Program Resources Site Updates (Nov. 2021)

You may have noticed some new things going on, on pr.scouts.com.au!

We have made some adjustments to help you get more from this portal to all things youth program.

Here’s what we have done:

  • A new front page. A bit more interesting and has the latest news posts for you to check out (like this one!).
  • The Contacts page has been updated with new details for you to access local support for the program and Scouts | Terrain.
  • A support form for Scouts | Terrain which has the same functionality as the help button inside Scouts | Terrain. You don’t need to login to access this.
    • You can find links to the support form on the front page, in the menu at the top, and as a button on the Scouts | Terrain page. Or just go directly to pr.scouts.com.au/terrain/support/
  • There are new menu items that take you to other Scouts Australia websites that might help you with youth development, your program, and programming. Find links to:
    • The S2P Converter
    • #ScoutsForSDGs
    • International Scouting
    • On Demand (eLearning) Training for youth and adults
    • Scouts Australia Institution of Training (SAIT) qualifications for youth and adults
    • National Key Resources – guides and policies beyond the youth program.
  • Find the rich library of International Challenge Cards by clicking the button on the Programming page, under the Useful Resources tab.

Enjoy!

Scouts | Terrain Development Release – November 2021

As part of the ongoing commitment to Scouts | Terrain, there are two streams of work that will happen from time to time, resulting in releases of differing natures.

The first of these is an ongoing time allocation, per month, that enables background work to occur in the form of support and maintenance.

The second stream of work is a concentrated stint of development work, with the potential to occur once each year. This will see significant enhancements to, or adjustment of, a feature (or multiple features) as a result of user feedback.

The second block of development work from our first concentrated stint was released on Monday 15th November 2021. This has focused on adding notifications into the system, along with the ability to download Group achievement data. There were also some improvements following the Programming release last month.

Check out the release notes here.

Scouts | Terrain Development Release – October 2021

As part of the ongoing commitment to Scouts | Terrain, there are two streams of work that will happen from time to time, resulting in releases of differing natures.

The first of these is an ongoing time allocation, per month, that enables background work to occur in the form of support and maintenance.

The second stream of work is a concentrated stint of development work, with the potential to occur once each year. This will see significant enhancements to, or adjustment of, a feature (or multiple features) as a result of user feedback.

The first block of development work from our first concentrated stint was released on Thursday 28th October 2021. This has focused on improvements and additions to the Programming area of the system, along with some updates related to Milestones, although will have benefits beyond programming.

Check out the release notes here.

Youth Leading, Adults Supporting resource updates

As our movement continues to evolve, the roles and responsibilities in the partnership between adults and youth continually evolve too.

The latest resources in this space provide members with two different ways of looking at key considerations regarding the possible shapes these partnerships may take in various areas of the program and beyond.

These have been updated from the version initially created in 2017 to accompany The Adventure Begins initiative, and now reflect the changes in the program that have occurred since.

The resources can be found here and here.

Scouts | Terrain Update – October 2021

As part of the ongoing commitment to Scouts | Terrain, there are two streams of work that will happen from time to time, resulting in releases of differing natures.

The first of these is an ongoing time allocation, per month, that enables background work to occur in the form of support and maintenance. Each month, this might look slightly different, and some items will be fixes to specific user issues, whilst other items might be more wide-ranging. It is more efficient for any of these fixes to be grouped for testing and release, so whilst work is steadily occurring, we won’t always see evidence of this on a routine basis.

The second stream of work is a concentrated stint of development work, with the potential to occur once each year. This will see significant enhancements to, or adjustment of, a feature (or multiple features) as a result of user feedback.

At the end of October 2021, we should see the release of the first block of development work from our first concentrated stint. This has been focused on improvements and additions to the Programming area of the system, although will have benefits beyond programming.

Check out the update foreshadowing this release here.

Reasonable Adjustments And The Achievement Pathways

Recently a Scouts Australia webinar was held to support Scouts, Leaders, and Unit Councils to understand ways in which the program, and especially the Achievement Pathways, can be adjusted to support all young people to be able to be successful in their personal progression.

Scouting is an inclusive, values based Movement. Our membership is open to all young people and adults who share the fundamental values of the Scout Movement.

Scouts Australia approved a new Diversity and Inclusion Policy and Standard in Aug 2020. This reaffirms our commitment to ensuring that Scouting is truly open and accessible to all, better reflecting the composition of our communities.

A copy of the content of the webinar is now available, which in conjunction with the sections of the Program Handbook titled Access and Inclusion, will help you to support your Scouts with disabilities to be able to participate, to assist, and to lead across the whole program.

You can find the reasonable adjustments webinar content here:

Page:Achievement Pathways
Tab:Program Essentials (although it applies to all levels of the mountain)
Direct Link:Reasonable Adjustments Webinar

Scouts | Terrain Update – Sep 2021

As part of the ongoing commitment to Scouts | Terrain, there are two streams of work that continue to update and improve the system – monthly support and maintenance plus an annual development sprint, as detailed in previous updates.

This month, there are a few items that have been bundled together from work that has occurred in the last month from the support and maintenance stream. Some of this is addressing bugs, and other aspects are maintenance to continuously improve the system.

Check out the full update here.

Leadership Role Descriptions

The role descriptions for Unit Leaders, Project Patrol Leaders, Patrol Leaders, and Assistant Patrol Leaders in each section have been updated in the last two months.

These new files provide examples and guidance regarding these roles that can be used directly by, Units or used to inspire your own variants.

  • Joey Scouts – Patrol Leader
  • Cub Scouts – Unit Leader, Patrol Leader, Assistant Patrol Leader
  • Scouts – Unit Leader, Patrol Leader, Assistant Patrol Leader, Project Patrol Leader
  • Venturer Scouts – Unit Leader, Project Patrol Leader
  • Rover Scouts – Unit Leader, Project Patrol Leader

You can find these resources in the Patrols and Units tab of the Fundamentals page.

Program Essentials Factsheet – Aug. ’21 Update

The Program Essentials Factsheet has been updated to provide additional clarification and clarity regarding aspects that have been of recent confusion.

Explicitly, this now provides guidelines regarding how participates, assists and leads might apply at overnight experiences, with other sections, and at major events.

Find the updated guide here:

Page:Achievement Pathways
Tab:Program Essentials
Direct Link:Program Essentials Factsheet