Guidelines for Doing Stuff Safely
Keep our youth, volunteers, staff, and employees safe
Scouting has guidelines for the appropriateness of various activities in BSA programs.
The National Guide to Safe Scouting
Scout leaders are responsible for the physical and mental well-being
of everyone under their supervision. The Guide to Safe Scouting is an
online document that helps parents and leaders understand
age-appropriate guidelines for Scouting activities. It has current
policies and procedures every registered adult Scouting volunteer
should be aware of, including restricted activities.
Youth Protection in Scouting
In order to be trained, each registered adult leader must take
youth protection training. We also encourage annual youth level protection training for new members.
Scouting has adopted the following policies for the safety and well-being of its members.
- Two-deep leadership on all outings required.
- One-on-one contact between adults and Scouts prohibited.
- Separate accommodations for adults and Scouts required.
- Privacy of youth respected.
- Inappropriate use of cameras, imaging, or digital devices prohibited.
- No secret organizations
- No hazing.
- No bullying.
- Youth leadership monitored by adult leaders.
- Discipline must be constructive
- Appropriate attire for all activities
- Members are responsible for acting in accordance with the Scout Oath and Scout Law.
- Scouting units are responsible for enforcing Youth Protection policies
Tour and Activity Plans
The Tour and Activity Plan through the online My.Scouting.org volunteer portal is no longer being used as of 4/1/2017.
Every Scout leader should consider some basic planning tips when it comes to preparing for a Scouting outing or trip. A great resource for health and safety is this page of the National BSA website which includes comprehensive information to help you “Be Prepared” for your trip. Consulting the Guide to Safe Scouting and following the Sweet 16 of BSA Safety as a start will help you plan for a safe trip or outing. Both are found at the above link.
You can also review Northern Star Council’s Scout Unit Trip Planning Tips in the documents section of this page.
Despite everyone's best efforts, sometimes an incident will occur. An incident form should
be completed by the person with the most knowledge of a medical or
non-medical (youth protection, harassment, bullying, etc.) related
incident. The form should be submitted within 48 hours of happening to the Council Scout Service Center.