About
Us
HISTORY OF THE GROUP
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1st South Hornchurch Scout Group was formed in 1952 following a request from the local police, who were concerned about the behaviour of local lads after several incidents involving young boys.
Two
leaders from the nearby 1st Elm Park Scout Group decided to
move across and with permission from St. John’s church opened the group
in the church hall.
The
group initially began with one Cub Pack and 1 Scout Troop but quickly
developed into 2 Packs and 2 Troops. Before long a third Cub Pack was also
added.
The
Scout troops were named after former Chief Scouts - Lord Somers and Lord
Rowallen and the cubs after ex jamboree sites - Niagara, Moisson and
Godollo.
St.
John’s Church Hall was originally a prefabricated building situated in
front of the church. However the boisterous scouting activities soon took
their toll on the walls. Fortunately the Church decided to build a new
hall situated behind the church which is where the group still meet today.
"In those days there was no money at all and we could not afford a union flag. So I put my uniform on, went up to the gates of RAF Hornchurch and asked the guard if I could speak to the commanding officer. He took me to the guard room and then into an office where I asked if they had a spare flag we could have for the scout troop. The officer called a man who went away and came back with a flag which was then given to me."
The group was an active one and soon purchased some tents for camping. These were heavy duty ex army tents called “160 pounders”. Patrol Leader Peter Cook recalls,
"To get these army tents we went out with a trek cart collecting glass bottles to sell. We got enough to buy three tents (they were heavy!)."
It is thought that the name was taken from the weight of the canvas. With the purchase secured our boys were able to go on their first camp in September to Stubbers. Peter Cook has fond memories of this adventure,
"On the camp the boys decided to go scrumping in the kitchen gardens of the manor house and so, like a fool, I went with them. We all decided to climb the wall at the same time, but unfortunately the wall came down! The next day the warden, Jim Bush, came around and found the apples in the tents. The outcome was the leaders having to spend their own time rebuilding the wall and a three week suspension for me!"
Despite acting as the coffers for some mischievous scout's fruity loot, the tents proved to be a canny purchase as some remained in the group stores until only a few years ago.
Even
in the early years the group was adventurous, taking the Scouts to
Guernsey by train and ferry, with all the gear going separately in a train
container. The group attended its
first Jamboree in Germany in 1963.
In 1969 one young Scout Leader, Paul Jackson, thought it would be a good idea to run an adventurous activity camp. None were to be found in England and so a large number of boys and leaders were dispatched by train to a site in Scotland called Loch Goilhead. Whilst there they they took part in hill walking, canoeing, sailing and rock climbing. The site was so impressed by the leaders programme and organisation that they adopted our idea of having small groups of boys rotating through the activities.
By the early sixties and in keeping with the ‘new groups’ active image, an annual sports day took place in June. It was held on the playing field of Brittons School in Ford Lane, Rainham. Equipment was borrowed from the school and events such as high jump, long and triple jump, relay and cricket were held. For the track events a recorder's tent was erected at the finish line. There were five classes in the field and track events and points were awarded for the first 3 places in each class for each event. At the end of the day certificates were given out and shields were awarded to the winning sections. The last event was always the highly competitive, eagerly awaited the Inter Troop Relay 4x100 metres. Sadly, after nearly two decades of sporting fun, by the late eighties the day was no longer held.
By
the seventies the group had become more active at District level. The
annual District Handicraft Competition proved a hit with the cub packs who
over the years gained many individual and section awards. A very strong
team from Somers Troop won the scout section of the competition in 1981.
Another District event to prove popular was the annual Swimming Gala, usually held in March at Hornchurch Swimming Pool. Each year a “Team Manager” was chosen who, for a few weeks would pick and train a team for the Gala. The Group, with five sections and almost 150 boys, were able to enter a reasonably strong team on a number of occassions. There were a number of classes with the under 10yrs cubs swimming a width for their races and everyone else swimming a length. There were a number of successes, with the Group winning the Gala outright on several occasions and also (when a particularly strong team was entered) the coveted Group Relay Trophy. Over the years the group has also provided adult support to the Gala from supplying hot Bovril drinks to competitors after their races, being the official race starter (a role that was kept in the same family for a number of years) and acting as lifeguards, marshals, recorders and scorers. The group still attend the event which is still going strong!
By
1980 the Group had lost one cub pack, Niagara and one Scout Troop,
Rowallan, due to a fall in numbers. Later, a younger section known as
Beavers was opened which has proved very successful. For the first time
girls were also allowed to join the Scouting movement. It was hoped that
the success of the Beavers would eventually allow for the closed cub pack
and subsequently the closed scout troop to reopen. Sadly though finding
leaders to run the sections proved a problem.
However,
the Group's leaders continued to give quality scouting to their sections
each and every week. As a result some took up roles as District leaders
and during this period the Group also provided the District with a
District Commissioner.
The
only District competition to test purely scouting skills is the fabled
Hiking Marathon which is always held over the weekend in June nearest to
the longest day of the year. This event was only open to the Scout section
until a few years ago when it was opened up to the Explorers. The event is
for teams of at least three, consisting of a Patrol Leader and Assistant
Patrol Leader. A set of clues and grid references are given to each team
and each clue has point’s assigned to it depending on its location. The
objective - to plan a route that takes in as many clues as possible. Each
year teams from Rowallan and Somers Troop were chosen and trained in
skills such as map and compass, first aid and lightweight camping. Several
teams from the two Troops have been successful in the competition over the
years. Following the keen interest and success of the various teams, some
leaders of the Group began getting involved in the organising and running
of the event which relied heavily on adult support. The Hiking Marathon is
still held today and, after being around for over 70 years, is the
District’s longest running event.
Roger Winston and Colin Giles, December 2007
Personal memories provided by Peter Cook, December 2008