The Section’s night is changing from Friday to Thursday and will start at the earlier time of 7pm.  If you have children aged 10.5-14 who might be interested in joining Scouts please come along to try us out.

From the Fourth Oxford we had 15 Beavers and 3 Cubs receiving awards.  Bronze Chief Scout Awards for the Beavers and Silver Chief Scout Awards for the Cubs.

After the ceremony the young people enjoyed loads of activities including archery, zip wires, crate stacking, abseiling, go-carting, back woods cooking and a host of craft activities.

Thanks to the County Team for organising an excellent event!

Thanks to the team of leaders and committee members who stepped up to re-board the windows and to the local constabulary who attended the scene and removed some items for examination.

If you spot anything suspicious around the Scout Hut please could you contact the local police on their non-emergency number of 101.

For Cubs 2016 is a very special year.  The Wolf Cubs were formed in 1916 so in 2016 we are celebrating the Cub Centenary.  There are special events, fun days and a County Camp planned (Cub-Fest).  We are also well into planning our Group Winter Camp where all sections of the group camp together, this year at Youlbury once more.

Most sections still have some spaces available so if you have a child who might be interested in joining Beavers, Cubs, Scouts or Explorers please drop us an email or pop along on our regular meeting night to find out more.

The Scouts were also out on parade and took part in the Ceremony of Remembrance at the Commonwealth War Grave Cemetery in Botley.

The Jim Wale Conker Cup was eventually won by George Murphy, after a marathon final against Oli Lewis.  This was spread across three Scout evenings.  The conkers started to go soft and were like rubber so the winner was the lad with the most accurate shots out of ten swings.

We also competed in the district football competition, held at Evans Lane in Kidlington.  This was a well organized mid week event that was very popular and supported by nine troops on a sunny evening. We had a A and a B team, the B team won all of their games, the A won three games and drew their fourth. They both played each other in the final, with the B team gaining the honours. Well done to both teams.

On the 6th of June, the Scouts joined the annual Aquacamp held at Linch Hill Park near Stanton Harcourt. The lads all participated in water and land based activities which included Kayaking, gig, sailing, dragon boat racing and land based water games. We were unbeaten in the Dragon boat races and due to some skulduggery came third in the sailing race. The lads cooked the breakfast each morning which consisted of a full Fourth-monty – beans , sausages, bacon, toast, mushrooms and fried eggs. They managed to get ready, cook breakfast, eat it and wash up all in under 1.5 hours – a new record! Tea, as a treat for this camp, was chips, burgers and coke all prepared in the cook tent, which went down very well with the lads. (A special thank you to Cumnor butcher Micheal Cain for providing the excellent burgers).

Finally, we would like to welcome our five new Scouts who have recently joined our troop – Mathew Fogden, Tom O Leary, Mathew Davies, Issac Shaw and William Barley.  They will soon be invested. We have still room for more.

Andy Job
Scout Leader

The Cubs (8½-10) buddied up with 2 other Cub packs to camp at Youlbury, Boars Hill, for a weekend of medieval fun! The construction and then destruction of the huge junk modelling castle was a highlight!

The Beavers (age 6-8½) have just enjoyed a county Beaver Space Odessey camp, at Horley campsite, near Banbury.

The Scouts (age 10-14) also participated in a major county camp. Aquacamp is an annual weekend of water sports, at Linch Hill, West Oxfordshire. Activities included kayaking, dragon boating, sailing and raft building – all provided by volunteer leaders, so an amazing weekend for only £30!

Our Cubs joined around 90 other Cubs at the Horspath Athletics track for a day of sports and athletics. Well done to Mikey and Tommy who picked up the gold and silver medals in the 50m!

Our Scouts entered two teams in the District football competition, and we ended up with a 4th A vs 4th B final! The 4th won, unsurprisingly!

Buzz Explorer Scouts (14-18) enjoyed a ‘hunger games’ themed survival skills camp at Youlbury. Bear Grylls would have been proud of them as they dealt with rabbits for dinner, built temporary shelters for sleep and learned axe throwing skills!

As I write, famous adventurer and Chief Scout Bear Grylls has just made a surprise visit to Youlbury Scout Camp Site (Boars Hill), to join the celebrations as hundreds of Oxfordshire Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers were presented with achievement awards, including some from the 4th Oxford (by Matthew Arnold School) and 15th Oxford (based at Botley Baptist church).

Explorers (14-18s) is one of the fastest growing sections in the Scouting movement and we are delighted to be able to announce the launch of an Explorer Unit in September 2014. Buzz Explorer Unit is an existing successful Explorer Unit that is moving to the 4^th Oxford Scout HQ (by Matthew Arnold School) to provide adventure for young people in Botley, Cumnor, North Hinksey and Dean Court area, working closely with both 4th and 15th Oxford Groups.

Whether you are new to Scouting or not, here are just five reasons why you should join Buzz!

Try different activities! We do all sorts at Buzz; from archery to zorbing, we have a go at it all! Our programme offers lots of different activities so whatever your interests, we are sure there will be something you love! Camping, hiking, ice skating, bowling, cooking, campfires, climbing, canoeing, fencing….

Make new friends! Join Buzz and you will meet other fun, thrill-seeking, adventurous people like you! We are 14-18 year olds from all over Oxford. We are people who want to have a laugh, meet others and take part in something a little different.

Get outdoors! We know what it can be like when you are stuck inside at school or at home so we try to offer lots of outdoor activities! You will have the opportunity to go on camps (not always in a tent!), travel to different places and countries, meet up with other Explorers and try new, exciting things.

Learn exciting things, achieve awards! Not only will you have lots of fun, but we work towards The Duke of Edinburgh Award, the Explorer Badges and the Queen’s Scout Award. These not only give you the opportunity to try new things and have different experiences, but they look great on your CV or university application!

And finally have fun! But don’t just take our word for it, come along and see for yourself! Buzz meets on Tuesdays from 7.45pm-9.30pm.

For further information please contact us via mail@thefourth.org.uk, or the Buzz Leadership Team directly on buzzesu@gmail.com