The Award

The Queen's Scout Award

The Queen's Scout award is made up of four sections that focus on different aspects of the Venturer's development, plus the completion of the Venturing Skills award. The four areas are Community Involvement, Personal Growth, Adventurous Activities and Leadership Development.

After all requirements for the Queen's Scout award have been completed, a Queen's Scout application form should be completed and provided, with the Venturer passport, to the Unit Council, Venturer Leader, Group Leader for endorsement, then to the Branch Commissioner - Venturers and Branch venturer Council. Finally, the form and passport are to be forwarded to the Regional Commissioner and an appointment made for interview with the Regional Commissioner, who will make the final recommendation to the Chief Commissioner for award of the Queen's Scout award

Should you have any questions about the Award Scheme or you are unsure if any activity you would like to do fits within the Award Scheme, please give the Venturer Scout Commissioner or any of the Venturer Program Advisers a call.

Venturer Scouts (Venturers) are the youth members of the 14-18 year old section of the Scout Association. Venturers is the section where members have a greater degree of freedom than in the younger age groups and members are developing their living skills from the information and experience in the younger age group sections. However, with the greater freedom comes the responsibility, both as an individual and as a Unit, to ensure that what the Venturers are doing is in accordance with the guidelines provided by the Scout Law and Promise and by the general community laws and accepted customs. Much the greatest responsibility for each individual Venturer is to determine the beliefs and standards for their future life.

The Venturer Scout Award Scheme is a tool for each Venturer to use in developing their beliefs and standards, to gain an understanding of some of the aspects of adult life and to gain a high degree of self confidence and self esteem. The Queen's Scout is the pinnacle of Venturer award scheme, but is not necessary for achieving the aims of the award scheme. In fact, some Venturers gain as much or more development by active participation in Venturer activities than some who have concentrated on achieving the Queen's Scout requirements to the letter rather than the intent.

The general requirements for the award scheme are for each Venturer to set goals for their own development. Development means an increase of ability or understanding from the starting point. Each Venturer must be conscious of their own abilities and identify how much they can develop their abilities within the times indicated in the award scheme. However, Unit Council (their fellow Venturers) is there to ensure that Venturers do not set too high goals or too low goals, taking into account their knowledge of the individual Venturer.

The point is that the award scheme, and any activities used towards the award scheme, should be individual challenges to each Venturer, and each Venturer should gain personal improvement from the activity. As an illustration, lets say the Unit has organised a series of programs for Fitness (Lifestyles section of Personal Growth in the award scheme) . There should not be a common level of achievement, but each individual must determine their current standard and the desired development to be achieved, and each aim should be approved by Unit Council. It is important in any large scale activity that each participant should have sufficient to challenge them and to enable them to learn from the experience, commensurate with the requirements of the award scheme and the capabilities of each Venturer.

This article is written to give guidance to Venturers, Unit Councils and ACT Venturer Council in determining what is expected in each of the areas of the award scheme. It should be taken as guidance but not necessarily definitive of requirements. The individual Venturer capabilities and needs should be considered in each case. It should be noted that where the passport requires approval by the Approval Standards Committee, this means approval of the examiner by the ACT Venturer Council. This is an ACT Venturer Scout section policy.

Each award requirement is to be assessed by an examiner chosen by the Venturer and agreed by the Unit Council. Advice on selecting an examiner is provided in the Venturer Scout Passport. In some cases the Venturer Leader can be an examiner, and where a report has to be made to the Unit, it is suggested the Unit Council might assess the content and presentation of the report.

The normal process for approval of award scheme activities is as follows:

" The Venturer decides, in consultation with the proposed examiner, what the proposed activity will be, details the Venturer's present competency in the activity, what is to be achieved and how they intend to achieve it. These aspects are covered in the standard activity forms, but units can provide their own forms.
Copies of the Venturer Scout Award Activity Record sheets, used for badge work approval by ACTVC, are now available

The Process

The Venturer decides, in consultation with the proposed examiner, what the proposed activity will be, details the Venturer's present competency in the activity, what is to be achieved and how they intend to achieve it. These aspects are covered in the standard activity forms, but units can provide their own forms.
Copies of the Venturer Scout Award Activity Record sheets, used for badge work approval by ACTVC, are now available

docs/badgebk.doc

After the objectives have been agreed with the examiner, the proposal is brought to Unit Council for approval.
After Unit Council approval, the activity can generally be started, except in the case of expeditions, where BVC must give approval of the examiner before the activity is started.
BVC acts as the Awards Standards Committee for both level 1 and level 2 activities in the ACT Branch. Where identified, all activity proposals must go to BVC for vetting of the proposed examiner and review against Award Scheme requirements. If the activity does not meet the requirements of the Award Scheme, BVC is to return the proposal to the Unit Council for further consideration, or explanation of the reasons for the apparent low standard. In all cases, the Venturer must be showing that he/she is suitably extending their abilities within their capacity.

Objectives for the individual activity area should be agreed to by the Venturer and the Examiner in writing.
The agreed objectives should be submitted to the Unit Council for approval. Once the Unit Council has approved these objectives, the Venturer can commence working on the badges. The agreed objectives should then be submitted to the Awards Stands Committee (BVC for both Level 1 activities and Level 2 activities) for endorsement that the proposed activity meets Award Scheme requirements. Proposals for Expeditions are to have the examiner approved by the respective Awards Stands Committee before the expedition is undertaken. Where a proposal does not meet normally expected standards, the Awards Stands Committee should ask the Unit Council to reconsider the proposal. It is helpful if Unit Councils explain why particular standards are acceptable in particular cases. The members of Unit Councils are expected to know the capabilities of Venturers in their own units.
Leaders should monitor activities at all stages.
For the Citizenship component of the Community Involvement Award, because objectives are clearly defined in the passport for activities 1 6, agreed objectives do not need to be endorsed by ASC. Passports should be signed by a responsible person at the relevant venue, and then countersigned by leaders or Unit Chair when satisfactory reports are presented to the Unit. Activity 7, (other activities approved by the Unit Council), is treated the same as other activities areas.
When the requirements for each Award area (Community Involvement, Adventurous Activities, Personal Development and Leadership Development) have been completed, the passport and all supporting material should be submitted to the BVC for approval of each Award. The Venturing Skills Award should be completed before other Award areas can be completed.
When the Venturing Skills Award and the four Award areas are completed satisfactorily, the Venturer can then apply for the Queen's Scout Award using the ACT Queen's Scout Application form. The application requires recommendations from Unit Council, Venturer Leader, Group Leader and BVC. The technical compliance of the passport is assessed by the Venturer Commissioner before an interview with the Regional Commissioner, who makes the final recommendation to the Chief Commissioner for award of the Queen's Scout badge.
Proposals for the Major Interest Award should be submitted to Unit Council and BVC for approval prior to commencing the activity.
During periods when Units are in recess, agreed objectives can be submitted to the Venturer Leader for approval on behalf of Unit Council and Venturer Program Adviser or Branch Commissioner - Venturers for endorsement on behalf of BVC.

Venturing Skills

After joining Venturers, each Venturer should qualify in the Venturer Skills Award. This will give them good basic knowledge that will let them participate fully in any Venturer activities. It is desirable that the Venturer Skills award should be completed before other award activities are undertaken, but some overlap is acceptable.

Under National guidelines the Venturing skills award is subject to recognition of prior competencies where a scout has achieved the green chord. In such situations it is acceptable for a leader to require the scout to demonstrate those competencies.

Personal Growth

The Personal Growth Award involves activities which require Venturers to develop their cultural and social understanding and also an understanding of the need to respect themselves and others in the community. Part of respect for yourself is the maintenance of your body in a fit state to enable you to contribute to the community without putting an unnecessary load on community resources such as hospitals and social workers.

The Venturer Scout Passport requires that the chosen level 2 Personal Growth activity must be undertaken last for the Queen's Scout Award - that is, after all the level 1 activities have been completed. However, where the chosen activities are substantially different in each level, then level 2 may be done before level 1, particularly if the level 2 activity is one in which the Venturer has previous experience, and the longer time is appropriate to development of the Venturer's skill. An example might be that Bird Watching might be the level 2 activity and Astronomy the level 1 activity, where the Venturer had some experience in Bird Watching in Scouts, and could build on that experience, but Astronomy was a new interest. This is an ACT Branch determination.

The Expressions activities are provided to encourage Venturers to develop cultural interests and to understand the skills involved in the activity. Expression activities are undertaken at two levels. Expressions 1 requires a reasonable involvement in some form of artistic expression. Activity 4 should be of similar involvement as the other activity options. Expression 2 requires a more committed involvement in some form of artistic expression with at least thirty hours involvement over a six month period.

At each level, the Venturer should establish the existing level of ability and knowledge and provide a target for development of their ability and knowledge over the required period. It is not necessary for these targets to be achieved, but the examiner must be satisfied that the Venturer has made a reasonable effort to achieve the targets.

Expressions 1 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Expressions 2 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Lifestyle activities enable Venturers to investigate the effects of abuse of various substances and activities on the body and mind. The benefits of regular exercise are experienced by active involvement in physical activities over a three month period for Lifestyle 1 and for six months for Lifestyle 2.

Lifestyle 1 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Lifestyle 2 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Ideals provides an opportunity for the exploration of the moral, social and religious aspects of society in which Venturers live, and to enable them to develop their understanding and attitudes to these concepts. The activities allow the Venturers to share and discuss their ideas with each other and with other people, and to better understand the intent of the Scout Law and Promise. The Ideals 1 activities are subject to Unit Council approval only, except for activity 7 where the proposed activity is also subject to ACT Venturer Council.

Ideals 2 activities are subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Pursuits encourages Venturers to undertake new recreational activities or develop existing interests which develop the mental, physical and coordination capabilities of the Venturer. The activities should promote a sense of fulfillment and self-confidence in the Venturer by enabling them to achieve particular goals.

Pursuits 1 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Pursuits 2 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Community Involvement

The Community Involvement award covers four areas - Citizenship, Environment, First Aid and Service. The activities are aimed at equipping Venturers to have a good understanding of how the community works and how it interacts with the rest of our earth, and to be able to take a positive and useful part in the life of the community. When all activities in the Community Involvement Award have been completed, the award is subject to approval by the ACT Venturer Council.

In the Citizenship activities there are a range of activities which involve finding out about various aspects of our community life. Venturers are required to do four activities which are approximately two and a half hours each. If you select to do a talk to your Unit, the talk should be about some part of community life which is important to the Unit. Similarly, any other activity proposed should also involve improving your understanding of how the community works and what is important to the community. The Citizenship activities are subject to Unit Council approval only, except for activity 7 where the proposed activity is also subject to ACT Venturer Council approval.

The Environment activity involves the Venturer to be take a leading part in organising and carrying out a practical environment project. The total involvement should involve at least twenty hours of effort. The activity should focus on at least four of the aspects listed in the passport, and the project must be presented as an illustrated account to the Venturer Unit, a Scout Troop or other suitable audience.

The requirement to take a leading part in organising and carrying out a project means that just assisting in the project is not sufficient. Venturers are encouraged to participate in any project to improve the environment to gain experience in what is involved in organising such a project and as a part of contributing positively to the community.

The proposed environment activity is subject to approval by Unit Council before being commenced, and the BVC should approve the proposed examiner and activity content.

First Aid training is necessary for the various activities undertaken by Venturers and is something that all of the community should consider. The ability to assist other people when they are in difficulties caused by accident or illness can help in preventing un-necessary death or disabling injuries that cost the community a great deal.

The activity requires about ten hours of effort, which is compatible with the St John Senior or Level 2 First Aid Certificate or the Red Cross Senior First Aid Certificate. The proposed training level and examiner is subject to approval by Unit Council and the BVC.

The Service activities are a practical way of contributing to the community whilst learning something of how various community organisations contribute to the well-being of the community. There are two activities involved, one of which should contribute to the Scouting Movement. Using the Scout Association for both activities is not permitted as part of the aim of the activities is to get Venturers to investigate and contribute to outside organisations.

While the passport requires that one of the activities should provide service to the Scout Movement, service to two different outside organisations is acceptable in the ACT Branch. It is also desirable that any service to the Scout association be done outside of your own group.

The first activity requires ten hours of service over a two month period. This activity is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council (ACT Branch Requirement). The second activity requires twenty hours service over a four month period. It is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council (ACT Branch Requirement). Service performed over an intense short period is also subject to approval by the Branch Venturer Commissioner.

Adventurous Activities

The Adventurous Activities Award involves activities which require Venturers to develop their physical capabilities while also developing their ability to plan and safely undertake activities which involve some degree of risk, improving the Venturer's self-confidence and developing leadership and teamwork attributes.

The Venturer Scout Passport requires that the level 2 adventurous activities (Outdoors 2 or Expeditions 2) are to be undertaken last for the Queen's Scout Award - that is, after all the level 1 adventurous activities have been completed. This requirement is to be followed for Expeditions. However, where the chosen Outdoor activity is different in each level, then level 2 may be done before level 1, particularly if the level 2 activity is one in which the Venturer has previous experience, and the longer time is appropriate to development of the Venturer's skill. This is an ACT Branch determination.

An Initiative Course, which involves a number of incidents, a journey over unfamiliar country and overnight camp, is part of the Adventurous Activities Award. The Initiative Course is designed to develop, practice and test the initiative of Venturers working in teams of five or six, with Venturers from different units where possible. Each Venturer is given opportunity to be the team leader and to undertake some of the navigation for the team. Initiative Courses are generally run by groups of Venturer Leaders, with each region taking turns to organise a course, the course manager appointed by the BCV. Initiative Courses should be run at about six monthly intervals to allow Venturers the opportunity to plan their attendance to fit in with their other activities.

Applications for Attendance at Initiative Courses should be made to the Branch Office by the advertised dates.

If it is not possible for you to attend an ACT Initiative Course, it is acceptable for you to attend a course in another branch. Your Branch Venturer team can provide advice on such courses.

The essential ingredient for an Initiative Course is FUN!

Approval by Unit Council is not required for attendance at an Initiative Course, but the Unit Council and the Venturer Leaders should be satisfied that the Venturing Skills Award has been passed and the Venturer is sufficiently advanced to benefit from an Initiative Course.

Expeditions are an integral part of Venturer activities. The ability to plan and safely undertake an expedition, such as bushwalking, canoeing or cycling, in an unfamiliar and challenging area is training and experience for other unfamiliar and risky activities.

The award scheme has two levels: - Expeditions 1 requires the activity to involve six to eight hours per day over a two day period, including one night out. Expeditions 2 involves activity over a four day period (three nights out) with the same six to eight hours activity per day.

For both levels, adequate and appropriate training is to be undertaken before-hand. The Unit Council and the Venturer Leader should assure themselves that each participant has the required pre-requisite competencies before approving the activity. In each case, the proposed activity is subject to Unit Council Approval and the ACT Venturer Council PRIOR to the expedition being undertaken. Examiners at both levels must be approved by the Adventurous Activities committee as meeting ORCA requirements for insurance purposes.

Expedition numbers should be such that the group can safely deal with any accidents. Bush walking and cycling expeditions must have at least five or six young people of Venturer age. Canoeing expeditions should comprise four or five two-man canoes or kayaks, or five or six one man kayaks.

As the expedition is an exercise in planning as well as participation, only those directly and sufficiently involved in the planning should be considered for the activity award. In most cases, this would be two Venturers from the party for the Expeditions 1 level. For Expeditions 2 level, again only two Venturers should be considered for this level though another Venturer may be considered for Expeditions 1 level provided the Venturer has sufficient input into the overall planning of the expedition.

A report on the expedition is to be provided to the examiner by each Award Scheme candidate as soon as possible after the completion of the expedition. This report should critically evaluate the adequacy of planning and reasons for any variations to the planned route. The report should cover food, equipment, route, weather and any other relevant aspects.

While the Award Scheme allows an oral report, these will be permitted only in particular circumstances and prior approval has been give. It is desirable to have a written report which can be retained in Unit records as information for other Venturers.

The ACT Venturer Expedition Kit provides further advice and aids for planning, undertaking and reporting a satisfactory expedition. The Expedition Kit is available from the following link.

The Outdoors activities are provided to encourage Venturers to develop physical abilities and recreational interests and to understand the rules, safety aspects and skills involved in the activity. Outdoors activities are undertaken at two levels. Outdoors 1 requires a minimum of ten hours involvement over a two month period, while Outdoors 2 requires at least thirty hours involvement over a six month period.

At each level, the Venturer should establish the existing level of ability and knowledge and provide a target for development of their ability and knowledge over the required period. It is not necessary for these targets to be achieved, but the examiner must be satisfied that the Venturer has made a reasonable effort to achieve the targets.

Outdoors 1 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council.

Outdoor 2 is subject to approval by Unit Council and by the ACT Venturer Council

Leadership Development

The Leadership Development Award provides the Venturer with experience in leadership and an understanding of management techniques. It also gives the Venturers an opportunity to develop their vocational ideas and prepare a resume using advice from people outside of their normal school environment.

The Unit Management Course provides training and explanation of management techniques used in business and community organisations. Venturers are also required to investigate and report on the management and leadership processes in a typical community organisation. This investigation should involve a reasonable amount of research taking at least six hours. The proposed investigation should be approved by Unit Council and the ACT Venturer Council.

The Leadership Course provides an opportunity for Venturers to discuss various leadership matters and to experience various leadership situations. After completing the Leadership Course, the Venturer is required to apply their leadership and management skills in a practical way over a period of six months. Venturers should be mature enough to benefit from the course before they attend the Leadership Course. Venturers under 16 need to be recommended by their venturer leader. It is expected that any venturer with experience in a leadership role in the unit would be recommended. The proposal for practical application of leadership skills is subject to approval by Unit Council and the ACT Venturer Council.

Venturers who are aiming for the Queen's Scout Award should note that they need to have completed the Unit Management Course and Leadership Course at least six months before they turn 18 in order that they can apply their skills over the required six months period.

The Vocations activities are designed to provide Venturers with a better understanding of the various vocations available and the requirements to achieve the various vocations. The development of a personal resume and an application for a job are designed to give Venturers experience in creating applications for various types of jobs. The Vocations activities are subject to Unit Council approval.

Other Awards

The Major Interest Award remains the same as in the previous award scheme. It is an opportunity for you to develop a particular interest to a higher level that required for the Queen's Scout award. Approval of the proposed activity is to be given by Unit Council and the Branch Venturer Council.

The Venturer Passport contains details of the requirements for a number of specialist interest awards which can be gained by Venturers. Venturers should use their special interests to gain accreditation under the main award scheme in the first instance, but may also achieve the specialist awards in parallel with their Queen's Scout Award work, or as additional recognition of particular skills or interests. Proposals for these specialist badges should be approved by Unit Council and endorsed by ACT Venturer Council.