I’ve been wanting to write a blog post titled “Scout Leader Confessions” for some time now and I feel now is the right time to do so.
It was great fun reading other Scout Leader’s confessions.
I asked numerous Scout Leaders from around the world for their confessions and agreed not to mention their name or Scout Group.
But first here is my personal confession to get the ball rolling …
A few years ago, whilst on a Scout Camp at around midnight just after the campfire has died down, we called it a night and all of us heading back to our tents, I popped to the toilet inside the scout hut that we were using as a backup in case of bad weather but also it had the toilets in them. After using the boy’s room, I pulled the main door closed. It was then I had realised I had locked us all out of the hut. The door latch wasn’t on as it had been all day, I closed it and bang the door slammed shut, locking all of us out!
I tried the door and realised it was well and truly locked, I tried the old credit card trick but that didn’t work. We couldn’t get in, all the others doors were padlocked up with the keys locked inside. We managed to prize off the security grill to the toilet window and send in the smallest scout that we woke up.
After getting access back into the hut and a quick debrief with the other leaders of what happened etc, I then blamed a scout who was sleep walking from their tent to the boy’s toilets. It was the only excuse I could think on the spot when I was quizzed by my GSL.
So GO ON….. what’s your confession?
I took the clock away and told the cubs at sleepover at about 11:30pm it was 3am and to go to sleep. Few days later a parent emailed me to say sorry they kept you up to 3am!
A bit embarrassing never the less amusing and involves bodily functions.
I am a little precious when it comes to toilets, in fact it can become quite a challenge to locate one which makes me feel relaxed enough to perform certain essential bodily functions. Imagine my horror when we arrived in camp and I discovered that the promised ‘clean toilets’ were housed in a shed and far from my definition of use able.
My bowels at that point dried up until two days in when after a hearty breakfast the familiar groaning in the guts began. Beads of sweat started to form as panic set in that I would have to actually sit on the porcelain throne rather than hover over the top and reluctantly I trundled off to the shed.
Trusty hand sanitiser at the ready I wiped every surface before sitting myself down and practicing the breathing exercises I used in labour as my stomach cramped and gurgled. Finally, the ordeal was over and I flushed the toilet…
That’s when it happened. Rather than descending the toilet and disappearing, my offerings in all their glory started rising up in the pan, and I realised with horror that not going to the loo for so long had created a monster of a poo, this thing was enormous in every way and had blocked the old toilet. There was no toilet brush and no way of removing the thing which was now waving at me from a few inches away from the top of the pan.
So, I stuffed some tissue paper on the top, snuck into the other toilet waited a couple of minutes and then flushed that one and left. About half an hour later another leader approached me and said that one of the toilets were out of bounds. With my best innocent look, I asked why to which the answer was ‘some kid has taken the world’s largest Poo and it’s blocked the pipes, the poor caretaker is up to his elbow trying to dislodge it’.
Needless to say, I put on my best shocked face and mumbled something about never using camp toilets again before dashing off to sort my Cubs out!
On one camp all of the leaders put their watches forward one hour and got the scouts to go to bed early ?
One of the underground mines that we use for scout trips has a 4-digit code to open the door. I forgot to get the code from the land owner the night before. So, while no one was looking, especially the kids, I slipped the lock with a credit card…. sssshhhhhh. breaking and entering.
Drawing planets on the floor for beavers space badge relative distances apart with chalk… ran out of space so went out the back… 5 mins later time to go back in and the fire door had blown shut… only there is a locked security gate between me, 7 beavers and the front door and the other leaders are inside… left them drawing on the floor whilst I climbed the gate, got my hands covered in anti-vandal paint and legged it through the building to open the back door again ? I carry a set of gate keys at all times now!
I once underestimated the ability of a school group I was working with on an expedition in Tanzania. They finished a section of the Usambara mountains much earlier than I anticipated so I slyly told them that what they thought was there finish point was just in fact a check point. I then gave them coordinates that sent them off on a big loop for about another 2 hours so that I could finish reading the book I’d taken with me.nce helping at Cubs. They wanted to play sleeping lions, and having rushed from work, run Beavers and then being at Cubs I though, OK. Easy life, let’s do it.
So we are playing this game and surprisingly the gobby kid of the pack is one of the last two. We shall call him Johnny.
I tried to trick the other boy to no avail. He was having none of it.
I then said Johnny, well done, you’ve won, Fred just moved.
Johnny jumps up shouting wahoo, oh yeah, I’m the best. The notices Fred still lying still.
At this point his face drops and he bursts in to tears.
I felt awful after, but for a couple of seconds, I thought, gotcha.
On an event camp we had a group from the SAS cooking for our Cubs. The food was so bad that I didn’t eat anything. One evening myself and the other leaders organised a wide game where I had to hide. I didn’t hide I drove to McDonald’s for a burger.
We had a cub who was being extremely annoying. One of the other leaders sent him to me for a long wait. I had him waiting for 5 minutes before sending him back to ask one of the other leaders if there was a colour preference. This went on for about 30mins until we got extremely bored.
I got to the New Forest where I forgot my tent poles and had to construct my tent using only cordage. Then I tried to make a Dakota Fire pit only for the rangers to come along. Was so funny as I had seen them coming so I quickly kicked all the dirt back in the pit. Just as both rangers arrived the first one stood exactly where the fire had been and was asking where the fire was and that I’m not allowed to camp here.
After explaining that he was standing exactly where the fire was and that I had done a Dakota the second ranger was quite gutted as he had wanted to see one actually working.
After that I walked them around my site showing them the bag I used to pick up rubbish on my way in, also inside the tent I had things laid out accordingly so they were begrudgingly impressed and told me I could stay the night but no fires and that I should be gone by the morning. Moral of the story, keep a clean site, don’t argue when you are in the wrong and always make sure you check what you have packed.
We’re on a summer camp in Wales. We take the Scouts to a swimming pool. As soon as we get there I count them… as I did before we left…. One missing… “Wait where’s (name)”? The leader whose car he should have been in said, “Oh, I thought he’d gone with someone else” …
Panic stricken I realise he’s been left behind…! I send the other leaders and Scouts into the pool, jump in the car and scream back to our greenfield campsite.
I find the Scout standing at the gate with a faraway look on his face (as this was the sort of kid he was). “Where did you go”? He asked… “I went back to the tent for a jumper” …. (after I’d counted them)!!!
“Oh”, I said… “I thought I’d drop off the other Scouts while you fetched your… err, jumper….
So now the question is…. What’s your Scout Leader Confession?
Comment below with your confession 🙂
20 Comments
We had to take one YP to A&E from a camp (was a ‘better safe than sorry’ trip, and fortunately they weren’t as badly injured as first thought, and were cleared to go back to the camp afterwards). After 4 hours waiting in a north London A&E, and getting out at around 10pm having not eaten since lunchtime, surely that’s a perfect excuse for two exhausted leaders and a YP to bag a cheeky McDonald’s on the way back to camp? (with parental permission of course!) Got to make the best of a bad situation! ?
I normally take pride in producing Vegetarian/Vegan alternatives to crew dinner, but some years ago I had a particularly fussy Veggie who was always complaining, so one night I served her haggis and told her it was just spiced grains. She seemed to enjoy it, and I never did put her right. I wonder if she ever found out or if she is still eating haggis under that misconception today!
OMG!!!!
That so bad, but also very funny
I definitely have a favourite and least favourite scout!
Hell yes. I try not to make it obvious but I’m not sure I succeed.
What’s your confession?
After 2 days on camp we decided to go out for the evening. Scouts piled into back of the minibus. 14 scouts; 14 seats in back of the bus; all filled. Off we went.
We only went a few miles away to go for walk along a river. After a few minutes someone said “where’s Jacob?”
The quick looks turned to panic. Jacob really wasn’t there
Who was sitting next to him on the bus was the request. No one. Then it dawned, the young leader had taken a seat in the bus hence the head count by seats filled.
A couple of leaders jumped into a car and shot back to the campsite. Rushing up the path to our field they threw open the tent doors to find Jacob sitting there reading a book and completely oblivious to the fact that the entire troop had disappeared for half an hour
DC not informed.
We were making Christmas cakes with our scouts, prepare the tin, mix ingredients they were asked to bring and cook at home, bringing them back the following week to ice and decorate. One of the scouts forgot to his eggs 🙁 We offered a couple of spare eggs….. scout had a near paddy because they weren’t “Free Range” and refused them! Mum of Scout arrived, who also insisted they had to be “Free Range” and then asked “what do I do with the eggs before we bake the cake?”……… resisting the urge to tell them to “place them whole, in the middle of the mix” we gave them a cookery lesson. Cake thankfully turned out OK.
Ever since we only have “Free range” eggs for cooking and on camps…….. hopefully they won’t spot the Best Before date on the egg boxes……. we’ve been using the same egg boxes for 4 years, refilling them with the normal bulk buy eggs 🙂
Not a big one but always a good one. Scouts “can we play a wide game?” Scout Leader “Of course! Run away and hide and we will come search you out, if you hear three whistles it means those we haven’t found need to come back”.
30-45 minutes of leaders NOT hunting, but enjoying peace, cups of teas and adult conversation. Three whistles, Scouts return, Scouts “you didn’t find us, we’re so good at this game” Scout Leader “yes little Scouts, you are good at this game”.
Hahahaha love it!
It was November a cold wet weekend leaders training. It had been postponed twice because of the bad weather. We had a very nice camp fire and one older leader came up to tell a story it was a horrible story right off the big screen think Jason or Friday the 13th. So we are all looking at each other. And he ends the story OH but you have no worries its not a full moon we don’t have camps here for that reason as the biggest full moon could be seen over his shoulder .. When it was pointed out to him his eyes got all big . He poked at the fire and said All righty then I’m off to home the missus has some work for me…I will be back in the morning .. Several hours later I wake up to go use the toilet. I thought its just down the hill don’t need my glasses .. Coming back up the hill I see a blue light flying low near the trail [ just like in the story] I freaked and fell backwards over a curb while sitting thinking about how close my car was the woman I was sharing a tent with got up didn’t find me but saw my shoes and glasses assumed the worse then looked out at the trail where she saw the low flying blue light.. started screaming woke up everyone to look for me as I had been taken [ like in the story].. I heard the screaming and thought Crap they were being taken so I ran to our van and hid in the third row.. Someone got the bright idea to call 911… here comes several sheriffs cars… . So the whole camp is up looking for me .. Then they called the scouter who told the story to get the bottom of the story and it turns out the low flying blue light is a tug boat going down the river and you can only see it when it bright out at night .. Then someone thought to check my van and there I was in my pjs with no shoes or glasses .. And the part that is really bad I knew the story was a story from the beginning as I had to approve the campfire..
It was June and day camp 170 Cub Scouts in one place . We had a new Tiger mom [mid 30s] be one of the den leaders. On Friday she brought in ziplock bags three cookies for each scout. home made peanut butter cookies in a place where we had 30 kids that were allergic to peanuts. My son and his buddy came running up to me to show me what the had . The other scout is severely allergic to ground nuts said he had never had that kind of cookies before. but because of the rules I had in place they had to show me before they ate anything. When I asked her why she made peanut butter cookies when so many were allergic her answer They take the peanuts out when they make it creamy….. An hour later and a you tube tour of the JIf plant she still wouldn’t believe me on how peanut butter is made.
very good :0)
So let’s get this straight I am the explorer in this story, I always bring 1/2 a shops worth of sweets and drinks to a camp. On this camp I when light with it 3 packets of sweets and a bottle of irn brw. Now this is the Sunday and I have drunk half the bottle already then one of the other explorers wanted to see how fast I could drink it. I obligated and 20 seconds later I finished the bottle. Now they say “thanks [leader] needs to use the bottle to unclog the boys toilet”.
Yes there was no plunger available so the leader got an explorer to get me to drink the rest of my irn brw and then shoved the top of the bottle in the loo and squeezed and it unclog it
Oh god!!!
Did it work?
Every year or so – typically as an end of year activity – i gather the Scouts around and start the same activity – tape sheets of paper to everyone’s back, and everyone takes a texts and writes messages to each other on each other’s backs. Intended to be nice messages about how nice it is to be Scouts together etc. A few mins in, I go round and stick them on all the leaders backs, and before long a Scout says ‘Can I put one on yours?’. ‘Sure, why not?’, I respond.
What they won’t ever know is that the whole point of it lis for me (and the rest of my Leaders if they so desire) to get a page of nice messages from them – so when I’m sick and tired of them all, fed up with Scouting, and contemplating quitting, I can pull it out and remind myself why I do it all!
Love this idea.
Do you mind if I share this idea wihh my group?
At camp we had a scout cut his finger on an axe. Nothing major but bled a bit. He was otherwise a good scout. 2 days later we go swimming at the local leisure center. Plaster comes off and it starts to bleed. Ask the center staff for a plaster – which is when it starts to get complicated. Are you the parent? No – we’re scouts. Did he cut it here? No – just the plaster came off and started to bleed. How did he do it? With an axe. An Axe? Yes an axe. Did he cut it here with an axe? No. He should go to hospital. It’s a cut it’s fine, He’s fine, we just need a plaster. With an axe? Yes. Why did he have an axe? We’re scouts and we’re camping – repeat. Turns out the first aid kit in the minibus would have been quicker after all.
Same camp – different scout – discussing tilly lights and how the top gets hot and never to touch it. Moments later a scout tries to pick it up by the top. Spend the next 2 hours with hand in water. Same scout who had full pack of brand new pants when we did kit inspection 4 days in, but managed to drop a pair of grotty pants out of his pocket when we were out a day later.
On our annual 3 night district camp I always make an excuse to go shopping for some essentials, and I go to the leisure centre for a secret shower
On a cub camp not so long ago, we put out the usual “dietary requirements” letter… we got a couple of sensible ones back with the usual odd one who was gluten free or dairy free… there was also a new yp who had religious dietary requirements of no pork products… well… we went out of our way to provide sandwich fillings for them that were pork free only to find the little darling in the mess tent stuffing his face with cooked ham slices and bacon rashers (pre cooked streaky!) to this day we all swore we would never tell!!