1st Swallowfield Scouts is run by Paul & Mitch. We currently have a very healthy troop of 30 Scouts, made up of 3 girls and 27 boys.

We try and offer a balanced programme that is both broad based and interesting. The majority of our Scouts like the traditional style of Scouting such as camping, map reading, cooking, pioneering and anything to do with making fires!!

We do though get involved in more modern activities as you will see from the activities we got up to last year:

• Weekend camp at Ferny Crofts in the New Forest for Scouts only and we participated on a Group camp, with the Beavers & Cubs, at Youlbury in Oxford.
• Local litter picking around the village, helping the environment.
• The Russell Players ran a drama 'sketches' night for us, where the scouts acted out their own plays, which was great fun.
• Our annual Christmas do, this year was a night out ten pin bowling, with the Beavers & Cubs, in Wokingham.
• We improved our skills using compasses; reading maps and consequently went on a few hikes, several at night. Some of these involved cooking exercises.
• Arranged a visit from the AA and one of their breakdown lorries.
• A visit from the local police constable - who brought his Panda car along for us to look at, and also a Traffic Police car.
• A couple of our pioneering parents ran a couple of exercises for us, one of which involved building a bridge and a bosons chair to take the Scouts (those who could swim off course) over the Blackwater River.
• Arranged a presentation by a local Astronomy enthusiast / expert.
• Arranged a presentation by the Berkshire Air ambulance service, and hopefully will be arranging a visit to the Airport where the Air Ambulance is based.
• Arranged a tree scrubbing conservation exercise in Theale - This involved us cutting down and clearing quite a few ash trees. Burning those & cooking marsh mallows on the fire.
• We were treated to several 'survival clinics' run by our local survival expert, (who shall remain nameless, due to our confidentiality policy). These included, how to use a knife properly, fire lighting using just sticks & knives & backwoods cooking.
• Arranged a skittles night in the Dog & Partridge.
• The Phoenix Explorers kindly also ran two evenings for us. The Explorers are the next step after being a Scout, and we encourage the Scouts to join them.

We would like to this opportunity to thank all those who have helped us over the past year.