Scout troop

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The Scout troop is the fundamental unit of Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts that usually meet weekly. Girl Guides often use Unit or Company instead. This is the section a Scout joins and via which he or she participates in Scouting activities, such as camping, backpacking, and canoeing. The troop leadership, youth and adult, organizes and provides support for these activities. The troop size can vary from as few as a half-dozen Scouts to several dozen. Troops work on badges and awards together, and arrange activities, events, and camping trips together. A troop is often sponsored by a community organization such as a business, service organization, school, labor group veteran's group, or religious institution. The chartering organization is responsible for providing a meeting place and promoting a good program. A key component of the Scout method is that troops are run by the Scouts under the advice and guidance of adult leaders.^[1]

Each troop is divided into patrols of six to ten Scouts. A patrol's independence from the troop varies among troops and between activities. For instance, a troop typically holds ordinary meetings as a unit. Patrols' autonomy becomes more visible at campouts, where each patrol may set up its own cooking area. However, on a high adventure trip which only a small part of the troop attends, divisions between patrols may disappear entirely. Patrols may hold meetings and even excursions separately from the rest of the troop, but this is more common in some troops than in others.^[2]

In many countries a local organisation called a Scout Group, combines a Scout troop with other groups of different age levels together in a single body. For example, a Beaver Scout Colony, a Cub Scout Pack, a Scout troop, a Venture Scout Crew and a Rover Scout Crew together might form a Scout Group. In other countries, the different sections are independent of each other, although they might be sponsored or chartered by the same organisation, such as a Church.

[edit] Leadership in the troop

Every troop has two separate leadership structures: one consisting of Scouts and another consisting of adults. The adult leadership manages the logistics of troop activities, administers rank advancement and awards, maintains troop records and finance, and recruits new Scouts and adult leaders. The youth leadership keeps order and coordinates labor at activities. Scouts and adults cooperate to plan agendas for troop meetings, as well as the troop's schedule of outings.

The adult leadership is headed by a Section Leader or Scoutmaster . The Section Leader is the adult directly responsible for the troop's program. These leaders must complete special training mandated by their Scouting association. The top level leader training course around the world is Wood Badge.^[1] An adult responsible for a Scout (usually a parent) may join the troop or group committee. The responsibilities and composition of that committee differs between Scouting associations. The committee can be responsible for appointing persons to specific positions, most importantly those of the adult leaders or only responsible for bookkeeping and providing a meeting place and materials.

The youth leadership can be headed by a senior patrol leader (SPL), who works closely with the Section Leader to run troop activities. He is expected to attend most meetings and outings. While the SPL is directly responsible for running the troop, he shares that responsibility with one or more assistants (Assistant Senior Patrol Leaders or ASPLs). Other troop-wide positions of responsibility exist and their duties vary from country to country.^[2]

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