The Independent: Scout numbers see biggest rise in 20 years

It boasts the film director Steven Spielberg, newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky, footballer David Beckham and rock star Keith Richards as former members and has left behind its reputation for camp fires and knot-tying with a new focus on snowboarding and whitewater rafting.

And the Scout movement's change of image seems to be paying off: 2007 saw the biggest increase in its membership for 22 years. Some 15,000 extra people joined the 100-year-old organisation last year. Today the Scout Association is launching an appeal for volunteer leaders after the growth in membership left it short of adults to run local groups. Waiting lists have surged by 3,000 over the past year because of a shortage of older people willing to help. Read more
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