Nights Away Permit Scheme
The Nights Away Permit Scheme promotes quality residential and camping experiences. It shows that all those leading nights away events for young people within Scouting have the skills, experience and personal suitability to take young people away safely.
What Is The Permit Scheme?
Everyone who leads a nights away event for young people within Scouting is required to hold a Nights Away Permit for the type of event they are running. Although managed locally, the Nights Away Permit Scheme is a national scheme, so once gained, a permit will allow you to run a nights away event in any District or County.
How The Scheme Works
A permit is time limited up to a maximum of five years at which point it expires. If you wish to continue leading nights away events for young people you will need to apply for a new permit. However if the new permit is to exactly the same level as the old permit and you have been running residential events, there may be no need for a practical assessment.
What Is Assessed?
1. Technical Competence – This is assessed by the Nights Away Adviser and looks at the eight core skill areas required to run a nights away event. It is usually assessed through a practical assessment of running an event.
2. Scout Association Rules – This can be assessed by either a Nights Away Adviser or the responsible Commissioner. It looks at whether the Applicant is aware of the Rules and guidance
for running nights away events within Scouting.
3. Child Protection – This will be carried out by the responsible Commissioner and ensures that the necessary Personal Enquiry checks have been carried out and the appropriate child protection training has taken place.
4. Personal Suitability – This is carried out by the responsible Commissioner, often in conjunction with a Group Scout Leader or similar, to check the Applicant is suitable (in terms of attitude) to be leading nights away events for young people.
Notification
Once an applicant has been granted a permit they can start running nights away events. Each time they run an event they need to notify their District Commissioner, and if they are staying on non Scout premises the host District Commissioner, before the event takes place. This is done through passing the information in the Nights Away Notification (NAN) form to the District Commissioner.
Passports
To encourage young people led residential events, such as patrol camps or Explorer Scout expeditions, a nights away permit holder can grant a nights away passport to an under 18 year old. This will be done after a check on the young person’s knowledge and ability to lead the event by the permit holder. It will allow the young person to lead a residential event with no Leaders present and will last for a single event.
