Scouts Scotland chief executive Katie Docherty has warned that Scouts Scotland are facing the most serious challenge in Scouting’s 112-year history with the coronavirus lockdown and ongoing restrictions decimating the organisation’s finances.
In an interview with The Courier, the Dunfermline-based 46-year-old said the cessation of face-to-face Scouting and closure of its campsites and residential centres is having a very serious financial impact upon the charity with potential redundancies looming and a “realistic possibility” that its outdoor activity centres at Fordell Firs, Lochgoilhead and Meggernie are in “grave jeopardy”.
Katie said that ordinarily their centres would bring in £1.4 million per year.
However, to date, since the Covid-19 crisis began, they’ve brought in about £500.
“We’ve now gone around six months with no income and we have no prospect or understanding of when our activity centres can re-open and we have no financial support,” Katie said.
“That’s just not sustainable in the long term. We are a charity with no income so we are just trying to hang on as long as we can in the hope that at some point we might be able to operate again.
“We’ve been lobbying the Scottish Government since April alongside the Girl Guides, the BB and many other organisations. But the answer is continually no, they won’t give us additional support.
“They are sympathetic, but say, it’s a sad reality of the pandemic. They can’t support everybody. The best thing they can do is try and get things back to normal.
“It’s very frustrating when you see week by week other sectors being told they are getting millions of pounds because they know they can’t operate – then we get nothing.
“At the moment most of our staff are on furlough, but when furlough ends in October we just can’t sustain that.”
The Scottish Government has said it recognises the importance of youth organisations like Scouts Scotland during this challenging time – and that is why they are continuing to fund the youth work sector through the Children, Young People and Families Early Intervention fund which has been extended until March next year.
The Scottish Government says Scouts Scotland have received £60,000 per year from this fund since 2016/17 to help meet their core costs.
However, just days after it was confirmed Girl Guiding Scotland’s Netherurd outdoor activity centre is to close, Scouts Scotland says this does not go far enough.
With Scottish schools back, the focus of Scouts Scotland is currently providing assistance to its 12,000 PVG-checked adult volunteers to help them get through the risk assessment process that aids the planning and re-start of outdoor, socially-distanced Scouting.
However, Katie remains concerned that 50% of Scout groups don’t have their own premises and are reliant on schools, churches and community centres whose accessibility they have not yet been able to ascertain.
* A fuller feature interview with Katie Docherty will appear in The Courier Weekend magazine at a future date.
