Mersey Weaver District feature in the September edition of “Inside Halton”, the article reads:
Halton’s Scouting district has been honoured with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award given to volunteer groups across the UK for outstanding work done in their local communities.
The award, to be presented in November, was made to Mersey Weaver District Scout Council in recognition of its work in ‘helping young people achieve personal development skills through events and activities’. Mersey Weaver was formed in January by the merger of North West Cheshire and Widnes Districts, and covers Widnes, Runcorn and surrounding areas. The award recognises the contribution of the leaders and adults working with their local communities to provide a wide range of opportunities for young people to develop while enjoying the adventure of scouting.
District Commissioner John Duley commented that this was a great honour in particular as it had been award in the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year and that everyone in the district should take great pride in the award and the service that it reflects.

“To say that we are thrilled to recieve this award would be a huge understatement. A vast amount of work goes on every weeek to provide young people with fun and adventerous activies, work that is provided entirely on a voluntary basis by a dedicated team of adult helpers, we are extremely proud of what this award represents and are delighted to have been honoured in this way.”

County Commissioner Graham Phillips added:

“This is very special recognition made all the more impressive because it was recommeneded by people in the community who directly benefit from the hard work of all the volunteers involved in scouting in the local area. All those who live in Widnes, Runcorn and the surrounding areas can be very proud of the acheivement which is directly impproving the life chances of young people, it might even inspire more adults to volunteer and help build on the success and join one of the most successful youth organisations in the area.”

In order to be nomination, volunteer groups should do work that:

  • Provides a service and meets a need for people living in the local community
  • is supported, recognised and respected by the local community and the people who benefit from it
  • is run locally

Mersey Weaver District has more than 1,200 members and of those, some 260 are adult volunteers. The District was congratulated by Cllr Phil Harris of Halton Borough Council who said:

The award from the Queen to our local Scouting movement is an apt testimony to the hard work and dedication of volunteers who richly deserve recognition for their efforts with young people across the community, Halton Council has been working in partnership with Scouting for many years now and will continue to do so wherever we can.