The Crosshouse Hospital group provides young people on the ward the chance to take part in fun activities
A scout and guide group that operates in a hospital is celebrating its 10-year anniversary.
The Crosshouse Hospital group, which began in March 2010, runs every Tuesday evening and provides young people on the ward the chance to take part in activities that are fun and inclusive for everyone.
Rowena Davis, a mum of one of the very first young people involved in the group, has said it was transformative for her son Rhys.
Rowena’s son Rhys was in Crosshouse Hospital in 2010 when the group began. Rhys, who has autism had no speech, limited verbal understanding and had been very unwell which had understandably caused a huge amount of stress for the family.
She said: “I remember that when the group began Rhys was too unwell to make it out of his bed. The volunteers came to sit with him and brought some activities. I don’t know how well he was able to participate at the time but the distraction was a success. It was the first time he had shown an interest in anything for a long time.
“One of the best things about it was their ability to include everyone in the ward, no matter what their difficulties were. The whole thing was transformative for Rhys, so much so that when he was discharged from the hospital, we decided that he should continue to go to the group.”
The family were living in Largs at the time and relied on volunteers from the group to take them on the 40-minute drive there and back. As well as being involved in the group at the hospital both Rhys and his brother Robin were invited to be part of Scout camps and activities taking place across Ayrshire.
“We are just so grateful to the wonderful people who gave their time and effort for Rhys to help raise his quality of life and to bring opportunities to both him and his brother and indeed me.”
The family moved from Largs to England in 2013 but both Rhys and his brother joined local scout groups and continued to enjoy the benefits closer to home.
The group at Crosshouse is run by volunteers from scouts and guides and hundreds of young people have experienced the fun and friendship at the sessions.
Amy Cochrane, aged 18 is a scout volunteer with the group, she said: “It’s incredible seeing children come out of their shell when the Scouts arrive, and I love to see young people go on to join local groups after they leave the hospital.”
Brian Goldie, a lead volunteer for scouts in Ayrshire, said: “It’s been amazing to see this group reach its 10th anniversary. There have been benefits for both the young people in this group and also the young people volunteering from the Scouts. We always have a huge waiting list of people who want to come and volunteer to be part of this group”
Scouts Scotland provides young people with fun, friendship and the skills they need for school, college, university, the job interview, the important speech, the tricky challenge and the big dreams: the skills they need for life.
