 Scouts and 14 Leaders.
With support from Scouts Scotland and Generation Cashback the team were able to hire in GPS Trackers for every team which allowed teams to operate safely under remote supervision and allayed the fears of anxious parents. Maps, cases and compasses were all provided and stoves and tentage made available to groups who required them.
Navigation, hillcraft, stamina are all obvious benefits from the Expedition Challenge Badge but allowing Scouts to operate more independently helps boost teamwork, communication and leadership.
“I’ve felt more confident about being a Patrol Leader and using leadership skills” - Isaac, 13
“Learned to be a better leader and team member” - Oliwia, 13
“not to doubt myself and to trust people more” - Emma, 13
“Learned that it’s often better to slow down to accommodate other members of your group than to tell them to speed up” - Callum, 14
“More out spoke and felt more confident” - Unknown
“I’ve gotten better at teamwork” - Vidhaan, 11
By pulling together and combining resources Scout Troops from West Lothian were able to provide a fantastic weekend for their Scouts and hopefully set them on a path to their Duke of Edinburgh or King’s Scout Award.
“We wanted to remove as many of the issues as possible. No equipment, we can arrange loans. No leaders available, we can provide adults. The plan was to give as many Scouts as possible the opportunity to succeed” – Kris, Event Leader
“Loved seeing all the Scouts from different groups getting together and completing their Expedition Challenge. Bringing groups together helped make the event possible as the collaboration of the different volunteer teams gave the numbers to run the event safely and efficiently and reinforced links for future partnerships.” – Barny, Scout Leader
“The volume of leaders and the combined equipment made it feel a better planned and safer weekend than when trying to run it with just our own team and equipment.” – Andy, Scout Leader
Scout Leaders Remove Barriers to Achieving the Gold Chief Scouting Award
For most of the Scouts this was a new sort of experience for them, some had never been on a hill walk or camping before. Scouts had to carry most of their kit but with a variety of physical abilities and not everyone had suitable lightweight equipment, a luggage transfer service for heavy or bulky items was made available. Even so, the route was designed to push the Scouts physically.
“Not caring about dirt, rain, getting muddy” - Ailsa, 12
“I learned to conquer my fear of heights and climb a hill” - Amelie, 13
“I pushed myself farther than what I thought I could achieve” - Isaac, 13
“I started this activity not sore and no blisters, not knowing how to cook outside. Now I have and can do more than I came into this camp with” - Layla, 10
“My muscle in my knees are in pain, lots of pain, heavy pain, dying pain!” - Tai, 13
“Sore head, sore feet, pain, pain PAIN” - Jack, 13
“I have blisters” - Zara, 13
The Scouts dug deep and rose to the challenge although a few Scouts who would struggle getting up on Monday for school.
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