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Volunteering at Scouts is changing to help us reach more young people

Volunteering is changing to help us reach more young people

Volunteering is changing at Scouts. Read more

Discover what this means

Disability inclusion considerations

Learn more about what to consider when supporting disabled members

Flexibility’s built into our programme, badges, awards and activities, so every young person can take part and reach their full potential.  

Sometimes, you may need to make reasonable adjustments to make sure everyone can get fully involved.  

Our programme’s all about having fun, overcoming challenges and learning skills for life. Remember, volunteers should be guided by disabled members and those who support them when discussing what support is needed for them to take part at Scouts. 

 It’s important not to make assumptions about what could help. Instead, chat to members, their parents and carers, and the people who support them about what would help them.  

Examples to consider when supporting disabled members

Please note, this isn’t a complete list, but some suggestions and examples of adjustments you could offer to make for people in Scouts.  

  • Are all the physical spaces you use accessible to young people, volunteers, and parents and carers with mobility impairments? 

  • Is there access to a quiet, low sensory space without distractions and background noise? 

  • Can the lights be changed or adjusted in your physical spaces? 

  • Are hearing loop systems in place or could this be an improvement? 

  • Can you offer access to an interpreter? 

  • Do you have the right facilities, such as toilets, lifts and ramps, and are they accessible and inclusive? 

  • Are pathways outside the venue wide, flat, smooth and well-lit? 

  • Have you given opportunities for everyone (including young people/volunteers/parents/carers/support workers) to share their access needs? 

  • Have you shared access need requirements with the relevant volunteers and site managers/owners? 

  • Have you considered reasonable adjustments and support needs in risk assessments? 

  • Can you use and allow extra time for using assistive communication technology, such as augmentative and alternative communication apps or devices? 

  • Have you considered adapting badge requirements? 

  • Are your planned activities, badges, songs and games accessible for everyone taking part?  

  • Do you have alternative activities (quieter, less physically and mentally demanding) to run alongside the wider group? All our activities on the Activity Finder have advice on how to adapt activities to make them more accessible. 

  • Do you need to adapt uniform requirements to meet anyone’s accessibility needs? 

  •  When thinking about dietary requirements,  have you considered intolerances, allergies, food and texture sensitivities, faith-based diets, fasting, eating problems, eating disorders and any other medical needs, such as diabetes?  

  • Do you regularly review documents and information for accessibility, including the fonts, font size and colours used, as well as the paper colour it’s printed on? 

  • Are you able to provide alternative forms of information for those who need it, such as large text, different coloured backgrounds, transcripts, with images, visual resources, audio resources and, Braille)?  

  • Can you make information available in Easy Read format? 

  • Can you provide visual stories or visual timetables? Are these long-lasting for weekly use, outdoors, trips or local events, or on Nights Away? 

  • Do you have sensory aids, such as fidget toys and ear defenders available? This could either be by encouraging people to bring their own or providing these for your Group. 

  • Do you use a range of information formats in your marketing and promotional materials, for example posters, social media posts, videos and handouts? 

  • When sending information digitally, can you check that it works with a screen reader? Is the information clear when it’s read out?  

  • Are forms able to be filled out and returned digitally, including on a phone? 

Adapting the Scouts uniform

For more guidance on adapting the Scouts uniform, take a look at POR 10.3 Safety Considerations and 10.11 Special Groups Uniform.

Read POR 10.3 >