Duchess proves that Scout training isn’t just for the commoners

By Bryan Wendell March 22, 2013 5 International Scouting, Training

If a pregnant Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, can do it, so can you.

I’m talking about getting trained, an important step for any Scout volunteer — whether a Cub Scout leader from California, a Scoutmaster from South Carolina, a Venturing advisor from Vermont, or, yes, even a member of the British royal family.

In January 2012, I blogged about the Duchess’ new role as volunteer with the U.K. Scout Association. And today, she did what every volunteer should: She got trained.

Her Royal Highness joined 24 other Scouters from across the United Kingdom to take part in an adult volunteer training event. The course took place at the snowy Great Tower Scout Activity Centre in northwest England.

As this article on the U.K. Scout Association website explains, she “braved the cold and took part in a number of activities, including lighting different types of fires and whipping up some delicious campfire treats. She passed on her Scouting skills to Cub Scouts from Manchester and Cumbria. She also chatted to volunteers about them helping Cub Scouts climb some of the large coniferous trees located around the campsite.”

But her impact goes way beyond campfire cooking skills. As one of the world’s highest-profile figures, she’s U.K. Scouting’s highest-profile volunteer. And that means that by wearing the neckerchief and appearing at Scouting events, she’ll encourage other adults to learn more about signing up to volunteer—certainly in the U.K., but perhaps here in the U.S. as well.

Here’s how U.K. Scouting lays it out: “Despite numbers standing at over half a million and growing year on year, [U.K.] Scouting is still in need of more adult volunteers; more than 35,000 young people are currently on the joining list. As one of the country’s busiest high profile figures, the Duchess’s inspiring volunteer work will hopefully encourage other young adults to get involved in Scouting.”

Indeed, it already appears to be working. Check out this tweet:

Photos of the Duchess’ training day

You want more photos? You’ve got ’em, courtesy of U.K. Scouting’s Twitter page.

Props to our Scouting friends “across the pond” for having such a great day for U.K. Scouting — and World Scouting, too.

Photos and Tweets from the UK Scout Association


About Bryan Wendell 3280 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.