The Mission of Scouting

The mission of Scouting is to contribute to the education of young people, through a value system based on the Scout Promise and Law, to help build a better world where people are self-fulfilled as individuals and play a constructive role in society. This is achieved by:

• involving them throughout their formative years in a non-formal educational process
• using a specific method that makes each individual the principal agent of his or her development as a self-reliant, supportive, responsible and committed person
• assisting them to establish a value system based upon spiritual, social and personal principles as expressed in the Promise and Law.

 

The purpose of the strategy is to implement the Mission. The adoption of the Mission in 1999 was a major milestone for world Scouting. The mission and the six challenges identified are essential to be addressed if our mission is to be achieved.

Six Challenges

Six challenges were identified at the Durban Conference and need to be adressed to achieve our mission are:

1. Relevance: meeting the needs and aspirations of young people.
2. Complementary nature: focussing on the distinctive contribution Scouting can make to the education of young people, particularly through the Scout Method.
3. Membership: reaching out to more young people.
4. Adults: attracting and retaining the adults we need.
5. Relationships and partnerships: working with others to better serve young people.
6. Unity: pursuing a common purpose at all levels.

The Three Strategic Areas

The six challenges provide three broad areas of work:

Young People: encompassing the challenges on Relevance, Complementary nature and Membership in order to bring better Scouting to more young people, especially adolescents.

Adults: encompassing the challenge on Adults: attracting and retaining the adults we need, with an emphasis on the concept of volunteering.

Structures and Systems: encompassing the challenge on Relationships and partnerships - which recognises the need to work with others to serve young people - and the challenge on Unity: pursuing a common purpose at all levels. Work in this strategic area should lead to an increase in the overall effectiveness of the Movement.