Skip to main content

Volunteering at Scouts is changing to help us reach more young people

Volunteering is changing to help us reach more young people

Volunteering is changing at Scouts. Read more

Discover what this means

Activities for understanding crises

Learn about international crises, welcome new members and make a difference.

We’ve gathered together activities from our Scouts Activity Finder, with some created with British Red Cross and Save the Children UK, to help support young people that are impacted by crisis around the globe.

Grief and bereavement

We know that young people may experience grief and bereavement in relation to international crises. 

Take a look at our guidance on bereavement support, including links to specialist bereavement support organisations

Some activities include:

Wellbeing

We all know how important it is to look after ourselves, so why not try an activity with wellbeing in mind? 

Some activities include:

Take a look at our blog on how to be kind to yourself.

Talking about conflict or natural disasters

We know global crises, such as conflict or natural disasters, can be difficult for us all, but talking about what’s happening can help.

See our discussion guide to help you use Scout values while talking about these subjects.

Some activities include:

Take a look at our blog about welcoming refugees and displaced children in Scouts.

Peace

Peace is all about friendship, harmony and a lack of conflict, but how do we talk about this with our young people?

Some activities include:

  • Plan an event in your local area to raise awareness of the issues refugees and displaced children face.
  • Explore how it feels to be on the receiving end of differential treatment in Equity spaghetti.
  • Explore a story of peace from Islam and learn about the black stone, with a balloon-balancing activity.

Take a look at what World Organisation of the Scout Movement (WOSM)  have to say about Peace. You can also find activities to explore and promote peace in WOSM’s Dialogue for Peace resources: Choose your activities | World Scouting

Be kind

Try out some of our kindness-based activities to show that a little love and compassion will go a long way to making the world a better place.

Some activities include:

Faith Activities

When they go through difficult times, lots of people find comfort, help and support in their faith or belief. Why not run some activities to learn about different faiths and beliefs?

Some activities include:

Celebrating cultures in crisis

Learn about different cultures from around the world. Use our discussion guide to help you use Scout values while talking about conflict.

Palestinian

Some activities to try:

Israeli

Some activities to try:

Supporting refugees

Some activities to try:

  • Make a kindness jar to show someone how much you care about them.
  • Get thinking practically about young people’s experiences when they flee their home because of a conflict, what would you take?
  • Can you think critically and challenge the headlines to build empathy for people affected by conflict? - Kind news
  • If you want to get more involved and take part in a community impact project check out our supporting refugees page created in partnership with Save the Children.
British Red Cross Teaching Resources

Explore British Red Cross’ free teaching and learning resources to help connect human crisis with human kindness.

Discover the resources >