Over 420,000 young people take part in Scouts, following a 16% growth in membership last year, but this is still below pre-Covid participation levels.
Membership numbers fell to 360,000 during the pandemic but have rebounded to 420,000. But this is still below the 480,000 who took part prior to the pandemic.
Last year Scouts also launched a section for four-to-five-year-olds, the Squirrels, and 3,400 are taking part in this section.
There is now a waiting list of 90,000 young people wanting to join a Scout group. Some 140,000 adults volunteer and the charity urged more to come forward.
Deputy UK chief commissioner, CJ Ledger, said: “It’s great to see young people returning to Scouting in their thousands and making new friends, learning new skills, and helping their communities rebuild after Covid-19.
“Volunteering with Scouts is very rewarding, fun and good for you. For anyone wanting to meet new people and learn new skills, I’d encourage you to volunteer with the Scouts.
“We have a range of roles available - from running activities for young people at a weekly meeting through to helping maintain Scout Group buildings a couple of times year. Whatever you want to do we have a volunteering role for you.”
Related articles
