As Baden Powell said “The Scout Law is the foundation on which the whole of scout training rests.” Throughout the Scouting world young people and adults make a commitment to live by a simple code of principles.

The making of this promise introduces them to the worldwide brotherhood of Scouting, which united by these common values, is proving its worth in its second century by engaging with all of the major challenges young people face.

Recognising this, Scouting Ireland’s National Youth Programme Team has declared 2009 as the Scouting Ireland Year of the Promise and Law, in an effort to recognise the centrality of committing to a common set of beliefs.

Over the coming months a number of initiatives will be launched to provide the challenge of understanding the role of the Scout Promise and Law in the lives of scouts individually and in their Venture Scout Group.

THE SCOUT PROMISE
On my honour I promise that I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country, to help other people at all times and to obey the Scout Law.

THE SCOUT LAW
1. A Scout’s honour is to be trusted.
2. A Scout is loyal
3. A Scout’s duty is to be useful to help others.
4. A Scout is a friend to all and a brother to every other Scout.
5. A Scout is courteous.
6. A Scout is a friend to animals.
7. A Scout obeys orders of his parents, patrol leader or Scoutmaster without question.
8. A Scout smiles and whistles under all difficulties.
9. A Scout is thrifty.
10. A Scout is clean in thought, word and deed.

Above: ‘A Scout smiles and whistles under all difficulties’. From ‘The Scouting Trail’ (1964).

In 1907 Major General Robert Baden-Powell of Gilwell took twenty boys on camp to Brownsea Island, near Poole Harbour, Dorset. He was trying out an idea that had grown in his mind over many years.

At Brownsea Island he saw that his idea of Scouting worked and in 1908 he published ‘Scouting for Boys’ in fortnightly parts. At once, all over England, boys took up the idea and formed their own Patrols. Then they asked grown-ups to give a hand, so the Scout Association was founded in 1908.

Because Royal Charter protected this Association, no other Scout group could be started in Ireland until independence was granted. Though a few individual Catholic Scout groups existed earlier, it was not until 1927 that the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland (Later changed to Scouting Ireland (CSI)) was founded by Father Tom Farrell.

Scouting Ireland is the National Association for Ireland and a member of the World Organisation of The Scout Movement. Scouting Ireland was founded on 1st January 2004 from the two original Scout associations in Ireland, Scouting Ireland SAI and Scouting Ireland CSI. It has over 40,000 members, on all parts of the island.