Teamwork is key.

I became an ambassador for East Lancashire Scouts at a time when volunteering looked very different. Virtually no one had heard of Zoom or Teams, and the concept of virtual Scouting was something that we never thought possible. And yet, here we are.

Understandably, many of you were concerned about how Scouting would translate in an online world, and some of you even said it wasn’t possible. But here’s the thing – Scouts have been doing the impossible for years! Did you know that 11 of the 12 people that have walked on the moon were Scouts?

I began swimming at the age of five and entered my first competition at age nine. At the age of ten, I was told I wouldn’t succeed at swimming. My school told me to give it up and that it would get me nowhere in life. But here’s the thing – with some hard work, determination and some phenomenal support I stand here having won Gold, Silver and Bronze medals in the Commonwealth Games, the European and World Championships and most recently the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

My journey isn’t too dissimilar to some of your journies that our young people will be on right now and you must give them every bit of support you can to better prepare them for what’s to come.

For me, swimming is my happy place. It’s where I am in my bubble. In 2017 I set a British record for the S14 400m Freestyle in 4:13.62 – the equivalent of completing a 25m pool length in around 30 seconds. In 2019 I went on to be part of a team that set the World Record for Mixed S14 4x100m Freestyle Relay in just 3:42.21. That means I had to complete a length in just under 28 seconds!

Isn’t it amazing what teamwork can do?! Teamwork is the same, no matter what the end goal is and Scouts regularly take the lead in showing the world how teamwork is done. You’re no different here in East Lancashire either.

The next few months will be tough as you prepare to return, once again, to face-to-face Scouting. I know that when you work together as a team, you can do amazing things. I wish you all the very best of luck, as do what you do best and give even more young people the skills they need to succeed in life.

Thank you. Keep up the inspirational work!