Joining Beaver Scouts: A Guide for Parents
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Thinking about signing your child up for Beavers? This guide gives you everything you need to feel confident about what to expect. From activities and uniforms to the badges they can work towards, we’ve answered the most common questions parents ask. Read on to find out more…
What are Beaver Scouts?
Beaver Scouts, or Beavers, are the second section of the Scouting family, coming after Squirrels and before Cubs. Beavers is designed for young people aged 6 to 8 and offers opportunities to try new activities, have fun, go on adventures, and make new friends while learning about the world around them.
Most Beaver Colonies meet once a week, usually for an hour on a weekday evening, with extra days out, special events, and occasional sleepovers or camps throughout the year.
Why join Beavers?
Joining Beavers gives young people aged 6 to 8 the chance to learn new skills, make friends and explore the world around them in a relaxed setting. From exciting outdoor adventures to practical skill-building, Beavers offers plenty of ways to get active, try new things and grow in confidence.
What age are Beaver Scouts?
Beavers is for young people aged 6 to 8 years old, although there is some flexibility in the age range to allow young people with extra needs to feel more comfortable.
How many people are in a Beavers group?
There are up to 24 people in a Beavers group, which is often called a Colony. Within each Colony are Lodges, smaller groups of Beavers, which are usually led by an older Beaver who has taken on a peer leadership role. At Scouts, we welcome all genders, so the group will include transgender, non-binary, and cisgender young people.
What activities can you do at Beavers?
During their time in the Colony, Beaver Scouts will have the chance to try a wide range of activities, as well as go on trips, days out, and sleepovers.
Popular Beavers activities include:
- Cooking and Food – Decorating biscuits, kitchen safety, trying new foods, microwave cooking
- Games – Like Emoji Charades, Watch Out Fox is About, quizzes, Bingo, parachute games and The Floor is Lava
- Creative Activities - Sculpting salt dough, making puppets, crafting, painting and sticking
- Active Activities – Team sports games like Capture the Flag and football, zip-lining, climbing, archery and obstacle courses
- Skills for Life - Practising what to do in an emergency, learning to post a letter, learning to tie shoelaces, learning to spell their name
- Outdoor Adventures – Nature spotting, planting seeds, hiking and walks, campfire cooking (with supervision)
Many of the above activities are associated with Activity Badges like Cook, Explore and Sports, which Beavers proudly wear on their sweatshirts to display their achievements.
What uniform do Beavers wear?
Beaver Scouts typically wear a blue crew neck sweatshirt with a group scarf (often called a necker), and a leather woggle. Neckers are usually provided by the Beaver Scout Leader and can vary in colour.
UNIFORM
Scouts Activity Shorts - KidsUNIFORM
Beavers Polo ShirtUNIFORM
Beavers Uniform SweatshirtUNIFORM
Scouts Activity Trousers - KidsWhat badges and awards can Beavers earn?
There are a range of badges and challenge awards that Beaver Scouts can gain to recognise their achievements.
The first badge a Beaver will get is the Membership Award, which is given when a Beaver makes their Beaver Promise. They can then start working towards Challenge Awards including:
- My Adventure Challenge Award
- My Outdoors Challenge Award
- Personal Challenge Award
- My Skills Challenge Award
- Teamwork Challenge Award
- My World Challenge Award
They can also start working towards Activity Badges and Staged Activity Badges like:
- Community Impact
- Digital Citizen
- Nights Away
- Swimmer
- Book Reader
- Camp Craft
Where do badges go on Beaver Scout uniform?
Beaver Scout badges are worn on the arms, shoulders and the front of the uniform – each badge has it’s own place. The Chief Scouts Bronze Award is worn on the right breast, along with Challenge Awards, Union Flags, Personal Awards and Commendation Awards.
On the left breast, the Moving On Award, Joining In Awards, Occasional Badges and the World Membership Badge are worn.
On the left sleeve, you’ll find the Activity Badges and the Staged Activity badges, and on the right sleeve, the District, Country and Area badges are worn along with the YouShape Award. There are many more badges available, which can be explored on Scout Store.
Here’s where to sew Beavers badges:
What is the highest award Beavers can earn?
The highest award a Beaver can earn is the Chief Scout’s Bronze Award. To earn this award, Beavers need to have completed all 6 Challenge Awards (My World, My Skills, My Outdoors, My Adventure, Teamwork Challenge Award, and Personal Challenge Award), along with 4 Activity or Staged Activity Badges of their choice. If a Beaver is unable to complete the award during their time in their Colony, they’ll be allowed to finish it during their first term as a Cub. Once the Chief Scout’s Bronze Award has been achieved, its badge is worn on the right breast of the uniform above the Challenge Awards and can be transferred to their Cubs uniform when they move up.
What badges transfer from Squirrels to Beavers?
When a Squirrel joins a Beaver Scouts Colony, they may continue to wear the Chief Scout's Acorn Award. This award must be removed when the Beaver gains the Chief Scout's Bronze Award.
Any Staged Activity badges that were started while in Squirrels will also transfer to the Beavers uniform. The World Membership badge, Joining in Award, and Moving on Award can be transferred too.
Any occasional badges previously given or earned at Squirrels should be moved to a badge blanket, camp blanket, or poncho.
What is the Beaver Scout promise?
There are many variations of the Beaver Scout promise, as Beavers is open to people of all religions and faiths. Here are just a few of the promises:
The Beaver Scout Promise for members who are atheists or do not identify with a faith
I promise to do my best to be kind and helpful and to love our world.
The Beaver Scout Promise for members who are Christian
I promise to do my best to be kind and helpful and to love God.
The Beaver Scout Promise for members who are Muslim
I promise to do my best to be kind and helpful and to love Allah
The Squirrel Scout Promise for members who are Hindu
I promise to do my best to be kind and helpful and to love the world.
What colour is the Beavers flag?
The Beaver Scout Flag is bright blue, with the Beavers logo in white underneath a white Fleur de Lis.
What section comes after Beaver Scouts?
After Beavers, young people will move on to Cub Scouts, where they will stay until the age of 10 ½ . Cubs provides the opportunity for young people to become more independent through learning skills for life, self-reliance, and challenging themselves. One of the biggest ways they can learn this is to spend nights away from home by camping – an essential part of the Cub Scout experience.
When do Beavers move to Cubs?
Most Beavers transition to Cubs between the ages of 7 ½ and 8 ½, but this isn’t set in stone. If your child needs extra time to make the transition, that’s okay, every young person’s needs are considered when making decisions.
Moving to Cubs is often a nerve-wracking time for young people, and it’s normal to feel apprehensive. Because of this, Beavers often move on to Cubs with their friends to make the transition a little easier.
As Beavers get ready to move up to Cubs, they earn the Moving On Award. This includes spending three weeks with their new Cub Pack, giving them time to meet the leaders, make new friends, and get comfortable with the way things run in their next section.
How much does Beavers cost?
The cost of being a Beaver varies by region, so it’s best to check directly with your local group. At Scouts, we believe that nobody should be excluded because of the cost, which is why we offer grants to ensure that Beavers and other Scouting groups are available and accessible for everyone.
How do I enrol my child in Beavers?
If your child is already a Squirrel, their leader will arrange an introductory visit to your child’s new Beavers group so they can meet their new colony and get a feel for how things are run.
If your child hasn’t been part of Scouting before, they can still join Beavers! Start their Beaver Scout adventure by finding a Beaver Colony near you.