Dear Parents,
Following the government's announcement that Mendip will be subject to the new Tier 2 restrictions, we have been informed by Selwood School that, despite the Scout Association allowing to resume face to face meetings, they are stopping the use of its indoor facilities by external organisations until the new year, following which a further announcement will be made.
Whilst we could have gone back to Tedbury on a Thursday evening, it is felt that with the uncertainty around the weather at this time of year, this was not a realistic option. As a result of this all sections will continue to meet on Zoom every Thursday up until the end of the school term. Each week, as we have done to date, the section leaders will be sending out the meeting details and passcodes for the following meeting. If for whatever reason we are not receiving these details, please let me know and we can arrange for these to be passed on to you.
Once we have more definite news about restarting face to face meetings at Selwood, we will let you know either by e-mail, via our web site or social media.
When we do get back to meeting up again in the new year, one of the things we will need to consider as a group is the lack of fundraising over the last 9 months. This has had a big impact on our finances and we will be looking for your help in terms of ideas and support to allow us to remain financially viable as we move into 2021. The statement below from the Scout Association highlights some of the issues we face:
"While our face to face meetings and activities have been suspended, you'll know that you will still need to cover fixed costs. Your District, County and national services are facing the same challenges. We will still need to collect the full membership fee for each young person because these costs are fixed. They cover vital services such as insurance, safeguarding, legal protection, and the development and support of our programme".
In real terms for us we have for example just had to pay over £800 for our annual insurance policy, £120 for our web site fees and in the new year will see a dramatic rise in the capitation fee's (the money we have to pay to the Scout Association for each child member). We therefore have to explore every avenue to maximise income opportunities and I am sure if we al pull together we can achieve this, ensuring that we can continue to deliver Scouting to the young people of Frome,
Kind Regards,
David.
David Hoare
Chairman - 5th Frome Scout Group
https://www.5thfromescouts.org.uk/