Governance

Gift aid and charity status

If your Group claims gift aid, we also ask how much you have received. We have asked this question because we’re trying to understand the different amounts of gift aid that is claimed on average in different economic areas – this is part of our ‘extending reach’ programme of work. If you’re not sure what gift aid is or how to claim it, you can learn more about claiming gift aid on the gov.uk website. Please enter a value rounded to the nearest £1.

If your Group is registered with the Charity Commission in England and Wales, OSCR in Scotland, or the Charity Commission in Northern Ireland, we ask you to provide your charity registration number. Please note that isn’t the same as a gift aid or HMRC registration number. This information gives us an accurate picture of the number of Groups, Districts and Counties across the UK that are registered with regulatory bodies. If you aren’t sure, you can use the charity regulator websites to search for registered charities in England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Constitution and Group Trustee Board

Since 2020, we’ve asked for slightly more information about how your Trustee Board is made up, including how many members are under 25 years of age, and how many adults also have a leader role in Scouts.

We’ve also asked if the Group has formally adopted a constitution at one of its AGM’s. There’s a standard constitution in POR rule 5.4 which is used by many Groups, but this, or another constitution should be formally adopted. If you aren’t sure if this has been done, we’ve provided an option for ‘not known’. This will provide a clearer understanding of the various constitution models that are currently in place across UK Scouts.

Complaints

The complaints question relates to complaints raised formally under The Scouts complaints policy. It does not include informal concerns raised which may have been resolved informally.

We are seeking this information as we are always looking to improve our policies and procedures including the complaints policy. This information will help us to build a picture of the volumes of formal complaints received as a movement overall. We plan to work closely with a representative sample of the movement to explore changes in how we deal with complaints.

We also want to look at the advice and guidance available for all stakeholders including complainants and their representatives, managers and individuals subject to the complaints process. This data will also be helpful for the line management chain to get a better understanding of their respective areas in Scouting when it comes to concerns and complaints.

Other Property

If your Group owns, leases or rents any other land or buildings, in addition to your section’s main meeting places, please let us know whether this is freehold, leasehold, is rented or is used with no cost. You can select multiple options if more than one applies. This information will give us an accurate picture of the level of property ownership of Groups, Districts and Counties across the UK.