Group Lead Volunteer Induction

Materials to support Group Lead Volunteers through their induction

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Group Lead Volunteer Induction Workshops

Congratulations on your new and exciting role!

Being a Group Lead Volunteer is all about providing direction and support to develop your Group. We hope you’ll enjoy every minute and feel proud knowing that you’re changing lives and creating opportunities for more young people and adults in your community.

Managing and supporting your Group may be challenging at times, so we've created an induction that’ll help you get to grips with the role. The three parts to your induction are:

Receiving support locally through our downloadable induction checklist
Support given through the Scouts website on topics such as safeguarding, safety, governance, and programme
A rolling programme of six interactive online workshops.

These resources will go alongside your Growing Roots and Branching Out learning.

For support with the digital tools on scouts.org.uk, check out the Digital Tool Guides. If you need help completing a criminal record check, take a look at our guide to criminal record checks.

If your Group uses Online Scout Manager, you can check out the help section on OSM once you've logged in.

Managing issues and situations 

As a Lead Volunteer, you may need to help resolve issues that your team members bring to you. We have lots of guidance to help you overcome difficulties and deal with complaints. Check out Scouts' Complaints Policy to find out more.

Young Leaders

You may also have Young Leaders who volunteer in your Group. These young people are a valuable asset to any section, bringing energy and fresh ideas to the team. Find out more about supporting Young Leaders on our Young Leaders Scheme page.

Tools to support your induction

Delivering a quality programme 

Running an amazing programme is key to the success of any Group. It makes recruiting and retaining volunteers and young people much easier. For help and support in developing a quality programme, contact your District Programme Team or take a look at our guidance on delivering a quality programme.

Quality Programme Checkers for each section:

Don't forget to use the programme planning tool.

Useful resources

Induction Checklist

Group Lead Volunteer Annual Planner

Group RAG toolkit

Group Development Plan template

Induction Workshops

We run six workshops throughout the year to complement your induction. Each workshop will go into more detail on your role managing the Group, your team, reviews, development, recruitment and the volunteer experience.

Join a workshop

Development Planning

Find out how development planning provides direction and ensures more young people have access to Scouts

Check out development planning support

The Review Process

Reviews are a great way to understand what your volunteers enjoy doing, what they're happy to continue with and what needs to change.

Complete your reviews

Following rules and policy

Stay up to date on our rules and key policies.

Find out more about our policies

Growing Scouts

Explore our tools to help you recruit more volunteers, get more young people involved, start a new section and reach new communities.