'Save our colony'.

That's the message from a group of youngsters who fear for the future of their group and want a new person to lead them.

To make their point and by way of issuing a plea to the community, Beavers Scouts from 1st Charmouth staged their own 'Extinction Rebellion' demonstration during a visit to Hogchester Farm by making and holding up a series of banners designed to help them find a new leader and avoid the closure of their colony.

Each contained the words necessary to spell out 'Please help save us from extinction'. Unfortunately, their current leader is stepping down and, as no-one has come forward to take over, the colony is set to close at the end of July.

Joint Group Scout Leader Karen Southcott said: “This is a great opportunity for someone to make a really valuable contribution to the local community. The 16-strong colony of six to eight year olds has two regular adult helpers and lots of parents who help at weekly meetings, so we only really need someone to coordinate them."

She added: “No experience is necessary - just a desire to work with young people – and there is no upper age limit, so it might appeal to a recent retiree or a grandparent. Alternatively, it could be a younger adult looking to get volunteering or youth work on their CV.

“New leaders will benefit from participating in an award-winning online and hands-on training scheme, helping them to develop practical skills like First Aid and transferable assets such as communication and leadership.”

“To help plan activities, any new leader would have access to over five year's worth of previous programmes plus the full support of the other leaders and helpers within the Scout Group.”

Anyone interested should contact Karen on 07799 500720 or email karen.southcott@btinternet.com so they can come along and find out just how rewarding working with Beavers can be.

You can support the 80+ Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers by making a donation via this Easyfundraising link: https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/1stcharmouthscouts/