Bedgrove Scouts launch final push to buy their home

Bedgrove Scouts & Guides are so close to hitting their fundraising target.
The Guides pictured with their Captain, Mrs. Joyce Parsons.The Guides pictured with their Captain, Mrs. Joyce Parsons.
The Guides pictured with their Captain, Mrs. Joyce Parsons.

Their fundraising efforts have them sat on £14,000, just a whisker away from the £20,000 they need to make their home permanent.

The lease that was signed back in 1970 is due to expire in October and having negotiated with the landlord, the Scouts & Guides are trying to raise the £20,000 that they need to purchase the freehold of the land that the hut sits on.

Alex Monro, Chairman of the HQ Committee says “As we approach the final mark with our fundraising campaign, we’re absolutely thrilled with the fantastic generosity that we’ve

Guides receiving their Queen’s Guide Award in 1967. Pictured left to right,
Jane Manley (nee Rowles), Jane Richards & Bronwen Griffiths.Guides receiving their Queen’s Guide Award in 1967. Pictured left to right,
Jane Manley (nee Rowles), Jane Richards & Bronwen Griffiths.
Guides receiving their Queen’s Guide Award in 1967. Pictured left to right, Jane Manley (nee Rowles), Jane Richards & Bronwen Griffiths.

seen from our parents, and the great enthusiasm and imagination of our young people in fundraising for their hut.”

Various personal challenges have been undertaken, including training for a back-bend walkover, a 24 hour game-a-thon, a one day jigsaw challenge, a half marathon, car wash weekends and a 100 minute drum solo (his poor Mum & Dad!).

Along with the brilliant donations from the parents and young people that use the hut, the Committee has been contacted by multiple members of the local community and other

interested supporters, some of whom stem back to the very beginning of the hut’s history.

Guides receiving their Queen’s Guide Award in 1969. Pictured left to right, Brenda Dann, Lavonne Barker, Hilary Brian (nee Wilson), Melanie McGrane (nee Dickinson) & Elizabeth Jackson.Guides receiving their Queen’s Guide Award in 1969. Pictured left to right, Brenda Dann, Lavonne Barker, Hilary Brian (nee Wilson), Melanie McGrane (nee Dickinson) & Elizabeth Jackson.
Guides receiving their Queen’s Guide Award in 1969. Pictured left to right, Brenda Dann, Lavonne Barker, Hilary Brian (nee Wilson), Melanie McGrane (nee Dickinson) & Elizabeth Jackson.

One of these is Hilary Brian, an early member of the 12th Aylesbury Guide Company. She was a member of the Company from 1966 to 1972, became the Patrol Leader of the ‘Chaffinches’ and received her Queen’s Guide Award in 1969.

Hilary said: “I was in the 12th Aylesbury Guides for years, and owe it so much.

"With a career in the NHS spanning 40 years, and often moving from place to place due to her husband being in the RAF, I always attributed my adaptability to Guides, as it teaches you to ‘just get on with it"

Hilary’s fellow Queen’s Guide Award recipient Melanie McGrane, who now lives in Australia, has also reached out to the Committee with a vote of support saying: “The 12 th Aylesbury was a big part of my teens....good luck with the fund raising!”

The building of the Bedgrove Scout & Guide HQ was formally proposed in November 1966, with representatives of the then recently established 4 th Aylesbury Scout Group and the 12 th

Aylesbury Guide Company & Brownie Unit in attendance.

Mrs D. Rowles, the founder of the Brownie Unit, was present at that meeting along with her husband, Mr. G. Rowles, who was soon to become the HQ Committee Chairman.

They were heavily involved with the planning of the hut and its construction, though their daughter, Jane Manley (Nee Rowles) a founding member of both the Brownies and the Guides, never benefitted from the hut itself, as she had left the Guide company before it’s construction was complete in 1973 to pursue a career in nursing.

Jane was one of the first Guides in her company to receive the Queen’s Guide Award in 1967 along with 2 others.

Jane has written to the Committee, saying “I was pleased to hear that the Scouts & Guides are still flourishing, as my parents were very much involved in the project....and the rest of

us in the fundraising. I wish you all the very best with raising the money.”

Another attendee at that first meeting was Cyril Parsons, the very first Group Scout Leader of the 4th Aylesbury Scouts and the husband of the late Joyce Parsons who founded the 12th Aylesbury Guide Company.

Unfortunately work commitments limited his involvement with the Scout Group, however, he continued to support his wife and the Guide Company where he was known as Mr. Captain!

In particular he was heavily involved with fund raising, and is supporting the current fundraising effort now. He writes “I am delighted to add my support to the fundraising campaign for the Scouts & Guides on Bedgrove to purchase the freehold of the plot on which the HQ building stands.”

“It’s absolutely amazing that we have managed to span the 54 year gap between the hut being proposed and now.” says Alex Monro. “It really does show that Scouting and Guiding is a lifelong pursuit.”

Today, the Bedgrove Scout & Guide HQ is the home to the 4th Aylesbury Beavers, Cubs & Scouts, the 12th Aylesbury Rainbows, 11th Aylesbury Brownies and the 12th Aylesbury Guides, as well as the Aylesbury Trefoil Guild.

Collectively, the units look after over 130 young people every week, and whilst the uniforms may be different, the core values of both Scouting and Guiding remains essentially unchanged: integrity, respect, care, belief, co-operation, and to have fun safely.

To support the Bedgrove Scout & Guide HQ in its campaign to own the land it sits on, please visit our GoFundMe page here https://gf.me/u/yjt8i2 or reach out to the Committee Chairman, Alex Monro at [email protected]

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