Chief Scout Bear Grylls presents Scouts highest honour to young Portsmouth Scouts

Chief Scout Bear Grylls honoured nearly 300 Scouts from all around the country with their Queen’s Scout awards.

They were presented with the award at Windsor Castle on April 24 and joined by Scout Ambassadors Ellie Simmonds, Tim Peake, Chief Scout Bear Grylls and a lord-lieutenant representing the Queen in front of family and friends in a celebration of achievement.

The Queen’s Scout Award is the highest honour in Scouting and is awarded for outstanding personal achievement, the honour is achieved by young people aged between 16-25.

To complete their award they took part in a series of personal challenges and expeditions over the course of a few years.

These include a service to their community, completing an expedition in wild country, undertaking a five-day residential project in a new environment and developing upon existing or new skills.

Adam Turner, from Fratton, and Beth Truin, from Clanfield, were just two of nearly 300 new Queen’s Scouts receiving their awards on Sunday.

As an active Scouts and Squirrel leader and District youth commissioner, Adam has been a member of the Scouts since age 10, and began working towards the Queen’s Scout Award when he was just 17.

After completing a range of challenges including canoeing down the River Wye, and being awarded in 2020, 22-year-old Adam had long-awaited the ceremony which was originally postponed due to Covid-19.

Adam said: ‘It was quite an amazing experience, very gratifying that all the hard work finally amounted to something.’

‘It’s quite an honour, I think I’ll be a Scout for the rest of my life,’ he added.

Scout volunteers contribute more than 50 million hours of voluntary work each year to their local communities.  

Chief Scout Bear Grylls said: ‘Queen’s Scout award recipients are the absolute pinnacle of determination, grit and perseverance.

‘These Scouts are an inspiration to all others around the world thanks to their hard work and I find myself full of admiration for every single one of them.’