Scouting in Northern Ireland is represented by three Scouting associations. The Scouts NI is part of

The Scout Association The Scout Association is the largest Scouting organisation in the United Kingdom and is the World Organization of the Scout Movement's recognised member for the United Kingdom. Following the origin of Scouting in 1907, the association was for ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, which is the

World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest international Scouting organization. WOSM has 173 members. These members are recognized national Scout organizations, which collectively have around 43 million participants. WOS ...

(WOSM) recognized

Scouting Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking ...

association in the United Kingdom.

Scouting Ireland Scouting Ireland ( ga, Gasóga na hÉireann) is one of the largest youth movements on the island of Ireland, a voluntary educational movement for young people with over 45,000 members, including over 11,000 adult volunteers . Of the 750,000 peo ...

is the national Scouting association and the WOSM-recognized Scouting association for the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

, although its membership extends to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. The

Baden-Powell Scouts' Association The Baden-Powell Scouts' Association (''B-PSA'') is a worldwide youth organisation originating in the United Kingdom, with friendly relationships with similar traditional scouting organisations in various countries. Baden-Powell Scouting focuses ...

is a member of the

World Federation of Independent Scouts The World Federation of Independent Scouts (WFIS) is a non-governmental international Scouting organization with over 7 million members in 151 affiliated Scout organizations in 65 countries. WFIS was formed in Laubach, Germany, in 1996 by Lawrie ...

and operates one group in Northern Ireland.

Overview

The Scout Association has seven

Scout Counties A Scout County (also Scout Area) is an administrative division within The Scout Association of the United Kingdom. There are currently 115 Counties and Areas in the United Kingdom. These bodies are responsible for providing programmes and support f ...

covering the 6 counties that make up

plus the

City of Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

. These counties are overseen by the Northern Ireland Scout Council, known as "Scouts NI", which is a registered charity in Northern Ireland with charity number 103542. The Scout Association, Northern Ireland was an observer member of the Federation of Irish Scout Associations (FISA). Scouting Ireland is part of

Northern Scout Province A Scout Province is an administrative division within Scouting Ireland. Each province comprises a number of Scout Counties, which are mobilised and coordinated to combine their resources for the improvement of Scouting at a local level. There are ...

and has five Scout Counties. The Northern Province Commissioner is currently Wendy Morrow. During

the Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

the number entering the

Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland The Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland (CBSI; ga, Gasóga Caitliceacha na hÉireann) was an Irish Catholic Scouting organisation active from 1927 until 2004, when it formed Scouting Ireland by merging with the former Scout Association of Ireland ...

skyrocketed as parents were eager for their sons to participate in Scouting rather than join the

Provisional IRA The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republicanism, Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, fa ...

like many young men of the time. The Northern Ireland Scout Council and Scouting Ireland has run a Scout Citizenship project to improve the relationship between the two Scouting associations in Ireland.

History

120 Northern Ireland Scouts, along with 12 leaders, took part in the

21st World Scout Jamboree The 21st World Scout Jamboree was held in July and August 2007, and formed a part of the Scouting 2007 Centenary celebrations of the world Scout Movement. The event was hosted by the United Kingdom, as 2007 marked the 100th anniversary of the found ...

to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Scouting at Hylands Park near Chelmsford, Essex in 2007.

Scout Counties

The Scout Association

County Antrim

The Scout County of County Antrim covers the County of Antrim in

. The three Scout Districts are Lisburn & District, South East Antrim and Slemish. Prior to the recent merger the four Scout Districts were Antrim and District, Lisburn and District, Mid Antrim, South East Antrim. Slemish District was formed in April 2017 with the merging of Antrim District and Mid Antrim District.

County Armagh

The Scout County of County Armagh covers the County of

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

. The three Scout Districts are Lurgan and District, Armagh and District, and Portadown.

City of Belfast

The Scout County of City of Belfast covers the City of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

. The four Scout Districts are East Belfast, North Belfast, Lagan and West Belfast.

County Down

The Scout County of County Down covers the County of Down in

. The three Scout Districts are Strangford, South Down and North Down. The county has a current membership of 2279 young people and 445 adults. North Down district has a dedicated headquarters and training facility in Balloo Industrial Estate, Bangor.

County Fermanagh

The Scout County of County Fermanagh covers the County of

Fermanagh Historically, Fermanagh ( ga, Fir Manach), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of al ...

. The county has no Districts and has nine Scout Groups. The County Commissioner is Katrina Armstrong. The county has a current membership of 437 young people and 128 adults.

County Londonderry

The Scout County of County Londonderry covers the city of

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

and the surrounding county of Londonderry in

. The three Scout Districts are Coleraine, Londonderry and Mid Ulster.

County Tyrone

The Scout County of County Tyrone covers the County of Tyrone in

. The four Scout Districts are Clogher Valley, Dungannon, Omagh, and Strabane.

Scouting Ireland

Brian Boru Scout County

Brian Boru Scout County covers parts of County Armagh and County Tyrone with a total of 9 Groups. 1st Armagh (Armagh) 8th Armagh (Portadown) 12th Armagh (Slieve Gullion) 1st Down (Rostrevor) 1st Dromore (Newry) 5th & 6th Dromore (Lurgan) 7th Dromore (Craigavon) 1st Tyrone (Dungannon) 6th Tyrone (Cookstown) 14th Tyrone (Pomeroy)

Down & Connor Scout County

Down & Connor Scout County covers County Antrim, County Down and Belfast with a total of 15 Groups. The 2006 Phoenix National Patrol Challenge was held at Tollymore Forest Park Co. Down.

Erne Scout County

Erne Scout County covers County Fermanagh with a total of 7 Groups.

Errigal Scout County

Covers part of Counties Tyrone, Londonderry and Donegal with a total of 17 Groups.

North East Ulster Scout County

Covers part of counties Tyrone, Londonderry and Antrim with a total of 9 Groups.

Camp sites

The Scout Association

* Ardnavally located in Belfast. Owned and run by Lagan District Scout Council. Also houses the HQ of The Northern Ireland Scout Council (NISC) *

Baronscourt Baronscourt, Barons-Court or Baronscourt Castle is a Georgian country house and estate 4.5 km southwest of Newtownstewart in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, and is the seat of the Duke of Abercorn. It is a Grade A-listed building. The Bar ...

is a campsite in Newtonstewart, County Tyrone. It is on the Baronscourt Estate. *

Crawfordsburn Crawfordsburn () is a small village in County Down, Northern Ireland. The village, which is now effectively a commuter suburb, lies between Holywood and Bangor to the north of the A2 road, about 4 km west of Bangor town centre. Bounded to ...

is the Northern Ireland Scout Centre, 12 miles from Belfast. Adjacent to the Crawfordsburn Country Park, it consists of 22 acres (9 hectares) of camping ground including several accommodation buildings. It is a National Scout Activity Centre. Originally part of the Sharman estate, it opened for Scout camping in October 1948. * Cladagh Glen Scout Centre is run by

Scout Council. * Tipperary Wood Campsite is run by 1st Newcastle Scout Group from

Newcastle, County Down Newcastle () is a small seaside resort town in County Down, Northern Ireland, which had a population of 7,672 at the 2011 Census. It lies by the Irish Sea at the foot of Slieve Donard, the highest of the Mourne Mountains. Newcastle is known fo ...

runs.

Scouting Ireland

Castle Saunderson Castle Saunderson ( ga, Caisleán Shandarsan) is a castle near Belturbet in County Cavan, Ireland. It was the former family seat of the Saunderson family, and is now in ruins. The Finn River flows along the north-eastern edge of the Castle Sau ...

is being developed as a cross-border Scout campsite on the border of

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...

and

County Fermanagh County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 a ...

. While it is in the Republic of Ireland, the estate has an entrance in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Sections

:For details of sections in The Scout Association see The Scout Association Sections. Within Northern Ireland there was an affiliated feeder organisation,

The Northern Ireland Squirrel Association Squirrels is a program for four to six year old infant children operated by The Scout Association in the United Kingdom. The program was launched in September 2021. Squirrels is a program with aspects imitating the Scouts for much younger, i ...

, (NISA) which was for young people aged four and five years living in Northern Ireland. Following the launch of the Squirrel section across the UK in September 2021, NISA Dreys were be merged into Scout Association Groups in the Province. :For details of sections in Scouting Ireland see Scouting Ireland Sections.

Beaver Scouts Beavers is a program associated with some Scouting organizations generally for children aged 6 to 8 who are too young for the Cub program. Beavers programs had their origins in the Northern Ireland organization ''The Little Brothers'', founded in ...

started in The Scout Association in Northern Ireland in 1965. Scouts Ireland started the section with considerable help from the Scout Association in 1979.History of Beavers
:For details of sections in the Baden-Powell Scouts' Association see B-PSA Organisation.

References

External links

Scouts NI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Northern Ireland, The Scout Association in Scouting and Guiding in Ireland

Overview

History

Scout Counties

The Scout Association

County Antrim

County Armagh

City of Belfast

County Down

County Fermanagh

County Londonderry

County Tyrone

Scouting Ireland

Brian Boru Scout County

Down & Connor Scout County

Erne Scout County

Errigal Scout County

North East Ulster Scout County

Camp sites

The Scout Association

Scouting Ireland

Sections

See also

References

External links