Dear Johnnie, I know you won’t appreciate me calling you that, but it’s how I think of you, my younger self. You’re 14 right now. I’m 40 years older. I’m writing this letter to you because a colleague at work has suggested that I provide you with some advice that might help you to become…
Anyone involved in Scouting will tell you that it’s an organisation that puts great store by its history. I’m proud to have played a small part in a particularly special chapter. The story starts at the 3rd World Scout Jamboree, held at Arrowe Park, Merseyside in the United Kingdom, ninety years ago in 1929. 30,000…
1. Your Excellency, Nana Akufo-Addo, President of the Republic, Commander-In-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces and Patron of the Head of State Award Scheme – Ghana, 2. Your Royal Highness, Prince Edward, The Earl of Wessex and Chairman of The Duke of Edinburgh Award’s Foundation. 4. Hon. Ministers 5. Trustees, Fellows and The International Council,…
“Soft skills” are in the news at the moment. A quick Google search for media articles on the subject comes up with about 164,000 results. LinkedIn defines them as the skills that are “less tangible and harder to quantify, such as etiquette, getting along with others, listening and engaging in small talk.” Soft skills are…
It’s the beginning of the school year, in England at least. 50 years ago, I was just starting school at Eaton House, on Eaton Square in Westminster – the same pre-prep school as Bear Grylls, as it happens, though he was there some time after me. My uniform included a green blazer, green cap and…
They sharpened their pencils when they were 7. They sucked on the ends of their Berol handwriting pens in the summer of their last year of primary school. Today, thousands of sixteen-year-olds in England are getting the results to their GCSEs. If you know someone who’s going to be making that trip to school to…
This year’s theme for International Youth Day is “Safe Spaces for Youth”. It’s a timely reminder to us all in the education and youth sectors worldwide that we have a responsibility to work in partnership with young people to ensure that they can develop and thrive in environments that are free from discrimination, harassment, or…
For all my teacher friends, whether finishing their first year in the classroom or their thirty-first… Have a wonderful summer holiday. I Didn’t Know I didn’t know that years of school and a university degree would be of little consolation when facing a room full of bright little eyes on the first day of school….
From when I was fourteen until I took my ‘A’ levels before leaving school, I was taught English by a teacher named Peter Despres. He was assiduous, inspirational and had the highest of aspirations for every one of his pupils. He got me to love Shakespeare (not hard), Jane Austen (even easier a task), Wordsworth…
The UK Scout Association (The Scouts) has announced a new strategy today. And, along with the strategy, it’s announced a new corporate visual identity. The old ‘swoosh’ has gone, to be replaced by what I think is a more contemporary treatment of the iconic arrowhead / fleur-de-lis. I’m always sorry to say goodbye to an…