Voluntary work, is it worth it?

Yes Jura, we do agree!

All this could have been avoided if the Scouts had listened to the parents who had previously informed them of how to deal with the boy's needs. They didn't listen and things went wrong.

As I have already said, the Beavers were able to include him in their activities so why not the Scouts?

Activities for Beavers are very different to those of Scouts- who do more outdoor and craft activities, longer stays further away from home, etc, etc.

Same difference as Primary School and Secondary - totally different.

It is very possible to have a dedicated person to keep an eye on that child as part of a small group, without being intrusive. We did that all the time- but there is a cost to that. Who should pay, the other parents? If you do a trip- you count all the costs, and divide by the number of kids (well, when OH and myself took my tutor group on a long YHA week-end every year, we paid for ourselves- our choice).

Other non financial costs too, eg one more vounteer on the bus means one less place for a kid. It would also curtail some acitivities- where the leaders would choose not to do climbing, or fires, or using knives for woodcrafts, etc, etc,.

As said, the parents, with their mindset, would be the first ones to sue if the child got injured, or another child due to non supervision of said child.

Wow, it makes me so cross. No wonder my younger colleagues now just refuse point blank to organise exchanges, or any trips. As for volunteers - well I would stop immediately for sure. So sad.

I heard this story on the news this morning, checked it on the BBC website and also read the report in the Daily Telegraph.
I was amazed to hear the verdict; as I understand it from the BBC, (cannot find this morning's report now) the mother sued on the grounds of discrimination, saying her child was no different from the others. However much she may dislike it, if he has a diagnosis of autism, yes he is.
In view of his behaviour during scout activities the association decided he needed extra supervision, for his own safety, and for that of others. He clearly needed one to one when responding to some instructions. They are expected to conduct a risk assessment, and this child posed a risk.
People who run Scouts are volunteers and it is unfair to compare them with teachers dealing with an autistic child in an educational setting. Even then, however much they may dislike it, they do need extra supervision.
School trips are being cancelled because some parents refuse to accept conditions imposed on children deemed to be a risk.
The Scout Association acted in this child, and the group's best interests, and have been punished as a result. The parents were grossly unfair to sue. At the very least they should return the damages.

Scouts do a lot more challenging physical activity than Beavers and take more (calculated) risks. The scouts need to understand the risks and dangers, be able to make judgements and sometimes instant obedience and response is necessary in activities like high ropes or white water rafting. Not to respond would put everybody in the raft at risk.
Sometimes I sent my sons off to camp with my fingers crossed but they needed the challenge that Scouting gave them.
If the scout leaders were worried about ensuring everybody's safety then they were right to express their concerns surely and to ask for extra support.
I guess their other choice was to limit the activities for everybody to what would be safe for this lad so that he could be included in everything.

A proportion of the damages was for breach of privacy as the leaders sent an e-mail containing confidential medical information to all of the other parents - this IMHO was a pretty stupid thing to do.

As an ex-teacher who has taken several children with a variety of Special Needs on residential trips (involving abseiling, campfires, long challenging walks etc) I agree that extra supervision is required. The extra person doesn’t have to stay with that child but could free up another leader to intervene before a potentially difficult situation arose.

But I was quite shocked by the attitude of the parents. I note that in the Telegraph report the mother said
the actions [supervision] would "single Ben out" and that she feared it would make him "feel different."

Well doesn’t putting your autistic son on national television
“single him out” and make him “feel different”?
And suing a voluntary organisation for £42,000 is just irresponsible.

There is no justication for casting doubt on all volunteering jut because one case went pear shaped.

MOnica, I agree, I think though that more volunteers will be needed who have special skills.
Just being interested, willing and able won’t be enough.
Let’s hope there will be enough good people willing to give up long hours of their spare time to help organisations keep running.

I was very troubled by this suing. Volunteers have sometimes been very stressed to keep an organisation going for a variety of reasons but often they keep organsations like this running for years. It is bad news in my opinion.

There wasn’t a verdict, there wasn’t a judge, the insurance company paid out - facts, eh, who’d ‘av ‘em? The Scout Association and its sainted volunteers are not given a dispensation from obeying the law. As Cold says, there were some really serious issues about data protection as well. Volunteers choose to volunteer - if they can’t do it properly then they should either give up or improve.

Volunteers choose to volunteer, but it is up to the organisation to train them properly.

I recently walked out of some volunteer work I really enjoyed and, though I say it myself, I was very good at, because of the grossly inadequate help and training provided for me in the year I was with them.

I wonder how often you have volunteered maryelizy, or taken trips with 50+ kids abroad or on activity holidays in dangerous terrain???

And yes, no worries- they will just give up. As teachers have done with foreign exchanges and trips- apart from the very expensive ones all organised by specialised companies that take the flack if anything goes wrong- with teachers just 'going along'.

And who will be penalised - our grandkids.

I suppose in the end, people will choose not to volunteer, which is a shame as so many worthwhile organisations rely on volunteers.

Indeed- so this mother didn't want her child to be made to feel different- and her actions have put the poor kid all over TV, the Press, the other parents and kids, and the internet.

Bravo that will work (poor kid)

She didn’t choose to have her personal details shared by email without her consent did she? I agree about volunteers bring properly trained but people volunteer because they want to and if they want to stop because they are not trained well enough or think following the law doesn’t apply to them, well so be it. I actually think this particular case is an aberration and there are plenty of positive stories of very inclusive scout groups throughout the country.

Why would most people choose not to volunteer? That doesn’t make sense ar all - however there is a certain type of volunteer who thinks everyone should be grateful to them for volunteering and that the rules don’t apply to them and they don’t need training etc etc

Not sure exactly what detail was shared- but yes, I agree. Maybe the Scout group felt it had to to explain their reasoning- but.. yes- they should have given their reasoning without publishing actual detail.

My grandson is very active, very intelligent, loves his school, sport teams and Scouts. But he is highly allergic to egg, or the tiniest traces of egg. Not an intolerance that would give him tummy ache or diaorreha (sp?) - but an full on anaphylectic shock - requiring immediate adrenalyn and intubation. We hate him having to be treated differently, he hates too - the only one in his school who has a packed lunch- and he can't go on school or sport or Scout trips, unless one parent goes with and takes all their own equipment and food to cook separately. Really sad- and we feel for him. But he is different- and we know neither school, rugby, swimming team or scouts can organise to make him safe- so parent's or we do.

If a child has a rare disorder preventing him/her to be in a wheel chair, should he have the right to go on ski trip? What about a child whose parents' can't afford a school trip - to what extent should the school have to support - or should the trip be cancelled because one child can't afford it. The result - there will be no more camps, no more trips, no more out of school activity- finished, for all. Justice at last.

maryeliza- they will choose not to because they will be terryfied of being sued, and framed by parents.

I didn't say most people.
I do know people who have given up volunteering roles though, because they have had too much responsibility put onto them.

Not surprised that the case was settled out of court since it is generally cheaper than a full blown court case.
In my younger years, when common sense was generally in vogue, I gave my time as a volunteer youth worker and also as a Guider but I would not do that today in this entitled and suing culture.

Isn't the case in the news today because it's National Autism Week?

A debate on autism on Thursday in the commons.

I agree entirely with your posts jura*. I, too, was a volunteer at Beavers, Cubs and Scouts and trying to get anyone to commit to volunteering on a regular basis, let alone on weekend camping events was a was a nightmare. Our Scout group was on the point of folding because of a lack of volunteers.

If you go on autism uk website, you can ask your MP to ensure (May's favourite word) they go to that debate.