This year, we are thrilled to announce that we will be celebrating 50 years of Scouting in 2nd Wideopen. 

Officially established on 29 January, 1968 the group has continued to thrive since, however a few important things remain the same! 

'Celebrating the Adventure, Continuing the Journey'

We continue to work hard to offer the best Scouting experience and this year is to be of no exception. We have many activities planned to celebrate this amazing milestone as we look forward to the next 50 years! 

At 2nd Wideopen, we continue to instil the Scouting values and morals introduced by our founder in 1907 as we believe in making our youngsters better citizens in their local community. We continue to deliver the training of traditional, as well as modern day, Scouting and Life skills to enable them to achieve great things both within the Scout Group and beyond! 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY 2ND WIDEOPEN!!!

Want to know more?   Take a look at the article below...
 

We are a well established Scout Group within Benton district, with Beaver, Cub, Scout and Explorer Sections, offering a full range of activities to our young people and adults alike.

Our Group is open to both boys and girls, of all abilities, aged 6 to 18, who live in Wideopen, Seaton Burn, Brunswick, Hazlerigg and the surrounding areas.

We meet at St Johns URC Church Hall, Canterbury Way, Wideopen NE13 6JQ.

Meeting Times Are:

Beavers:      Monday from 5:00 - 6:15 pm

Cubs:          Thursday from 6:10 - 7:25 pm

Scouts:       Thursday from 7:30 - 9:15 pm

Explorers:    Thursday from 7:30 - 9:15 pm and every other Monday from 7:30 - 9:30 pm

We welcome new members in all of our sections.

We do not have a policy of maintaining waiting lists - where a young person is old enough for the relevant section, we will aim to find them a place, however for those parents wishing to pass details of their son / daughter who has not yet reached Beaver age (6 yrs), we will retain that information until they are old enough to join the section and will contact you again at that stage.

We have an active parent support group and welcome assistance from parents and friends alike, to help to further develop the Scout Group and deliver the wide range of activities, badges and training offered to our Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers.  

You do not need to have been in Scouting or have an interest in the outdoors to help out, as there are many roles which suit a wide range of interests and skills - just get in touch if you think you can help us.

'Scouting is about being with friends, as part of a team, 

participating fully in the adventure and opportunities of life.'

If you would like to join the adventure at 2nd Wideopen Scout Group

please email mike.hawkins26@gmail.com or

call Mike Hawkins on 01670 733210

Keep up to date with what the group gets involved in!

Find out about camps and activities!

Get access to useful resources and important news! 

In our 50th year, the group participated in its first World Scout Jamboree, only this time we took part via the airways and on the internet!

The event reminded us that Scouting is about being a part of a worldwide family, and as such we were thrilled to have made contact with lots of Scouts around the world. During the afternoon, we made contact with Scouts in Indonesia, Australia, France and Italy to name a few!

Our Scouts, Explorers and older Cubs put their new communication skills to the test, as they tried out Amateur Radio, Morse Code, Skype and Webchats, all with support from Ian Douglas, the Regional Representative from the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) - https://rsgb.org/main/

The event counted towards a number of badges and awards for our members and provided an excellent experiece which we are looking forward to repeating again next year! 

Thanks to the Co-op and all of it's members in the local area, we have been awarded the amazing sum of £4,019.81, as a result of the generous customers visiting Co-op stores in Wideopen, Gosforth Park, Moor Farm and Cramlington Funeralcare.

Over a six month period, Co-op members (with a blue Co-op membership card) have helped to contribute through the Co-op Community Fund to support our Scout Group and two other local charities. You may well have seen our material on display within the stores during your visits. 

With this amazing help, we have purchased additional water activities equipment - Canadian Canoe, Stand-Up Paddleboards and additional safety equipment. Other purchases include new lightweight tents and we will shortly be purchasing state of the art first aid training equipment, to train our members and the wider community on using defibrilators to save lives in our community.


Additionally, other support has come in the form of outdoor barbeque equipment, party items and firelighting materials which has been put to full use during the Spring and Summer of 2018 by all our members as we celebrate our 50th Anniversary.

Members of the Scout Group attended each store to thank customers for their help and continued support, and enjoyed meeting Co-op staff and customers to thank them in person, and talk about how the money will make a massive difference to all of our young members.

If you would like further information on Co-op membership and how you can help voluntary organisations in our community, or need to change your support to another worthy cause, visit https://membership.coop.co.uk for more info.

Now that Debbie and Mike are qualified as Archery Community Sports Leaders, we will be looking to offer archery as a new activity that members can take part in within the Scout Group.  The activity can be undertaken by both young and older members, as well as those who may be a little less mobile and agile. After the training, hopefully the Scouts will be able to work towards their Master at Arms badge, as well as gaining a new skill.


We have purchased various sized bows and arrows and large archery safety curtains, which will allow us to undertake the sport both indoors and outside, throughout the year. We hope to be able to further increase the range and amount of equipment and targets we have in due course, which will allow even more individuals to take part in the sport.

Many congratulations to the following members of our Scout Group on gaining top Scouting Awards!

Bronze Chief Scout's Award - (the highest award you can gain in the Beaver section) 

Lucas Davidson, Scott Coates, Lewis Crispin, Oliver Moore, Samuel Finley, Corey Armstrong, Lewis Chadwick,

Maddison Cole, Courtney Moore, Callum Dalkin and Annabel Gordon

Silver Chief Scout's Award - (the highest award you can gain in the Cub section)

Thomas Nichol, Luke Smith, Cameron Hunter, Jack Chadwick, Kenya Robson, Mason Alexander, Matthew Rickeard, Scott Coates and Thomas McDonald

Gold Chief Scout's Award - (the highest award you can gain in the Scout section)
Oliver Jennings, Daniel Dayes, Emma Hawkins, James Ashpool, Dillon Robson, Ethan Hollywood and Bethany Kemp




 

Young Leaders' Badge - (Awarded to Explorer Scouts following intense training, who choose to devote a large proportion of their time in Scouting to service in another section)

Oliver Jennings, Emma Hawkins, Bethany Kemp




 

Adult Leader Training Award - (Wood Badge)

Richard Jennings - Assistant Scout Leader, who was presented with his Wood Badge in February 2014

Sheila Barbour - Cub Scout Leader, who was presented with her Wood Badge in February 2016


 

Adult Leader Long Service Awards
   

Kelly Stephenson (Beaver Scout Leader) - 5 years Service Award
Kelly first started helping out with the Group in the Scout section and has gone on to establish a successful Beaver colony

Richard Jennings (Assistant Scout Leader) - 5 years Service Award

Sheila Barbour (Cub Scout Leader) - 5 years Service Award

Debbie Hodge (Assistant Scout / Explorer Leader) - 10 Year Service Award

Jackie Hawkins (Group Treasurer) - 20 Year Service Award. Jackie took over the group book-keeping role back in 1997 - during which time the annual turnover and equipment we have has increased significantly!



Award for Merit - (For outstanding service of not less than 12 years with dedicated service over a sustained period)

We Congratulate Jackie Hawkins on receiving an Award for Merit in the 2018 St George's Day awards! Very well deserved for her outstanding service to Scouting both within the Group as well as in her roles as County Appointments Secretary for Northumberland Scouts and Appointments Committee Chair for Benton District



Archery GB Training Programme

Debbie Hodge and Mike Hawkins successfully completed the Archery Leader training programme and have now re-qualified as Archery GB - Archery Instructors, allowing them to lead and coach archery to members of the Scout Group as part of our programme of activities.