Thank you for volunteering with us. Every new volunteer goes through a joining journey: a short set of checks, conversations and learning that gets you ready for your role and keeps young people safe.
You have six months to complete it, and a few steps need doing in your first 30 days. You can work on more than one step at a time, and your Team Leader will support you throughout.
Most of it happens online in My Membership, the Scouts system where your details and progress are kept. Once we’ve added you, you can sign in and update your details. Your to-do list is under Actions.
Your joining journey at a glance
| Step | What you do | When |
|---|---|---|
| Sign in to My Membership | Check and update your details | As soon as you’re added |
| Declaration | Read it and tick to agree | First 30 days |
| Criminal record check | Complete the online check | Started in your first 30 days |
| Safety and Safeguarding learning | Complete two online modules | First 30 days |
| Welcome Conversation | Have a friendly chat with two volunteers | First 30 days where possible, six months at most |
| References | Give us your referees’ details | First six months |
| Rest of Growing Roots learning | Complete the remaining online modules | First six months |
| First Response | Attend first aid learning, if your role needs it | First 12 months |
Scouts UK Headquarters also runs an internal check of its own records. You don’t need to do anything for that one.
The steps in detail
Your first few weeks
Your Team Leader or Lead Volunteer will check in with you early on. They’ll explain how Scouts works, introduce you to the team, agree what you’ll be doing and share the Safe Scouting cards (the Yellow Card and Purple Card). If your role involves it, they’ll also talk to you about making the Scout Promise and getting a uniform.
You’ll usually be linked with a buddy, someone in the team you can go to with questions in your first few months.
Declaration
When: first 30 days.
The declaration is where you confirm you’ll follow our rules and policies, including safety and safeguarding, and act within Scout values. Open the action in My Membership, read it, tick to agree and click submit. It takes a few minutes.
Criminal record check
When: started in your first 30 days.
This check helps keep young people safe. Your Team Leader requests it in My Membership, then you complete it online through a tool called Atlantic Data. You’ll need to do this even if you already have a check with another organisation.
If you get stuck, tell your Team Leader. We have volunteers trained to help with this step.
Internal check
Once your criminal record check is back, Scouts UK Headquarters checks its own records. You don’t need to do anything.
References
When: first six months.
Enter your referees’ details in My Membership and they’ll be contacted for you. Your referees need to:
- be aged 18 or over
- not be related to you
- know about your work or contact with young people
- be able to comment on your character and how you get on with others
At least one should have known you for five years or more, and one should be from outside Scouts. It helps to let them know to expect the request.
Welcome Conversation
When: first 30 days where possible, six months at most.
This is a friendly chat, not an interview. You’ll meet with a volunteer from outside your own Group or Unit, along with your Team Leader. If you’re joining a Section Team, your Group Lead Volunteer joins instead. For Explorer roles, it’s the District 14-24 Team Leader.
It’s a chance to:
- tell us why you want to volunteer and how much time you have
- ask any questions
- talk about the support and learning you’ll need
- go through Scout values, the Promise (if relevant) and how we keep young people safe
Growing Roots learning
When: Safety and Safeguarding in your first 30 days, the rest in your first six months.
Growing Roots is the core online learning for every volunteer. Sign in to My Learning through scouts.org.uk to complete it. Everyone does:
- Safety
- Safeguarding
- Who we are and what we do
- Creating inclusion
- Data protection
Depending on your role, you may also do Leading Scout Volunteers, Delivering a Great Programme or Being a Trustee.
First Response
When: first 12 months, renewed every three years.
If you’ll be working with young people regularly, you’ll need First Response. It covers basic first aid and handling medical emergencies in a Scouts setting. Courses are booked locally, and your Team Leader will tell you how to register.
If you’re a Young Leader, Explorer or Network member
Moving into an adult volunteer role means completing every step of the joining journey for that role. This applies even if you’ve finished the Young Leaders Scheme and already know the team well.
It can feel like repeating things, but the checks and learning for adult roles are different, and they apply to everyone equally. Your Team Leader can tell you which steps apply to your new role.
If you’re becoming a Trustee
Trustees follow the same joining journey, with three differences.
- How you’re appointed. Trustees are appointed at the Annual General Meeting, through an open selection process, or co-opted by the Trustee Board at a meeting during the year. Some roles, such as Lead Volunteers and Youth Leads, are Trustees automatically. If that’s you, you must hold your full role before you act as a Trustee.
- Eligibility checks. These confirm you can legally be a charity trustee. Your declaration covers this too. The Chair or Lead Volunteer records the checks in My Membership, within your first 30 days where possible and six months at most.
- Welcome Conversation. If Trustee is your only role, you don’t need one.
Your Growing Roots learning will include Being a Trustee.
Getting help
Your Team Leader is your first point of contact for anything to do with your joining journey. Your buddy is there for the everyday questions.
You can check your progress at any time in My Membership. If a step is stuck or you’re not sure what to do next, tell your Team Leader early so we can sort it.
For help with My Membership itself, see the quick start guide on scouts.org.uk.
Aimee Curtis, our Volunteer Development Team Lead is here to help. Drop her an email – aimee.curtis@valeofclwydscouts.org.uk
