Black History Month: A passion for making a difference in Scouts

After the protests against racism and injustice in 2020, Sharon joined our Board of Trustees, bringing her skills as an engineer, her passion for creating equitable opportunities and her experience as a Black woman from a working-class background.

Here she discusses her desire to make impactful change, as well as her experience in Scouts so far.

What drew you to volunteer at Scouts? 

I was drawn to volunteering after the death of George Floyd and seeing systematically how things hadn’t changed. I saw that, in society, the wrong outcomes were still being driven by systems, governance, and people. I think everybody has the opportunity and agency to change things.

I felt that I wanted to do something where I could influence the outcomes, and I wanted to do it as soon as possible. I started looking for a youth organisation, as I wanted to be involved with the youth sector. As I was looking, I saw Scouts were looking for a new Trustee, so I jumped at the chance.

I was actively looking to be involved with a youth organisation where I could offer my expertise and influence the outcomes within a system, and I knew Scouts would give me that opportunity.

Were you involved in Scouts before your Trustee role? 

No, I wasn’t. I knew lots about Scouts, but I’d never been involved. I came from a working class background and grew up in Dudley, which is one of the towns targeted for levelling up as part of the government agenda.

When I was growing up, my parents couldn’t afford to send me to Scouts – not just money wise, but time wise, too. Both my parents worked full time and they didn’t have time to fit Scouts in, so I wasn’t exposed to Scouts as a young person.

Now I’m involved as a volunteer, I want to make sure it’ll be different for other people from similar backgrounds and help them access Scouts. I’ve joined the movement with a fresh outlook and a passion for helping make it more accessible.

Have you been able to explore your desire and passion for diversity and social mobility in your role so far?

I’m an engineer in Arup, and I’m using mine and my organisation’s skill sets to link them to Scouts, as we do a lot of philanthropy and volunteer work.

Scouts are aspiring to modernise meeting places, so they're working with our philanthropy desire in Arup to bring in sustainability and identify areas for new Scout huts.

The partnership between Arup and Scouts is still early doors, but the volunteers are loving it. They’re able to use their day-to-day skills to have a wider impact, and it’s really great to see.

Would you recommend Scouts to others from your background?

Yes, I would. I think more people from diverse backgrounds (as well as organisations and experiences) should get involved as Trustees in particular, because it makes organisations a lot stronger and helps them represent different viewpoints.

Although I didn’t grow up in Scouts, I’m learning so much about Scouts and it’s bringing a lot of value to my life now. I’ve been able to bring a different perspective, not just as a Black woman, but as someone who’d not been involved from a young age. I think that perspective is beneficial for both me and Scouts.

The more people from different backgrounds we can bring into the movement, the more the wider population will understand the brilliant work Scouts does.

Why should we celebrate Black History Month in Scouts?

Even though Black History Month is in October, Black history is just history. It’s important that we mark it, as it’s a chance to remind and ask ourselves – have we got there yet? Is it part of our day-to-day? But, it should be part of our day-to-day and not just celebrated and remembered in isolation.

While it’s important to celebrate it, it’s even more important that we consume different histories and cultures in Scouts all throughout the year. Hopefully by doing this, and not just in October, we can help change this way of learning and celebrating.