» Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Does Scouts Canada provide insurance for equipment? Example - a Troop borrows some canoes and one of them ends up damaged, could the replacement/repairs be claimed through Scouts Canada's insurance.

Answer:Scouts Canada does not provide insurance for equipment. That is the responsibility for individual groups to determine based on the value of their inventory. In most cases it is not worth the expense and groups can’t typically afford an annual insurance expense, but I guess that is the nature of insurance – to gamble on the future possibility of needing the coverage.

As for the debate that all property and equipment is Scouts Canada’s; that is true, however Scouts Canada does not collect a premium from its membership to pay for the type of insurance that would be needed. That would mean raising membership fees, and since some groups can afford certain luxuries while others can not, it would be unfair to tax all memberships equally.

A few years back, our insurance provider requested an accounting of all watercraft within the Groups, Areas and Councils within Scouts Canada. Of course Scouts Canada did not have a clue what we had, but the rationale from the insurance company’s point of view was not to assess equipment value, but to assess risk as they saw water activities as being a higher risk activity that could lead to future claims. Thankfully we dodged that bullet, or we would have likely seen our insurance premiums go up.

Question: When Adults are present at what age is a Youth considered an Adult and able to be the designated First Aider? It was discussed that when adults are present the responsibility can not be transferred to a Youth.

Answer: A youth is a youth by law until they turn 18. An adult can not defer overall accountability for a function (e.g. assigning a youth to be the primary first aid person). In BP&P Section 4000 it identifies in a number of places the emphasis on two-deep leadership (adults), at least on adult 21 years or older requirement, and the importance of taking training appropriate for their role. Below is an excerpt from BP&P that explains the circumstances quite clearly:

10002 FIRST AID: At least one adult has first aid training and first aid equipment appropriate for the activity and is designated as the "First Aider". If an adult is not present for any reason, a youth member must have first aid training and first aid equipment appropriate to the activity and be designated as the "First Aider".

The Leader/First Aider must have a method or plan for communications at all times.

The first sentence above clearly states that at least one leader.... The second sentence allows for youth (Venturers & Scouts) to camp on their own, but with the stipulation that one of them must be designated the "first aider". This would be to ensure that in the event of an incident, there would be reduced debate about who is in charge under such circumstances. Please note at no point does the policy indicate that an adult can defer their responsibility by allowing a youth to take on an adult expectation.

Question: Alcohol policy - Section 7001.9 reads as there is no alcohol allowed during any Program activity which includes meetings, etc. Does the policy apply to the following situations?

Answer: To best address the questions below, the following basic concepts regarding Scouts Canada’s Alcohol Po licy must be expressed and understood:

1. Scouts Canada will never say that alcohol is allowed under any circumstance, even if youth are not present.
2. The policy contains statements in the negative, meaning that it will only stipulate when and where alcohol it is not permitted.

• Do Program activities include Leader planning meetings and Group Committee meetings at which there are no Youth present?
  
  No. Scouts Canada recognizes planning meetings and group committee meetings as being important functions of Scouts Canada business, but they are not “Program” meetings, as much as they are administrative planning meetings. Serving of alcohol in someone’s home, licensed establishment, or any other place is not within the jurisdiction of Scouts Canada to control, and therefore will not be liable for any actions resulting there from. It is a personal choice of the individual regarding whether or not they partake of an alcoholic beverage.



• If alcohol in the above is allowed, does the wearing of a uniform alter the response?
  
  A qualified Yes (refer to bullet #1). Further to the answer in a) above, it is the responsibility of all members (adult and youth) that when in uniform, they behave in a manner that is consistent with the Principles of Scouting and do not place themselves in a position that may bring themselves and Scouting into disrepute. For those choosing to wear their uniform, consideration must be given to the situation that they may find themselves; and keep in mind that they are not just representing themselves, but an entire organization. As a member of Scouts Canada, you are given the privilege to wear the uniform, and therefore have accepted the heavy responsibility to representing Scouting in Canada.



• If planning meetings or adult get togethers are held in a public place, example a bar or restaurant should the uniform be worn?
  
  Scouts Canada has no opinion as to the location of meeting such as planning meetings and adult get togethers, except to say that due consideration must be given by all Scouting members to behave in manner that does not bring the reputation of Scouting into disrepute as it pertains to being in public. If the public location of the meeting implies the possibility of drinking alcohol, then it is best to err on the side of caution and not wear the uniform, even if you do not plan to drink, but others in your group might.



• Why was there alcohol allowed at the Governor General's reception? I believe there was mention of it at the Gala as well.
  
  It was not a Scouts Canada event. Scouting members were being invited by the Governor General, along with many other citizens. Scouts Canada would have no right or expectation to tell the GG what she should do for her awards event.

7001.9 Alcohol Use:

1. There shall be no alcohol or recreational drug/substance consumed or made available on any Scout property – owned or leased.
2. There shall be no alcohol or recreational drug/substance consumed or made available during any Program activity. “Program activities” include meetings, camps, hikes, training programs (Wood Badge, workshops, etc), Scouters conferences, “Scout Night” with sports teams and similar functions.
3. No person shall consume alcohol or any other recreational drug/substance within a timeframe that would negatively affect his/her ability to carry out a duty of care.
4. There shall be no exclusion of youth from any Scouting activity so alcohol or recreational drugs/substances may be consumed by adult members.

Question: BP&P Section 11003 (v) states "Section or group accounts must....." Individual sections within a Group are allowed to have their own bank accounts, correct?

Answer Yes, Sections can have an account. Sections are accountable to the Group Commissioner to spend the monies under their control in a responsible manner. To ensure that this is the case, they are responsible for regularly reporting their financial activities monthly, as well as provide a year-end accounting that must be audited by the Group Treasurer. Sections that maintain banking accounts are in a better position to report on their financial transactions throughout the year.

It is the responsibility of the Group Commissioner to ensure that financial practices are put in place within the Sections to ensure that an accurate reporting is possible.

Question: Is there a minimum age for a Group Treasurer?

Answer: 18 years of age as long as they are the right person for the role, and have passed Scouts Canada’s volunteer screening. Less than 18 they are a youth and should not be given the expectation to be responsible for the Group or Section funds. They can’t be held accountable like an adult can.

Question:In the event that an incident/accident happens and an Adult or Youth are injured and have not been required to complete a Hold Harmless Agreement are they covered by Scouts Canada's insurance?

Answer:It will depend on the specific circumstances and the insurer will decide. However, if we start allowing non-members to be involved in our activities, we will be jeopardizing our insurance program.

Clarification as to the use of the Individual Release and Hold-Harmless Agreement.

1. A regular meeting at our regular meeting locations, non-members are not required to complete any paperwork except perhaps to sign-in on an attendance list with the name of the youth, parent and phone number. We do this for our Open Houses. This would apply to Friendfest, bring-a-buddy nights, and the 2-day trial period. For things like Bring-A-Buddy night where a Parent/Guardian of a member youth may bring a neighbour’s child, they have the authority to sign the youth in. Our insurance provider understands the purpose of “sampling” our programs to interested individuals and do not view our regular meetings at our regular meeting locations as a high risk.
2. Non-members are not permitted to attend ANY camp or outing (e.g. camping trip, day trip – Saturday at the park or hiking; field trip from the regular meeting location – tour of Fire Station), unless:
   1. As a parent/guardian of a current “active” member, they fall under one of the categories of the Screening Level Chart.
      Paperwork: Physical Fitness Certificate (I understand this could be a pain, but in the event of a medical situation where the Parent becomes incapacitated, it is unreasonable to rely on the youth to provide the necessary information.)
   2. As a youth of an active Leader, it is understood that they are to be included in the ratio and are treated in a manner that is in accordance as though they are a member, but they remain the responsibility of the parent/guardian. The circumstance for this youth to attend MUST first be discussed and agreed by the Leadership team and possibly the Group Commissioner to determined that it is acceptable and appropriate for the activity (e.g. 6 year old child of Leader going tobogganing at the local hill with the Cub Pack = likely appropriate; 9 year old brother of Scout going winter camping, whose parent is also a Leader = highly inappropriate. There may be circumstances beyond the control of the Leader that could negatively affect the entire Section’s activity, if the child of the Leader was not accommodated in some way within reason. (For example: My wife has to go away on an unexpected business trip and can’t be home with their other child, and there is no one on such short notice that can take him. If he doesn’t go with the Section, I (the Leader) will need to stay home, which will create a shortage of leadership, and therefore the planned camping trip may have to be cancelled.)
      Paperwork: Physical Fitness Certificate, Hold Harmless Agreement
   3. As a sibling of an “active” member, but parent/guardian is also a non-member. Scouts Canada is under no obligation to accommodate programming opportunities for non-member siblings; and should not be providing the rewards and benefits of membership if they are not members. Non-member siblings of member siblings are not permitted to go camping or other like activities (e.g. hiking) unless they fall within point b) above.
      Paperwork: n/a
   4. If an activity is deemed to be family-focused (e.g. tobogganing, Section/Group BBQ, Section Halloween or Christmas Party, etc.) and is not on Scouts Canada owned property then it is understood that the non-member youth remains the responsibility of the Parent/Guardian. This can be expressed in the memos/handouts that go home with the members. Important: This would mean that Parents would either need to be in attendance, or they have sent their child with the Parent/Guardian of another youth member. (see #1 above)
      Paperwork: none
   Note: An adult not falling under any one of the 3 categories on the Screening Level Chart (Parent/Guardian, Resource person, Leader), have no reason to be on our properties and therefore no reason to fill out the Hold Harmless Agreement because they do not fall under the jurisdiction of Scouts Canada and should not be there at all. Depending on the environment (e.g. school gym, Scouts Canada property, etc., verses a public park), Scouts Canada should have a reasonable expectation of control of those around them. For example, if the Cub Pack meets in the gym and a strange adult is standing in the corner watching and they are not a parent/guardian, Resource person, or Leader, then we have every right to ask them to leave and/or take the necessary steps to see to their removal. Obviously the same can not be said for public places.
   5. Non-members provided an opportunity to participate in an activity that has a degree of risk require the Hold Harmless Agreement (e.g. a rock climbing wall being use to promote Scouting at a Mall parking lot; a rope-bridge at a community fair). On occasion, Scouting will develop an idea or concept to promote Scouting to non-members on a “try-this-and-maybe-you-will-want-to-join” basis. In situations such as these, parents/guardians of non-members MUST complete the Hold Harmless Agreement before they are permitted to try the activity. We have done this at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto with a climbing wall a few years back; and we were prepared to do something similar with a rope bridge at the International Plowing Match.

   As a final thought:

   There will always be a challenge in determining when enough due diligence has been applied in light of any given situation. We can never provide concrete black and white examples of what to do when, because that will only apply to those examples. We have a tendency to swing the risk management pendulum too hard in one direction for fear of not doing enough to protect ourselves. I would caution taking the position that it is just safer to ask for everyone to fill out every piece of paper for every activity that you are not sure of. When you are not sure, it is better to ask the question of what paperwork is required than to enforce what may otherwise be unnecessary administration on paper-weary parents and leaders. Hopefully the above categories help resolve some of the questions.

   Regardless of whether or not a person is a member of Scouting, if we allow people to participate in our programs we have always taken the stance that Scouts Canada will be accountable for what we do, which is in keeping with our Principles. We have to balance this position by taking reasonable due diligence in the development of safe programming and the determination of who participates in them. As much as we would like to be everything to everyone- we unfortunately can not.