The World Scout Jamboree experience of Jonathan Bailey (LGS 2009)

Occurring every four years, the World Scout Jamboree is the largest gathering of Scouts with the purpose of sharing culture, making new friendships, and educating young people about global issues. This year the event was held in South Korea with 43,000 Scouts from 158 countries.  

Three years ago, I accepted a role on the UK Management team for the Jamboree, tasked with taking 4,500 UK Scouts to South Korea. It was a fantastic period working with a volunteer team that had different skills and backgrounds, as well as different geographies (made extra challenging when I moved to Australia for work part way through, proving digital technology can keep us connected). The team sorted everything from initial recruitment of a wider support team, travel, kit, event management plans, welfare and training. My particular role was recruiting and training our fantastic international service team (IST). An 800-strong collective of adult volunteers willing to give up their time to support the Jamboree. The team that I recruited were fantastic. We aimed to be the most diverse and inclusive UK Contingent yet and the team worked hard to ensure we achieved this. We ensured the IST had training about how to deliver a Jamboree, survive the challenges of different cultures and climate and worked to bring them together as a team. We also put plans in place to support those with additional needs to ensure they could contribute within their own limitations. However, in all our planning we could never have foreseen the challenges that we eventually faced.  

You may have seen coverage from the BBC and other international media organisations documenting the initial challenges of a site recovering from flooding pre-event, followed by an unseasonal 30+ degree heatwave whilst we were there. However, these events only exaggerated other challenges we faced when a small advance team and I arrived on site. Delivering a Jamboree for 40,000 people is like setting up a town two thirds the size of Loughborough from scratch, and providing all the core facilities needed such as a hospital, food supply, water, and sanitation. The truth is that when we arrived these basics were not in a place to support the wider arrival of young people from around the world. Over the days before the event, we worked long hours with the organisers mobilising our UK adult volunteers to get the site ready for the Jamboree. As well as the heat, making progress at times was challenging, as we quickly learnt how to work with our hosts whose hierarchical culture and different approaches often delayed important decisions being made. Our young people were having a fantastic pre-event in Seoul and therefore we initially made the decision to delay their arrival for 24 hours. We then brought them to the site for the opening ceremony once we assessed the site could host our UK Contingent with further promises from the Korean government of more support.

Unfortunately, progress was not made once the whole UK Contingent was on site and our red lines (food dietary requirements, sufficient medical provision, waste management and cleaning) had not been met, meaning we had to make the hard, but correct decision to move ourselves back to Seoul. A logistical challenge, pulled off successfully by my team arranging the relocation transport and new hotel bookings for 4,500 UK scouts in under 24 hours. We were shortly followed by other nations and regretfully the Jamboree was closed early due to a Typhoon which eventually swept through Korea, further complicating our time in the country.  

Now in an unplanned phase of our Jamboree I am most proud of my team and the UK adult volunteers who, benefitting from the generosity of the Korean people and help from the UK embassy, delivered a very different but equally engaging Jamboree for our young people. This programme was put together in a day from scratch and showed how creative and resourceful Scouts can be. Activities included visits to the Demilitarised Zone to learn about reunification efforts, cultural performances, visits to palaces and temples, and city-wide games and challenges produced for UK participants. We culminated the two weeks with a cultural event generously hosted by SaRang Community Church (the largest underground church building in Korea) where we came together with other nations to share our different cultures, taste different foods and listen and watch music and dance performances. The Jamboree ended on a high with the closing ceremony at the Seoul World Cup stadium with an out of this world K-Pop concert that the participants marveled at.  

I reflect on the three weeks with admiration for those who volunteered their time alongside me, who made the Jamboree a safe and successful event despite the challenges. Every young person I spoke to had a fantastic time and they demonstrated the resilience Scouting teaches you and took away special memories from Korea. As a country it is a place I will definitely be visiting again. The kindness and generosity of the people will stick with me. Despite the long hours I put in, I did get a few hours occasionally to marvel at the cultural beauty of the country; from its wilderness to grand palaces; fantastic food to creative arts scene.  

The Scout motto is “be prepared.” I am not sure if myself or our management team could have ever prepared for what we faced. However, all the plans we had made and the strong team we put together (termed “team yellow” for our work tops that made us identifiable) meant we were able to adapt when needed and lean on the varied skills each team member possessed from our different work and personal backgrounds, to deliver a unique Jamboree experience.  

As with many fellow pupils at Loughborough Grammar School I got involved in Scouting at an early age, and I know many who enjoyed their weekly meeting in the CCF (Combined Cadet Force) hut. For me Scouting has certainly opened up opportunities at work, for travel, and to make new friends whose paths I would otherwise never have crossed. Scouting has also helped me reconnect with former pupils of LSF over the years as our paths cross again at events. Whether as a child you were in Scouting or Guiding, or you have never been involved before, I would encourage you to reach out to your local group to see how you can help. There is a role for everyone that can fit around the time you can give. I am even lucky enough to be currently using Corporate Social Responsibility investment from my company Arup to assist Scouts UK in achieving greater sustainability and developing fit for purpose meeting places of the Future.

Jonathan Bailey (FFD 2002; LGS 2009)