The district team is made up of volunteers - people with jobs and families, and in several cases a group to run as well. A few of us hold named roles. Most of the work, though, is done by small teams that anyone can join, for as much or as little time as they have.
Who Leads the District
| Role | Who |
|---|---|
| District Lead Volunteer | Paul Whitefoot |
| District Chair | Sonja Fisken |
| District Treasurer | Matthew Spence |
The District Lead Volunteer is responsible for supporting Scouting across the district, working with the Group Lead Volunteers and reporting to the Region. The Chair and the Treasurer sit on our Trustee Board, which looks after the district as a charity - the money, the buildings and the rules we all work to.
Join the Trustee Board
Every Scout district is a charity, and every charity needs trustees. Our board aims to meet monthly and in practice sits six to eight times a year, making sure the district is run properly: that the money is looked after, that Dalneigh Scout Hall is maintained and insured, that we meet our safeguarding and legal duties, and that the district is heading somewhere sensible.
We have two vacancies on the board at the moment, and we are glad to hear from people at any time.
You do not need to have been a Scout, and you will not be asked to run a section. Trustees are often parents, former members, or simply local people who want to help. What we particularly value is ordinary professional experience:
- Finance or accounts - helping us keep on top of the district’s money
- Property, building or trades - we own a hall, and it needs looking after
- Law, HR or governance - charity duties, policies, and getting things right first time
- Fundraising, grants or marketing - because most of what we do costs something
- None of the above, but a few hours and some common sense - genuinely enough
If you would like to know more before committing to anything, email info@scoutsinverness.org.uk and come along to a meeting as an observer first. Nobody will sign you up on the night.
Join a District Team
Beyond the Trustee Board, the district runs on small teams. Each one has a job, a season and an end - none of them is a weekly commitment, and you can help with one thing without being signed up to everything.
Scout Post
Our own Christmas card delivery service, run every year. We sell our own stamps, cards go into our yellow post boxes around the city, and our Cubs, Scouts, Explorers and Network members sort and deliver them across Inverness. All of it raises money for local Scouting - and it takes a lot of adults to make it work.
The Monopoly Run
A full-day, city-wide team challenge run jointly with Girlguiding. Teams of four to six set off from Dalneigh Scout Hall, visit “properties” across Inverness, complete challenges and race the clock back to GO. Held twice so far and returning in May 2027 - it needs a core team beforehand and adults out across the city on the day.
District Events
District camps, skill days, and section events - dodgeball tournaments, Halloween parties, and Patrol Leader and Assistant Patrol Leader training camps. Most need a handful of adults for a single day or weekend rather than anyone year-round.
Hall Maintenance
Keeping Dalneigh Scout Hall in good order - small repairs, decorating, the grounds, and the occasional working party. Practical, finite, and immediately visible when it is done.
There is more besides: the equipment store, the district calendar, the website, and helping the Trustee Board review grant applications. If you have a skill you would like to use, or an evening a month you would like to spend well, email info@scoutsinverness.org.uk and we will find something that fits.
Getting Started
Every adult in Scouting is appointed through a process that includes references, a disclosure check and mandatory safeguarding training - we will walk you through all of it. Nobody expects you to arrive knowing how it works.