Adapting expedition for ASD Scout

[LookingForSomeIdeas]

Hi,

I wondered if I could ask for ideas on a Scouting question?

My DS would like to complete his Chief Scout Badge. However, he is ASD/cPTSD, he has had a very hard time through the covid period. He has just stopped attending school and switched to EOTAS because of panic attacks (which was extremely stressful). He now cannot manage the expedition because of severe anxiety.

The leaders have waived the need for the 8 nights of camping, but cannot waive the expedition. He has completed everything else for the Chief Scout badge as per the normal rules.

We have suggested a shorter expedition in the local area that would be a genuine challenge for DS. Also that he would do all the camping part of the expedition except that he would come home to sleep over night, but they think that is not enough.

I wondered if anybody might know what we should suggest as an acceptable shorter expedition? I read recently that the scout movement are modifying the Explorers section to take account of the fact that a lot of scouts find it very hard to do nights away for a variety of reason, especially post-covid, but there has been no mention of this with regard to the Gold Chief Scout Badge.

DS is really upset about it because he has been in the scout movement since age 7 and got his Bronze and Silver Chief Scout badges. He has worked so hard for all the steps to this Gold badge, often in isolation through the lockdowns, and he kept going to scouts even when he couldn't go to school because of crippling panic attacks. He really wants to achieve the badge, but doesn't want to compromise his already shaky MH by driving himself through an expedition that would be psychologically far too much for him at this point.

I wondered if anybody might know what we should do? The leaders have said they will get in touch with the accessibility officer, but they are very busy and progress is extremely slow and DS is finding the negotiations excruciating. DS has 2 more months in Scouts.

Thanks!

I am a lead volunteer for a scout group. Could you or a parent not be put through a DBS check so you and he could stay together in a tent?
So your DS does the same expedition, but at the designated camp sites you are there with the other leaders? The scouts put up the tents and cook for themselves, the only thing you do is sleep in a tent and he joins you in your tent.
my own scout aged daughter is ASD, I have gone on camps where I have my own tent so if she needs to transplant to my tent and sleep there she can. We’ve been doing this all the way through Cubs (since Covid) and at the last scout camp she stayed in the tent woth the scouts.

Also, if the regular check in points are more frequent, it won’t be too far to hike before they meet a leader.

Totally agree with PP.
this is not unusual at all and can be easily managed by parent getting their DBS and being a volunteer on camp too. Then either he has an individual tent to decompress or can share with you. Or sleeps with other scouts knowing he can move to a quieter/more supported space if needed.
these are adaptations we would very easily add in at our group.

Thanks for commenting. We did try that but the cPTSD means that sleeping out in the dark is absolutely out of the question for him at the moment. It was okay when he was in beavers and cubs but secondary school has kind of ruined him, I'm sorry to say. It's going to take quite some time to recover.

I did think about travelling with him, but they propose a 2 hour train journey and I have health problems post-covid myself that mean I couldn't manage that.

I kind of wondered if it might be an option to do an exploration rather than an expedition. I'm not sure if that is within the rules.

https://www.scouts.org.uk/volunteers/running-your-section/programme-guidance/information-for-volunteers/expeditions-and-explorations/

It’s absolutely fine under the badge wording for the expedition challenge badge that it’s a hostel etc rather than a campsite. Would this help at all in terms of being able to have a light on?

I am a Scout Leader and I would say that he could do an exploration and the night away doesn't have to be a tent it can be in a hostel (and I would certainly say that included sleeping in a Scout hut or building on a campsite) Would that be something he could do?

Thanks, I actually hadn't realised that an exploration would be okay. I just looked back at the wording and I see that that is explicitly included in the wording of the badge. That really helps a lot. Thanks!

I'm not sure if sleeping indoors would help. I know he is very worried about sleeping out with the other scouts in case they are telling ghost stories, and that would be just as bad indoors. However, the leaders did say they didn't mind if he went home to sleep.

Possibly they could do an exploration and come home to sleep? I haven't asked that. Maybe that would be okay?

It’s always worth asking :)
I would wonder though if he were able to stay at the same indoor venue as the others sharing a room with you whether he could see that’s its fine to go to bed early/not join in ghost stories and still have the experience of the ‘night away’ but under his own control joining as much or as little as he can but getting the late night hot chocolate/smores etc and whether that could be really affirming for him

hope it all goes really well whatever shape it ends up being. You both sound fantastic

Do you think it would be okay to go to a hostel and share a room with parents rather than scouts? I think that might be doable. It's fantastically complicated because I can't go near LED lights and DS and I both have extremely difficult exlusion diets. We can manage self-catering houses where we can take a lamp but it would be fantastically complicated taking me as well as him to a shared hostel of any kind.

Ds definitely couldn't enjoy the hot chocolate right now as milk, suger and chocolate give him literally paralysing panic attacks. It's awful what's happened to him just in the last few months. He was working really quite well before.

Thank you very much for the kindness and encouragement.

Do you think it would be acceptable if he did an exploration with scouts from another scout troop? We might be able to find some through our home education community and they would have more time than the school scouts in his own troop.

Also do you think it would be okay if he walked for 90 minutes and we all stayed over in plumbed in caravans in a caravan site, with each scout staying with their parents in a caravan? Then they could do the 5 hours research over two days and a 90 minute walk back home the next day.