Scouts waiting list tops 100,000 as parents try to help lockdown children develop self-esteem

The waiting list for the Scout Association has hit a record-high as parents look for ways to boost the confidence of their children who may have spent up to a third of their life in lockdown measures.

Demand for membership of the social and education organisation soared to 100,000 in 2024 across its 7,500-plus Scout groups in the United Kingdom.

The number of children waiting to join Scouts previously rose from 33,000 in 2011 to 60,000 in 2017, and to 90,000 in 2022. More than 145,000 adults currently volunteer in the Scout programme – up from 103,000 in 2014. But the number of children hoping to join the organisation is now outstripping the supply of adult volunteers who run Scout activities.

Simon Carter, a spokesperson for Scouts, said growing interest from parents of four to six year-olds is fuelling the backlogs. Mr Carter explained that many in this age category have spent “a third of their life in lockdown” and their parents want them to join Scouts to socialise and develop self-esteem.

He told The Telegraph: “We are seeing a huge level of demand for children wanting to join Squirrels, which is our group for four to six year-olds. These kids have spent around a third of their lives in lockdown conditions and they didn’t get the chance to do the things they normally would.

“So parents want them to join so they can socialise and build their self-esteem while surrounded by others who are the same age as them.”

Scouts is also seeing an uptick in demand for membership among 13 to 17-year-olds. Mr Carter said this cohort views it as a chance to develop key skills for employability.

“They understand that Scouts helps them develop soft skills like communication, teamwork and confidence that will prove useful in their careers; and employers will look upon their CVs favourably,” Mr Carter said.

Scouts has launched a recruitment drive for volunteers to cope with the growing interest in membership.

Mr Carter said: “It is the largest waiting list since we started recording this data and we need more adult volunteers. [The] trouble is [that] we can’t recruit quickly enough to cope with the demand. So we are trying to make it easier to volunteer, for example by splitting Scout leader roles into two and job sharing. Hopefully this means more people will be able to come and help.”

In the last year Scouts recruited more than 2,000 volunteers to the organisation. The recruitment push comes after Chief Scout Bear Grylls announced he would be stepping down in September after 15 years at the helm.

He described that Chief Scout role as “the greatest honour” of his life and confirmed he would be staying on as Chief Ambassador of World Scouting.