2nd Penrith Scout Group currently has around 80 young members aged between 6 and 14 over 3 sections: Beavers, Cubs and Scouts. 

They are a very active Scout Group and are always actively getting involved in a wide range of activities. One of the scout groups main activities this year was their group family camp held at Ratlingate Campsite near Carlisle. Over the weekend they took part in activities such as raft building and archery. The Scout section has also taken part in an expedition challenge walking from Settle to Ribblehead. They have hosted a joint camp with Appleby and Shap Scouts at Great Tower Scout Activity Centre near Windermere, which gave the scouts the opportunity to make new friends and work with different people.

The Scout Group wanted to take 9 of the Scouts to an international Jamboree this summer for 1 week. Whilst away, they will be taking part in adventurous activities and also have the chance to meet over 3,000 from around the world. The cost to do this was £500 which the Scout Group were fundraising for. Epic Kidz has donated £500 to the Scout Group to enable them to attend the Jamboree and allowing them to concentrate on their many other fundraising activities so they can repair their old scout hut boiler and update their dining shelters.

The Explorer section within the Scout Association is for young people between the ages of 14 and 18 and the Association aims to provide the youth members with opportunities for excitement, challenge and adventure in all its forms.

Keswick Scout Group has a close connection with the Stella Maris College Scout Group in Malta and for the last five years they have taken a group of 12 to 15 Explorers on a week long scuba diving trip; some as complete beginners; some returning to develop their skills training. All the Explorers pay for their scuba training, however the cost of the travel, accommodation and catering  whilst staying at the Island Scout Headquarters in Malta soon adds up. These trips meet the aims of scouting, broaden horizons and also provide an opportunity for our young people learn about others countries, cultures and history.

Epic Kidz have donated £500 towards the Keswick Scouts Malta trip to help with the costs of travel and accommodation.

Keswick Scouts said “very many thanks for the £500 donation. The funds will help to make the forthcoming October half-term trip a memorable one for all involved.”

We would like to thank everyone that took part at the Ullswater Epic Lakes Swim Village Fete in making it a huge success. The Fete and Epic Kidz raised a staggering £2500 on the day which will be donated to the Glenridding Community Flood Fund and Patterdale C of E School. The money will be greatly received and will be used to buy much need equipment.

One of the biggest challenges following storm Desmond is the restoration of Jenkins Field, which will take many months of hard work. Over 20,000 tonnes of gravel and stone was removed from Glenridding Beck following the storm and it was all put on Jenkins Field.

The community flood group are now focusing on the removal of all the storm debris and then restoring the field to its former glory.

Epic Kidz has donated £10,000, raised from Montane Lakeland 50 & 100 entries, to the Lake District Search and Rescue Mountain Association (LDSARMA).

The LDSARMA is the umbrella body for mountain rescue teams in Cumbria and is a registered charity solely funded by voluntary contributions.

Over the last few years the LDSARMA have recovered climbers from precipitous crags, reunited lost walkers with their friends and ensured injured and sick casualties have been treated and transported into vital hospital care. They have also searched for and found missing children and vulnerable adults, on and off the hills. They have searched river banks and swift water, aiding swimmers as well as rescuing great number of dogs, cows, sheep and any number of other animals, from all manner of inaccessible places.

The LDSARMA do all of this whilst continuing to practise and hone their skills in first aid and casualty care, technical rope work, water rescue, search management, maintaining their bases, equipment and vehicles.

It costs a tremendous amount to fund a mountain rescue team – one vehicle alone costs upwards of £35,000. But there is also a very large overhead in the running and replacement costs for items such as rope, which must be replaced after a given time, even if they have not been used.

The donation will be equally distributed to its 12 member teams and will go towards helping the financial security of the Mountain Rescue Teams.