This article is from page 22 of the 2005-09-27 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 22 JPG
A conference to discuss the future of scouting in Ireland will take place at the West County Hotel in Ennis next weekend. For the first time Scouting Ireland are hosting their annual commission- ers conference outside of Dublin. The two day confer- ence will be attended by 70 delegates including national officers who will attempt to outline how best the organi- sation can go forward.
The popularity of sports such as hurling, football and soccer has seen scout num- bers in Ireland fall consist- ently over the past few years. SUicor-KeReteCONUN A ReKoNIG dren enrolled in the scouts in Ennis along with 25 vol- unteers. The Ennis branch of the scouts opened in 1932 and will celebrate its 75th birthday in two years time.
One of the main topics up for discussion will be an evaluation of the organisa- tions Renewed Approach
Programme (RAP), a new initiative designed to make scouting more appealing in the 21st century. “Through RAP we are trying to make scouting more relevant to today’s society, because lets face it scouting isn’t cool an- ymore outside of the sphere of scouting. We are trying to make it appealing and relevant to a lot of other peo- ple. That would be one of the main challenges facing the scouts in Ireland today,’ said Julie Malone
Provincial Commissioner in the western region for scouting Ireland. To address the issue Scouting Ireland have already redesigned its uniform and released stick- ers and banners to make scouting more visible.
“Scouting isn’t just about hiking and the weekly meet- ing in the hall. There are life skills to be learned that other organisations don’t practice such as safety and first aid. These are important skills that you have for life”