Woodcraft folk

Well now I’m really intrigued, I’ve actually got one very close by!!

@Goosefoot

Yeah many of the boys I knew who went to army cadets signed up to military/navy later on. I know lots of people now who's older kids go to sea cadets. Mine aren't old enough yet but I'm going to struggle to keep my boys away from free camping! We are definitely poor, so can't afford to take them camping myself (maybe I will iN a few years though)

Army, sea and air cadets seemed to be quite working class though or kids who's family had a military background

Lots of independent schools have cadet forces too.

I just looked for the city I work in and the town I live now, and the town I lived in as a child (I attended as a child). No groups now. Lots of hits in Sussex.
By the way, one “competitor” scouting, has changed since I was a child so most groups will be for both sexes and vegans are probably fed on camp without fuss.

I'm not sure middle class is even right. Just alternative/hippy really

It's a crusty middle class thing where I am, usually vegan types who claim they're poor despite living in huge houses in the most middle class areas of the city. Infact, all the woodcraft folk groups are in the very middle class areas and army/navy cadets are in the very poor areas.

It is anti militaristic, for peace, for inclusion.

Doesn't aligning with an authoritarian quasi-religious ideology conflict with this?

By 'mixed sex' do you mean that children share all sleeping and washing facilities? Because if not, going trans would make a difference.

My DC are spread across two groups, for various reasons. One is definitely not MC, very underprivileged kids go there and get their only holidays a year through the various camps. The other one more mixed class wise. Maybe a reflection of geographic area. It is anti militaristic, for peace, for inclusion. I don't see this policy as in contradiction with all that.

I went a few times in the 1970's with my Grandad who I think had been quite involved when he was a young man.
DD tried out our local group but it required parents to help out on a regular basis and it was a day I couldn't do and DH decided that the group was a bit too wild and feral for him! It was definitely a group with many free spirits in it

I just assumed it was s kind of exclusive wealthy person thing. But you seem to be offended by that notion so I’ll go back to my assumption that I live under a rock

I didn't mean to bite.....but so often on this board people get written off or dismissed as " middle class" - and it usually a put down, a bit like accusations of " white privilege" .

I've lived in quite various parts of the U.K, and am now back in my home city of Liverpool ( where there was a Woodcraft branch in the early 1980's- I know because a friend's children attended), and What is seen as 'middle class' really depends on your perspective; your location, and also to an extent one's political ideology.

To me it is higher education/self education and the cultures that arise from that are what tends to make someone 'middle class' these days. Not necessarily a background of privilege or wealth.

I too recall woodcraft folk from the 80s/90s, back then it seemed v middle class and “woke”. It was mixed sex. I don’t recall whether they did overnight trips: if they now do and my DC attended would be asking Qs!

I do have children abs I’ve honeatly never heard of it. My son goes to Beavers, I’ve also seen and heard of Sea Cadets and other military children’s groups but I’ve never hear of this Woodfolk thing outside of here. I just assumed it was s kind of exclusive wealthy person thing. But you seem to be offended by that notion so I’ll go back to my assumption that I live under a rock.

Dr Em’s comment is here
mobile.twitter.com/PankhurstEM/status/1275513324877361153

Geez they completely just ignored all the info didnt they and just parent the "script"

Background checks are out of fashion now I presume ?

I went to a group as a teenager circa 1998-2000;it was at the time a very middle class thing.I Unfortunately was bullied mercilessly by some of the kids in the group because I lived in a council house on a council estate.Some of the parents of these kids complained because I was admitted to the group because I wasn't from their area (quite an affluent area).

I also got deemed a slag because of my background and yet most of the bitches in the group that deemed me that had literally snogged&been groped by most of the boys in the group.

Army, sea and air cadets seemed to be quite working class though or kids who's family had a military background

Middle class people I knew went horse riding, violin lessons and tennis lessons, that kind of thing. Maybe brownies when younger. The only people who I have met who have been to woodcraft were dirt poor vegans

I'm not sure middle class is even right. Just alternative/hippy really.

I went to WF occasionally as a child. Not middle class. Although it might have drifted more that way - it's been around a long time but perhaps much less well known than Brownies, cadets, etc.
It's mixed sex anyway so trans inclusion is going to be less problematic than a single sex club.

I used to take DS to woodies and they don't separate the sexes on camp anyway so I don't see why they need to do this other than virtue signalling.
At the last camp we went to the oldest group ran the camp and their theme was inspirational young people. They had laminated photos of young people tied to trees etc around the camp with a blurb about them - Malala Yousefzai was one, but I was stunned that out of about 10 YP 2 of them were trans (jazz Jennings and that marvel superhero actor) and obviously both males. Proper organisational capture/virtue signalling spiral.

They're certainly not in every town round here. I'm in West Sussex and there's one in the whole county! Far too far from me for my kids to attend. The nearest one is actually in Surrey. There seem to be lots in Brighton though.

It was something I looked into when mine were younger, but as I said, not local enough. Mine all went to scouts instead.

But I've never known anyone go to those junior military things - air and sea cadets (is there an army one?) and didn't know as a child that they existed. So I suspect that's a narrow social bubble thing really

My son was in the army cadets ( he's an adult now, though) His school ran a branch. I'm in Liverpool, and I see quite a number of children in both army and navy cadets.

My brother went to woodcraft folk when he was a kid. I'm sure it was mixed sex anyway. So why would "trans inclusion" even be an issue?

I see there are guidelines on including trans adult leaders. THAT is where the problem here lies. If some adult needs to make a song and dance about their gender as a kids activity group leader, that's surely sign they're in the wrong place.