As I write this blog, I’m once again downing Cold and flu tablets and drinking plenty of tea with honey whilst suffering with another serious case of Man Flu. But this time, I can’t blame the Central Line…

Seven years ago, I wrote about catching man flu from a sweaty businessman on the London Underground. I blamed the tube, with its 95 different bacteria lurking on handrails and seats. I’ve since escaped that daily commute, thinking I’d left those germ-infested carriages behind me.

How wrong I was.

Because now, I’ve discovered an even more effective disease transmission system: The Scout Hall.

The Real Culprit

It hit me on Monday evening. I was running our usual Scout meeting, everything going smoothly. By the time i got home after Scouts, the telltale signs began: the scratchy throat, the runny nose, the dramatic cough that signals the end is near (or at least, that’s what it feels like).

Dam!! I’ve got the virus from the Scouts.

And unlike that businessman on the tube seven years ago, I can’t just move to a different seat. These are MY Scouts. I’m supposed to be there, week in, week out, breathing in whatever delightful cocktail of germs they’re sharing that evening.

The Winter Petri Dish

Let’s be honest about what a Scout hall is in December: it’s basically a large petri dish with neckers. You’ve got 20-30 young people crammed into a space, all excited about Christmas activities, all breathing heavily during games, all touching the same equipment, and at least three of them with streaming colds that their parents have decided “aren’t bad enough to miss Scouts.”

The London Underground this time has nothing on this.

If researchers from London Metropolitan University did a study on Scout halls during winter, I reckon they’d find bacteria that science hasn’t even discovered yet. Probably some hybrid super-bug that’s part common cold, part playground dirt, and part whatever mysterious substance is always on Scout hall floors.

The Hand Washing Revelation

This got me thinking about hygiene at Scouts. We always tell the young people to wash their hands, especially before eating snacks or after outdoor activities. But are they actually doing it properly?

Which brings me to a brilliant activity I’ve been wanting to try: The UV Hand Washing Experiment.

How It Works

You can get special UV-reactive hand lotion (sometimes called Glo Germ) that’s invisible to the naked eye but glows brilliantly under UV light.

What You’ll Need:

  • UV Hand Washing Gel/Lotion: Available from several UK suppliers:
  • UV Torch/Blacklight (if buying gel separately): Essential for seeing the fluorescent gel. Budget options include:
    • Lepro 9 LED UV Torch – Around £7-9, 3 AAA batteries included
    • Lepro 21 LED UV Torch – Around £8-10, 3 AAA batteries included, brighter option
    • More powerful options range from £15-30 if you need to demonstrate to larger Scout groups in a bright hall

Here’s the experiment:

  1. Apply the special lotion to everyone’s hands at the start of the meeting. Tell them it represents germs and bacteria they’ve picked up throughout the day.
  2. Let them go about their activities for a bit – playing games, handling equipment, touching their faces (because let’s face it, kids touch their faces constantly).
  3. Get them to wash their hands as they normally would. Ask them to be honest and wash exactly how they’d usually do it at home. No showing off because the Scout Leader is watching.
  4. Check under the UV light. This is where it gets eye-opening. Those “clean” hands will likely still be glowing with UV lotion in all the places they missed: between fingers, around fingernails, backs of hands, wrists, thumbs.
  5. Teach proper technique and let them try again. Show them the NHS recommended hand washing method: palm to palm, backs of hands, between fingers, backs of fingers, thumbs, fingertips, and wrists. It should take 20 seconds – about the time it takes to sing Happy Birthday twice.
  6. Check again under UV light and watch their amazement at how much better they’ve done.

Why This Works

It’s visual, it’s immediate, and it’s a bit gross – perfect for engaging young people. They can actually SEE the “germs” they missed, rather than having an adult just tell them they need to wash better.

Plus, it links brilliantly to several Scout badge requirements around health, hygiene, and science. And in winter, when everyone’s passing bugs around like trading cards, it’s genuinely useful life skills.

The Scout Hall vs The Tube: A Comparison

Looking back at my 2017 blog post, I discovered that the London Underground was home to 95 different bacteria, including E.coli and Staphylococcus Aureus. The Victoria line was the worst offender with 22 types of bacteria.

But here’s the thing about Scout halls: we don’t have the luxury of just avoiding them. That businessman on the tube? I never saw him again. But these Scouts? I’m back with them every single week, breathing in their germs, catching their colds, and apparently writing blog posts about it seven years apart.

At least on the tube, only three lines washed their seats (the rest just brushed them). In the Scout hall, we… well, we probably just brush the floor too, if we’re being honest.

The Silver Lining

Despite my suffering (and yes, I am milking this for maximum sympathy), there’s something quite endearing about catching man flu from Scouts rather than from anonymous commuters. These are young people I care about, activities I’m passionate about, and a community I’ve chosen to be part of.

Even if that community is currently making me feel like death warmed up.

And at least this time, I know exactly where I caught it from. No mysterious sweating businessman to blame. Just good old-fashioned Scout hall germs, passed around with enthusiasm and zero regard for their Leader’s immune system.

The Takeaway

So next time you’re travelling on the London Underground, spare a thought for Scout Leaders everywhere. While you’re worried about touching the handrail on the Central Line, we’re being sneezed on by enthusiastic Beavers, high-fived by Cubs who definitely didn’t wash their hands after the toilet, and sharing confined spaces with teenagers who think a quick rinse under cold water counts as “washing.”

Maybe I should run that UV hand washing activity next week. Though knowing my luck, I’ll still be too ill to attend, laid up on my death bed with man flu while my fellow Leaders carry on without me.

If you’re a Scout Leader reading this between sniffles, you have my deepest sympathy. If you’re a parent, maybe keep your snotty Scout at home next week. And if you’re a Scout… please, PLEASE, wash your hands properly…. with HOT SOAPY WATER!

The life you save might be your Leader’s.

Stay healthy (if you can), and remember: hand washing isn’t just for after going to the toilet. It’s for survival.

Have you tried the UV hand washing experiment at your Scout group? Or do you have your own man flu war stories from the Scout hall? Let me know in the comments!