Cambridge University Scouting: Town and Home work

Cambridge District Scout Archive

Home work

Patrol logs were encouraged to list work done by Rovers out of term time. This fell into three categories

Work with troops or groups at home, or with old schools
Work with other Scout enterprises such as training courses
Scouting activities not attached to another troop such as hiking in Saxony

Service organised through the University was often taken ‘as read’ and the patrol reviews did not always mention the unemployed camps, work at WSJ’s, Woodlarks (a camp for ‘cripples’) or flood relief in this category.

Some scouters visited the College Missions in London, some of which hosted Scout Troops.

One report of support in the Long Vacation suggest around 70 – 80% were actively involved at home. New recruits to the Patrol were, occasionally, apparently new to Scouting, but from the figures in Sidney Sussex and Jesus Log Book many were already involved in their home towns.

A number, but by no means all, may have been at boarding school. An undated report to Sidney Sussex College from HQ gives details of only two public schoolboys who were in Troops at school and were to enter Sidney Sussex. It is perhaps less likely that they were also engaged in troops at home.

Town Work

A ‘few members attended the County School to assist and we are sure that had there been anything for them to do they would have given every satisfaction.’ Trinity Log Book 1929

There is no definitive list of work done by University Rovers in Cambridge District. The few available Log Books of individual patrols do occasionally list Scouting activities with Cambridge based troops and groups, with individual home troops and groups and more general scouting behaviours such as hiking or helping with non Scout organisations. A section on the back of the index cards to record these details were rarely filled in.

Some College Troops collectively took on District Troops. Many individual Rovers who gained warrants with local troops did so by themselves and some stepped away from University Scout work as a consequence. It was the aim of the University Troop to train Scout leaders, to step into a leadership role was the aim and those who did so were dignified with their warrant in some university records.

It was ‘schemed to start a Troop in Trinity Choir’ in October 1933. Other choir troops listed were not University Rover initiatives but many had College Rovers in attendance.

The following list gives numbers to troops known to have received support. It was initially taken from University sources (left hand column) and it awaits other details. Numbered groups have had or requested help. Request for help was usually through the DC. Clearly some numbers were allocated to many Scout groups. No attempt to differentiate the Group assisted by date or name has been attempted here.

University source	College Patrols	Request for help	All other sources
1^st			1^st Early Warrants List <1914
2^nd			2^nd EWL also 1937 Distrcit list
3^rd	Choir
4^th			4^th EWL
5^th			5^th EWL
6^th			6^th EWL
7^th			7^th EWL also 1937 Distrcit list
8^th			8^th EWL
9^th	Choir		9^th EWL
10^th	Choir		10^th EWL
11^th			11^th EWL
			12^th EWL
13^th		13^th 1952	13^th EWL
			14^th EWL also 1937 Distrcit list
15^th			15^th EWL
16^th
			17^th EWL
18^th Littleton House School
19^th
20^th	Choir
21^st
22^nd	Trinity
			23rd St John’s 1937 District list
24^th	Choir		24^th EWL

26^th	Choir		1936 County list
27^th	Choir

29^th			29th Selwyn 1937 District list

31^st University


34^th

36^th	Trinity		36th Westcott, Cheshunt 1937 District list

38^th	Jesus
39^th

41^st			41st Pembroke 1937 District list
			42nd N W Goodman 1930’s










52^nd Littleton House School
53^rd			1936 County list

55^th	Jesus



			64th St John’s 1937 District list



1^st Cambridge District			1^st Cambridge District



			5^th CD (Aubrey Westlake)


			8th CD (Sawston)







17^th CD	Jesus St Cats 1935		17^th CD (Barton) 1935
18^th CD			Fulbourn

Requests for help from the town or county (some of these were in South Cambridgeshire District) often referred to location rather than number thus in 1938 help was asked for Sawston, Whittlesford, Haslingford, Shelford and Harston. These Groups did not have a Cambridge number, this District relied on location alone. Cambridge District Archives has little information on these Groups at this date. Other requests known – Over (1929)

The following details on Uncling are from Sidney Sussex and Jesus Log Book of the 1930’s. One of these was 17th Cambridge District (Barton). In 1935 Barton was recorded as being supported and largely maintained by three members of St Cat’s. when the GSL Miss Bickerstaff, had fallen ill. It had become part of West Cambridgeshire and dropped the 1th CD part of the name.

Uncling Uncling (from Uncle) was the term used to describe student support of local groups. Of six Groups aided in 1931 five were noted to have temporary or no SM in place.

Town packs and troops

The aid given appears to fade as the majority of the Jesus and Sidney Patrol gets towards its third year. Individuals and occasionally small teams from Jesus and Sidney Patrol helped Barton (17^th Cambridge District), Coton (38th Cambridge), 13^th Cambridge (Notts’ Own) 55^th Cambridge and Pampisford. It is of peripheral note that the numbers given in 1930-31 are in the old format, that is, Cambridge District. Coton did not have Cambridge District number; nor did it last long.

17^th Cambridge District (Barton) was a Jesus Patrol undertaking. After they handed it over one member continued to walk to Barton each Monday to support the pack, four miles each way. Some took formal roles with troops as ASM. As seen above it was later supported by St Cat’s.

In-house observations on the supported Troops and Packs suggest a level of tact was required by all parties. These bright and active young men met those ‘in ripe middle age’, ‘incompetent TL’s, and experienced ‘the sudden and often unexpected interference in the running of a meeting by the GSM, an elderly lady.’ The role placed them in ‘an indeterminate position’. The new ideas and changes appear to have moved on some stuck groups. The Patrol did give active thought to how to run troops and packs.

In 1935 the County Gazette recorded that in South Cambridgeshire their one local Rover crew ‘kept troops alive in the vacation time the Troops run by undergraduates’.

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A request in 1952 garnered the response that “Littleton House may have preference ‘as it is our pack’.” Support of the Group was to be written into the CUSAGC constitution. In the 1950’s students from Downing, Girton, Corpus Christi, St John’s, Kings, Fitzwilliam House, Selwyn, Trinity Hall, Newnham and Gonville and Caius all acted as leaders with LHS.

In 1954 Great Chesterford, in Essex but part of South Cambridgeshire District, was reliant on Ridley Hall members to keep going. John Maybury is the one name given.

The University did provide some larger scale Scout competitions for Town Scouts. The ‘Rovers Rough’ ran in the 1930’s.

See Structure/ University Scouting/ Forward, Endurance Test, Rovers Rough CUSAGC

The liaison with Town Rover Groups was warm if intermittent and many occasions where Town Rovers were invited along to CURST meetings are recorded elsewhere in the archive.

JWR Archivist Sept 2022

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