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GROUP LEADER
GROUP LEADER
1st Bennettswood has been concentrating on recruiting new members into the Joey and Cub units over the past few months as we have some vacancies in those units. These initiatives have included advertising in the newsletters of several local primary schools and asking families with children in these sections to promote scouting to their friends and family. We hope this will have a positive impact on our youth numbers in 2026. Many thanks to those who have supported us with this initiative.
The 3 important aspects of any Scout Group are:
PEOPLE
All families at 1st Bennettswood will be aware of the fantastic efforts our leaders put into ensuring that your children are able to experience scouting that is fun, stimulating and inclusive. A big THANK YOU to all Bennettswood leaders – you are amazing!
Congratulations to Taite Baddeley on achieving her Australia Scout Award – the new highest award in the Scout section. Well done Taite!
Our Parent’s Committee has continued to meet monthly to oversee maintenance of the hall, finances, fund raising and equipment purchases. This dedicated team is very important in ensuring that our leaders have maximum support for their activities. A list of the parents involved is in this publication. Thank you all.
The hall cleaning roster and has been very well supported by the families on the roster. This is very important in ensuring our hall is clean and attractive for our youth members and leaders. Thank you to all the families who have supported us with this.
Shannon Nutt has put together this online magazine for us. Many thanks, Shannon – it looks great!
Nick Rowan has completed his training as an Assistant Scout Leader to support Greg in the Scout Unit. Congratulations Nick & well done!!
At the Annual Reports & Presentation evening in August I mentioned that we needed parents to step up to be Adult Supporters so they could support our leaders on overnight camps etc. This requires registration with Scouts Victoria, 3 referees, a police check and some online training module to do with child safety etc. With Cuboree coming up in September 2026 we really need some parents to take on these roles. Thank you to Dave Budd for being the first to make this commitment. Please consider whether you could support our leaders in this way.
Thank you to Nick Rowan for suggesting the woggles as our gift to the youth members at Christmas and Shannon Nutt who designed the woggles and then arranged for them to be 3D printed. They look fantastic!
Wonderful news for our Group is that some of the youth members who have become too old for Venturers are interested in forming a Rover Unit at 1st Bennettswood. We currently have quite a few Rovers who meet with Units attached to other scout groups but it would be great to have a unit attached to 1st Bennettswood. The Rovers have made submissions to Mt Dandenong Region and are looking forward to being approved to be a Rover Unit in the new year. Congratulations to the Rovers involved for the effort they have put into forming this new Unit.
ACTIVITIES
Leaders from the Group participated in the annual Whitehorse Spring Festival to promote Scouting in the wider community on 19th November. The weather was more favourable than last year and quite a bit of interest was shown and we hope it will translate into more members next year. Thank you to the leaders who attended.
All sections have also been very active on their section nights – please read their reports later in this magazine.
The Group participated in the Essex Heights Primary School Carnival on the 29th November. We had a lot of Leaders, Rovers and Venturers help out and it generated a lot of interest in our Group. A big thank you to Brad Greer who towed the Scout bouldering trailer from Dandenong to Mt Waverley and back to be part of the display and to Glenn Baddeley who transported equipment from the hall to the school on the day. Thank you also to all the leaders, Rovers and Venturers who gave up their day to help promote our Group. We hope that will translate into new youth members in 2026.
We have once again been asked by SchoolPix if they can hold a training day for their new employees at our hall in January. This was a very successful exercise in 2025 which included youth members being taught how to use cameras and free portraits for their families. The idea is to train new SchoolPix employees in taking photos of young people as the company does school photos for many schools in the metropolitan area. Shannon Nutt is organising this for Wednesday 21st January. I will send out information soon but hope we can, once again, support this activity.
FINANCE
1ST Bennettswood is in a sound financial position thanks to the efforts of our Parent’s Committee, especially our Treasurer, Peter O’Donoghue
Unfortunately, we missed out on a Bunnings BBQ this year but will try again for 2026
We received a Community Grant from Whitehorse Council for the purchase of 2 gazebos with walls which have already been utilised on camps and at the Essex Heights Carnival. We also received 2 free tipping vouchers. Many thanks to Council for their continuing support of 1st Bennettswood.
Thank you to all the families associated with 1st Bennettswood for your great support of the Group and our leaders.
I wish you all a happy and safe Christmas and New Year and look forward to seeing you all in 2026
Sue Henley
Group Leader
JOEY SCOUTS
JOEY SCOUTS
Term 3 we started out working towards a couple of Special Interest Area badges to try and encourage the joeys to come up with some on their own. We ran and environment night and an arts and literature night to get them started towards their badge and explained what else would have to be done to complete the badge.
We learnt compass directions and the buddy system on Platypus’s Scouty night then Echidna had us searching for book characters and created their own character on Echidna’s book night. We ended the term with a party/disco which the Joeys greatly enjoyed!
Term four started with a photo scavenger hunt then one of the Joey parents, Bernadette, ran an amazing science night for us where we made lava lamps.
The cubs invited us to visit them for a Halloween night full of games, mummy making and many amazing costumes. Combined nights between sections allow the Joeys who are due to move on to get to know the cubs and their leaders before they move on.
We visited Waverley Valley Joeys for a lovely walk around Valley Reserve followed by a walk around the neighbourhood near our own hall as we learnt to follow trail signs used by Indigenous Australians.
We had a Scouting Skills night to mark of some more badgework before heading to Gardiners Creek for a bike ride organised by Aiden.
We ended the year with a Messy Art night where we took off our shoes and painted with our feet. Messy was definitely the right word for it!!!
KANGAREE
KANGAREE
During the term 3 school holidays 6 Joeys and 3 leaders attended Kangaree at Bay Park Scout Camp, Mt Martha.
Kangaree is the Joey equivalent of a Jamboree and runs every three years. Kangaree ran for two nights and three days over the Grand Final weekend with the joeys camping in units comprised of multiple groups.
1st Bennettswood was in a unit with 1st/8th Blackburn and 2nd Blackburn.
The theme for Kangaree was “Life in an Arcade” with each activity themed after a different video game.
The Joeys had heaps of fun racing billy karts at the Mario’s Speedway and doing a variety of science activities and scavenger hunted for Minecraft Characters at Creepers. They also started an environment SIA and made a newspaper pot which they planted seeds in at the Animal Crossing activity.
Mario’s Super World saw the Joeys clambering around on rope bridges, swings and see saws like a real life version of the Supermario games.
The giant inflatable jumping/caste/playground was a huge hit at Pixel Playground along with shooting tennis balls out of giant crossbows that took four joeys to use!
Every Kangaree the cubs run a base designed to introduce the Joeys to the cub section and earn them their Try Cubbing badge. Cubpacman introduced the Joeys to the Junglebook Characters that the cub leaders are named after and had them scrambling through a rope maze.
CUB SCOUTS
CUB SCOUTS
December and Christmas – always a fun and hectic time of year for cubs and families!
So what did we get up to in term 3? Good question!
One night, we had toasters, modems, scales, phones and more - the cubs pulled them apart and loved it!
We talked about peace and helping others, then the cubs made gifts for sick kids (thanks to the Pettolino family for passing them on for us) and planned a fund raising dinner (watch out for the date in early 2026!)
Oonai/Jimm, our youth helper, earned his King Scout and we celebrated that as well as some of us attending his ceremony
10 cubs and 3 leaders attended the Whitehorse district camp at Gilwell – we had lots of fun with nearly 9- other cubs, and we even had a visit from BP himself!
For Science week – decoding the universe, we had an astronomy night and made star maps
In patrols, we cooked, played computer games or made really cute sock puppets
We did some camping and bushcraft skills
We ended the term with walks from random spots to a mystery location (otherwise known as the hall but cubs didn’t know that while following clues and maps!)
Term 4 has definitely lived up to the theme of ‘outside in 25’ – we had a whole month away form the hall! So we got out and…
Learned a bit about flight
Sent two cubs to the district leadership course
Celebrated Diwali and learned a bit of fire safety
Allowed the Sixers & seconds to run a night (did they even notice Akela was missing? 😉)
Had some spooky Halloween fun and dancing with the Joeys
Prepared for camp and planned healthy menus for the weekend
10 cubs and 3 leaders wished away to Disney theme parks” camp at Warburton – we had a great time with wide games, skits, making things, pizza and ice-cream!
Visited the Victorian Ambulance museum, seeing a 1912 ambulance, defibrillators form the 1970s (really big and awkward!), heard some sirens, looked at a skidoo ambulance, and found out women were only legally allowed to become paramedics in 1987!
4 cubs and Bagheera (Mike) adventured to Geelong on the Whitehorse Sail and rail day
Played on the beach with venturers – burying Unique, building a seawall and using frisbees to carry water brought a lot of joy to all
We will finish up with the Group break up/Christmas party then our cub break up
It has been a great fun year, and as always we love watching the cubs learn and grow. Next year will be another big year as we will go to Cuboree* in September/October so will be preparing the cubs for that huge adventure.
Sadly (for us), Salty moved onto being a scout leader – and rumour has it that Oonai is following him next year. Thank you to you both for your energy, enthusiasm and care for the cubs while you were part of our cub team.
Thanks to everyone who has helped and supported the cub pack this year, and we wish you all a Merry Christmas!
Akela (Tash), Bagheera (Mike), Rama (Darren), Ahdeek (Jen), Kaa (Connor) & Raksha (Lyndal)
Along with our venturer helper, Oonai (Jimmy)
* Cuboree is a fantastic five day camp held for Victorian cubs every three years at Gilwell Park in Gembrook. The 2026 theme is “It starts with us” – and we’re very proud of Ishya for being on the Cuboree Youth Council and helping to set the theme.
SCOUTS
SCOUTS
Scouts this year
This year the Scouts have taken part in a wide range of fun and adventurous activities. From building the tallest spaghetti towers in our team‑building to going on multi day adventures hikes.
We’ve also had some fantastic experiences outside the hall. A highlight was visiting the CFA fire station, where the Scouts learned about fire safety and got to see the trucks and equipment up close. Another memorable event was our joint beach camp with the Venturers.
Of course, no term would be complete without our classic scouting traditions. We ran scavenger hunts that tested creativity and problem‑solving, wide games and cooking nights where Scouts learned to prepare meals over an open fire.
Scout Hike once again proved to be a favourite. In small patrols, Scouts carried all their gear for the weekend on their backs and navigated through the bush to complete activities along the way.
It’s been a term full of adventure, learning, and laughter. A big thank you to all the leaders, parents, and volunteers who made these activities possible. We’re excited to see what challenges and opportunities await us next term!
VENTURERS
VENTURERS
Bennettswood and Waverley Valley Fun Report
Since ARAP, our Venturers have enjoyed an action-packed and rewarding end to the year!
In Term 3, we proudly hosted the Whitehorse District Event, running a range of pioneering activities outside the Scout Hall. The chariot race was a clear favourite and wrapped up the night with lots of laughter and friendly competition. We also had two Venturers take part in Whitehorse Showtime, which was a fantastic achievement.
Term 4 kicked off with Boost, with one Venturer and two Scouts attending. We teamed up with the Waverley Valley Scout Group for a great weekend, with Scouts and Venturers jumping into exciting activities like kayaking and cycling.
We also visited the CFA with the Scouts and had a wonderful time learning about their equipment and how the CFA operates.
Our second Term 4 camp was a joint beach camp with the Scouts. We had an amazing turnout of 15 youth members! We stayed at The Pines and enjoyed plenty of time down at the beach.
This term has been full of fun joint nights too, including a hands-on science night with the Waverley Valley Scout Group, which everyone loved. We also joined the Bennettswood Cubs for a fun evening at the beach.
To round out the term, the Whitehorse District Event was an abseiling night—a fantastic opportunity for everyone to challenge themselves and learn new skills.
We finished the year with our final camp, Victoria Gathering, held at Bay Park. It was a wonderful way to wrap up the year, with plenty of time to relax, connect, and enjoy the wide range of activities the camp had to offer.
DATES FOR 2026
DATES FOR 2026
Thursday 29th January Cub Scouts resume
Wednesday 4th February Joey Scouts resume
Scouts resume
Venturers resume
Saturday 28th March Group Activity Day for all sections
Sunday 19th April Wattle Park Anzac Service
Wednesday 5th August 1st Bennettswood Annual Reports & Presentation evening
Monday 28th September Cuboree
to Friday 2nd October
Wednesday 9th December 1st Bennettswood Group Breakup
SAVE THE DATE!
Saturday 28th March 2026
Group Activity Day for all sections
Lots of great activities – we are negotiating to include abseiling in these
LEADERS & COMMITTEE
LEADERS & COMMITTEE
LEADERS
LEADERS
Joey Scout Leader Sarah Henley (Platypus)Asst Joey Scout Leader Erica Baddeley (Possum) Asst Joey Scout Leader Sheron Lau (Echidna)Asst Joey Scout Leader Shannon Nutt (Magpie)
Cub Scout Leader Tash Hughes (Akela) Asst Cub Scout Leader Mike Perkin (Bagheera)Asst Cub Scout Leader Jen Rowan (Ahdeek)Asst Cub Scout Leader Lyndal Bell (Raksha)Asst Cub Scout Leader Darren Bell (Rama)Asst Cub Scout Leader Connor Templeman (Kaa)
Asst Scout Leader Greg PerkinAsst Scout Leader Nick Rowan
Venturer Leader Tash LemaAsst Venturer Leader Will TwiningAsst Venturer Leader Kai Van Der Zweep
Rover Advisor Pete Dickson (Dicko)Rover Advisor Morris Orchard
(Hatfield RC)
Group Leader Sue Henley (Ikki)
COMMITTEE
COMMITTEE
Chairperson Brad GreerSecretary Amanda KelsallTreasurer Peter O’DonoghueMaintenance Daniel HeathQuartermaster Brad GreerPurchasing Officer Peter Trace
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