Will Wernham – Scouts Volunteer (previously Beavers)

Who are you?

Hi, I’m Will Wernham and I am married to Liz. We have three children, Joe aged 13, Lucy aged 10 and Ellie aged 8. For the past 7 years, I have been a Section Assistant in Beavers, ever since our eldest child was eligible to attend.

Why did you start helping at Beavers?

To be honest, I first started helping at Beavers because I wanted our eldest to join and I knew there was a long waiting list. By volunteering, I could secure a place for Joe and it was a way of spending time with him as well. I was a Cub Scout and a Scout when I was younger and I wanted him to experience some of the fun, adventure and friendships which I had built during my time in the Scouting movement.

What have been your highlights?

I once spoke to a parent who said that if their child could do just one activity outside school, they would choose Beavers. This is because Beavers do such a wide variety of activities – no term’s programme is the same. We have done evening sessions making cinder toffee or pancakes, fire lighting, making aircraft, mini-olympics in the park, treasure hunts, nature walks, visits to a church, boating competitions and junk modelling to name but a few. On top of this we have done hikes followed by a sleepover with fish and chips and a film, camps, climbing at the Foundry, a visit to the National mining museum and fun days with hundreds of other Beavers at Hesley Wood, the Scout campsite in Chapeltown.

Working with the other volunteers has been a real highlight, too  -they are friendly bunch!

Without exception, I have always come away from helping with Beavers with a sense of achievement and good feeling of being able to give something back in this Stannington community. As my children have moved through Beavers, I am thankful that they have had such a large range of experiences.

Have there been any lowlights?

Because Beavers meets at 6pm-7pm on a Tuesday evening, it’s sometimes been a struggle for me to get back in time from work which has led to me feeling a bit rushed. But I’ve realised that this is the same for the other volunteers and we all help each other out, to make sure whoever is leading the session is supported.

What is the time commitment?

To become an adult volunteer, there are some online training modules to do which will take a couple of hours. Then, just one hour per week or whenever you can attend a session. I have usually been in charge of one or two sessions per half term, which involves a bit of preparation, but I have been able to fit that in during my time off work. So, it’s really not that much. I am also involved in other volunteering such as the local church and so I opted to be a Beavers Section Assistant rather than taking on more responsibilities and over-committing.

Why are you leaving?

My youngest child, Ellie, has now moved on from Beavers to Cubs and my two eldest are both in Scouts (ages 10 ½ – 14yrs). I want to remain volunteering in the wider Scout group and so I’ve decided to move on to helping at Scouts instead.

What would you say to someone who is interested in helping as an adult volunteer?

I would encourage you to have a go! Stannington has always had a long waiting list of boys and girls who would like to share in adventures, make friends and have some great experiences to help them become resilient young people. By being an adult volunteer, you are privileged to be helping with that journey and it’s really rewarding. Also, within the Scout movement, there are lots of training opportunities depending on your own interests so you can also invest in those if you have time!