Scouts · ages 10½ to 14
Go further. Have more say.
Expeditions, water and fire — and a real hand in deciding what the Troop actually does with its year.
- Ages
- 10½ to 14
- Meets
- Weekly in term time
- What's new
- Planning it themselves
What changes at this age
Going properly far
Hiking with everything on your back, navigating in weather, pitching in the dark and cooking what you carried. There is a whole award for it, and it is one of nine.
Real responsibility
Scouts lead small teams for real — planning a session, running it, and dealing with it when the plan meets the weather.
A genuine say
Scouts have real influence over what the Troop does. They put ideas up, argue about them, and then have to make the winning one actually happen.
This is what it looks like
Adventurous activities need a permit, and the leader running one has been trained and assessed for it — so the risk assessment happened long before anybody heard about the trip.
- Expeditions and hikes
- Kayaking and sailing
- Climbing and abseiling
- Pioneering with rope and spar
- Camping
- Navigation
- Community projects
You're part of a Patrol
Scouts work in small teams that plan together, camp together and increasingly run things themselves. Scouts calls those teams Patrols.
A team that decides things
A Patrol is not just who you share a tent with. It is who you plan with, argue with and answer to — and it gathers at the start and end of most evenings to sort out what happens next.
Scouts leading Scouts
Each Patrol is led by one of the Scouts, with another as their second. They are given real jobs rather than titles, and they wear stripes for it.
Adults in the background
Trained volunteers are there to make it possible and keep it safe, not to run it. Some Troops still call them Skip, short for Skipper; most now use first names.
“We help run it.”
Things to work towards
As young people try new things, build skills and take on challenges, they earn badges and awards along the way. The highest award in Scouts is the Chief Scout's Gold Award.
It spans three and a half years and still means something on a personal statement long afterwards. Scouts choose their own badges on the way to it, from meteorology to mechanics to musician.
Before you start
The practical things worth knowing. If something here is not answered, ask the Group — they would far rather you did.
A teal green shirt or blouse with their badges sewn on, worn with the Group's neckerchief. Uniform trousers are optional and most Scouts keep them for awards evenings, wearing something ordinary with the shirt on a normal week.
Most young people go away two or three times a year, from a sleepover in the hut to a week under canvas. Every residential is run under a Nights Away Permit by a leader trained and assessed for it, and a kit list should come home at least two weeks before.
Groups charge subs to cover the hall, equipment and insurance, and every Group sets its own — so ask the one you are interested in. Camps and trips are costed separately, and a kit list and a price should reach you at least two weeks beforehand.
Wear something comfortable that can get messy — uniform can wait until they have settled in and have badges to sew on. Arrive a few minutes early so there is time to say hello, and expect them to be doing something within about five minutes of walking in.
If your young person needs additional support or adjustments, talk to the local Group. They can discuss what they need and what can be put in place. Tell us when you register an interest as well, and we will pass it on.
Often, yes. Waiting lists are normal across the district and a section can be full for a term or more. Register your interest and the district team will match you to the nearest Group with space, rather than leaving you to ring round.
Find Scouts in Newcastle
17 Groups in the district run Scouts. Availability changes constantly — the badge is what that Group last told us.
Browse all 17 Groups
- 17th Newcastle (St George's)NE2 2TFMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Waiting list
- 100th NewcastlePostcode to confirmMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 4th Newcastle (Jesmond Parish)NE2 4DJMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 19th Newcastle (Lord Armstrongs Own)Postcode to confirmMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 61st Newcastle (St Francis)NE7 7RBMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 18th NewcastleNE6 5DYMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 1st LemingtonNE15 8SBThursday, 19:45–21:15Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 1st DinningtonNE13 7JDMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- West GosforthPostcode to confirmMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- BykerNE6 2FTMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- Central GosforthNE34ESMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 93rd NewcastleNE6 4RLThursday, 19:00–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 1st Tyne Sea ScoutsPostcode to confirmMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 82nd NewcastleNE4 9EJMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- Brunton ParkPostcode to confirmMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 47th Newcastle (Holy Cross)NE52HHMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
- 1st WesterhopePostcode to confirmMonday, 19:30–21:00Ages 10½ to 14Availability not confirmed
Then: Explorers
At 14 they move up to an Explorer unit, which belongs to the district rather than to a Group — often a change of building as well as of section, and a big step up in how much they organise themselves.






