It is with regret that I have to announce the passing earlier this week of Ken Browning, formerly County Secretary for Greater London North East. He was 86.

Ken joined Scouting as an Assistant Scout Leader in 1946 in what was then Walthamstow District and helped to lead a busy and lively Scout Troop throughout the 1950s and 60s before moving into executive roles.

Ken was briefly District Secretary for Walthamstow, but is best remembered for his sixteen years as our County Secretary, working with County Commissioners John Moore and Alan Lewin. Ken's organisational skills were legendary and his dedication, commitment and efficiency were second to none.

County Vice-President Joan Walker recalled, "My personal memories are of a very supportive friend. Ken's work life involved him in very specialised printing and of course Scouting benefited enormously. His documents and wonderful invitations to various events were worthy of 'the palace' itself. Ken was always seen at County events tucked away with a little job and I know how much he enjoyed Kubadoo. Ken maintained his interest in Scouting and it is only due to poor health in recent years that he has not travelled from Sussex to County AGMs"

Ken worked tirelessly to ensure that all the County Executive Meetings and AGMs were organised with supreme efficiency and introduced the successful 'County Away Weekends' were a popular part of the County Calendar for a number of years. His commitment to Scouting was recognised by the Chief Scout with the Long Service Decoration and Bar and the Medal of Merit "for outstanding service to Scouting".

Ken stepped down as County Secretary in 1991 and moved with his wife Sheila to Steyning in West Sussex for a well-deserved retirement. Infact only last year Ken and Sheila celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary.

Dean Jefferys | County Commissioner

With regret, Craig Jones our County Scout Network Commissioner has decided to stand down after 5 years in post, due to the pressures of his work commitments and his recent appointment as a Special Constable. I have met with and thanked Craig for his efforts and wished him the best for his future plans.

In the interim Peter Seddon will assume responsibility as Acting County Scout Network Commissioner so please refer any queries to him.

Dean Jefferys | cc@glne-scouts.org.uk

It is with regret that we confirm the death on Thursday of Daphne Griffiths. She was 81.

She had declined slowly over the previous couple of days and had slipped into a coma earlier in the day and peacefully passed on without re-gaining consciousness. Daphne has given a lifetime, 62 years, of service, to the Movement and to young people starting as a 'cubmaster' just after the war when she hand-sewed the badges for her cubs. She became ADC (Wolf Cubs) in Stanford-le-Hope District and then again for Hornchurch District. She was soon an Akela Leader on the County Training Team and after moving to Upminster became ACC (Cub Scouts) followed by a stint as ACC (Leader Training). A member of the County Executive for many years she took on the role of (the first) Deputy County Commissioner for Essex and acted as CC while David Evans took his year out to be High Sheriff. On retiring she assumed the role of County Records Secretary which she diligently carried out for over 15 years. For the last fifteen years she also took on the organisation of the County 4 Seasons Dining Club arranging but missed our last meal in June.

Daphne had the incredible honour of representing Essex on the Committee of Council for two terms during which time she served with three Chief Scouts. She was awarded the Silver Wolf, the highest accolade in UK Scouting in 1974. Daphne was appointed as a Vice President of Essex Scouts in June 1998.

An inspiration and example to all that knew and worked with her she will be greatly missed. May the Lord bless her and keep her. Thanks be to God.

Barry Cousins | Former County Commissioner for Essex

We have teamed up with Venture Abroad, a Scout Association approved specialist provider of adventure activity breaks with over 40 years experience, to bring you the opportunity to have your 2010 Summer Camp in Norway.

Full details and booking form

Venture Abroad website

Troll Aktiv website

GLSE is organising an expedition abroad for the summer of 2010! It will be open to anyone over the age of 8 years old and will cater for everyone's need s, wants and skills!

Unit Deposit form

Brochure

Parent Letter

This course takes place at Thriftwood on 25 April 2010 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tea and coffee will be provided but participants need to bring their own packed lunch.

The cost is £25 with a non-refundable deposit of £10. The cost includes our "Campfire Leaders Handbook". The course is limited to 15 places.

Full details and an application form may be obtained from the office at Thriftwood.

Thriftwood website

Performances at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday Matinee at 2:30 p.m. at the Chingford Assembly Hall, Station Road, Chingford, E4 7EN

Special Rate of £4 for uniformed members at any performance, £8 adult, £5.50 Senior citizens and children under 14

Box Office Tel: 07956 113209, 15 Evanston Avenue, Highams Park, London E4 9JS

Waltham Forest District website

Order Form

Please come to the Greater London North East County AGM Wednesday 23 June 2010, 7pm buffet for an 8pm meeting

All Adult members, Supporters, Civic Representatives and Friends are invited at The Sir James Hawkey Hall, Broomhill Road Woodford Green, Essex, IG8 0BG

Guest Speaker: Tim Kidd, Chief Commissioner of England Full uniform to be worn (and awards if relevant)

Full details

Scouts from the 12th Hackney were delighted when Diane Abbott agreed to help them with part of The Community Challenge. The MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington took time from her busy schedule to jump on the bus from Westminster and make her way to the Groups headquarters in Stamford Hill, London.

Full report

The courses that are intended to be run in 2010 are for Scouts aged 12 and over for their Cavers, Badge, Explorers for the Cavers Badge and Network as well. There is also the opportunity for Leaders to gain instructor certificates

Maximum course numbers are 25. If enough interest is generated it may be possible to have a course exclusively for GLNE. Otherwise the advertised dates are composite and will include other counties. The maximum number from GLNE for these dates is initially 10 but may rise if other counties don't fill their quota.

Full details

Please find details of a number of new key appointments to the GLNE County Team in the release below

2009 County Appointments 2009

Visit our new WSJ area for all the information you need about the exciting opportunities at the upcoming World Scout Jamboree in 2011

www.glne-scouts.org.uk/wsj2011/

The 2010 Calendar is now available for download. The calendar contains all the important events in 2010 including meetings, awards and selected national events. It also includes a complete diary of training courses.

The events will soon be available in the online calendar, which will hold updates and changes to the printed calendar.

County Calendar 2010

'Programmes in a Box' is a year's supply of 40 weekly programmes for Beaver Colonies, Cub Packs and Scout Troops (12 for Explorer Scout Units), written by experienced section leaders from across London. Whether you're looking for a few new ideas, or you want enough programmes for every week of the year, 'Programmes in a Box' can help you out!

Feedback from leaders who ordered a copy of last year's resource had some excellent things to say about how it helped them (www.programmesinabox.co.uk/feedback), and some useful suggestions which we've taken on board whilst writing this year's programmes.

For further information please email:

Order Form

russ@gln-scouts.org.uk

Following the approval of the County Appointments Advisory Committee, GLNE is pleased to announce a number of new key appointments to the County Team:

Rebecca Still (DC Epping Forest South), Keith Pethers (DC Romford), Rob Youd (ACC Explorer Scouts), Peter Banks (ACC Youth Awards), Paul Fix (DCC Adult Training) and Alex Kerr (Assistant Warden Thriftwood).

Full details

I am pleased to be able to announce this year's County census figures, which again indicate a total rise of members across the County - a total increase of 252 members on 2009 (a 3.2 ‰ growth). This is fantastic news and I am grateful for everyone's hard work in achieving this!

We now have over 8,000 members - our highest total figure for over a decade, and testament to all the hard work being put in by the various Districts and Groups across the County. There are some disappointments in the figures and some obvious key areas of work for 2010, but we will rise to this challenge as a County and work with those who are struggling so that the 2011 will show an even greater increase!

County Census 2010

A flyer is now available with the details of Adult Training Courses in 2010.

Flyer

Performances at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday Matinee at 2:30 p.m. at the Chingford Assembly Hall, Station Road, Chingford, E4 7EN

Special Rate of £4 for uniformed members at any performance, £8 adult, £5.50 Senior citizens and children under 14

Box Office Tel: 07956 113209, 15 Evanston Avenue, Highams Park, London E4 9JS

Waltham Forest District website

Order Form

It is with great pleasure that I can announce that our County President Colonel Alan Hall has been awarded a MBE in the 2010 New Year's Honour List in recognition of his services to the local community.

Alan has been Her Majesty's Deputy Lieutenant for the London Borough of Redbridge since 1989 and was appointed as a Vice President of GLNE at the same time, recently completing twenty years service to Scouting. He has been our County President since 1995 and has offered outstanding personal support to three GLNE County Commissioners, has always enlivened our Chief Scouts Award Evenings and County AGMs and has personally visited numerous County, District and Group events to offer his personal appreciation of what goes on in our County.

I have already personally congratulated Alan, but felt that news such as this should be communicated further and that everyone should have the opportunity of sharing this great news.

cc@glne-scouts.org.uk

The County Commissioner joined Alan Hands - East London District Commissioner and Abdulmukith Ahmed - Group Scout Leader to formally open the 8th East London Scout Group. At the celebration event they invested 6 leaders and 24 Cub Scouts and had speeches from a variety of senior community and civic leaders about the importance of young people working together for the benefit of society. The Cub Scout Pack are the first section to open and will meet on a Sunday morning at 11am. Further sections will open over the next six months. The celebration event continued with singing and drama from the Cub Scouts and lots and lots and lots of food.

We would like to officially invite all members of the Scout County of Greater London North East to our Annual General Meeting, which is taking place on Wednesday 23 June 2010 from 7pm at the Sir James Hawkey Hall, Broomhill Road, Woodford Green, IG8 0BG

This invite is open to all members of the County Scout Council; i.e. all adult leaders, sectional assistants, executive members, Scout Fellowship members, Scout Network members and Explorer Scouts across the County.

Flyer

We have seen another successful year for Scouting in North East London with growth of over 3% across the County and our highest total membership for over a decade. However we are not resting on our laurels, and as the next stage of the County Development Plan we are seeking nominations for the following two voluntary roles; Assistant County Commissioner (Development) and Assistant County Commissioner (Group Support)

Full details

The event is open to all Scouts, Guides, Explorer Scouts and Ranger Guides. Would you like to enter? It's simple, find 3 friends and a leader, fill in the application form and post to the address on the front of the flyer (with your £50 per team deposit) Full details & fees due by 15/12/2009. See Full Entry Form for participant details, meals etc

Thriftwood website

Young Leaders Training Weekend

Accommodation, food and all materials provided

Modules B, C, E and I. An introduction to the missions. 3 activity sessions included

Full details

Burgers, Hot Dogs etc. Mince pies & Mulled Wine will be on sale before and afterwards

Tuck Shop will be open with a wide range of reasonably priced toys and stocking fillers

Thriftwood website