The Joy of Beavers: Every dad's need-to-know guide...

It's unfortunate that the word 'beaver' is often associated with female genitalia. It's even more unfortunate, with this in mind, that the most junior section of the scouting movement in the UK is called Beavers. Explaining to other adults that you habitually spend your Monday evenings surrounded by hot and sweaty Beavers therefore often leads to awkward silences and a rapid change of subject.

Beavers, however, is one of the best things that has ever happened to me. I am an Assistant Beaver Leader and I have been for the past two years, joining with my son - when he was six and I was considerably older. At first I became a parent helper, for the primary reason that it enabled my son to jump the waiting list, but I was also keen for him to join the scouting world. I had fond memories of my own experiences as a cub - mostly getting very dirty and throwing gooseberry yogurts at my mates - and helping seemed like a great way to share in it all with my son too, at least until he was old enough to be embarrassed by my presence.

My parent helper status soon changed to that of Assistant Beaver Leader and, when the colony's existing leadership team decided to move up to Cubs, I rapidly recruited two friends with similarly aged offspring and together we fast-tracked our way to leadership of the Monday night colony.

As you are reading this I am imagining that you are forming a picture of me as an Arkela-type figure with a proud history of Scouting and an intricate knowledge of Lord Baden Powell's ethos and beliefs. Either that, or you've got me down as a wannabe Bear Grylls, complete with an Evian bottle of my own urine. The truth, I'm afraid to say, is that neither I nor my new colleagues had a clue about scouting when we joined our little group. Indeed, you could say we were ging gang clueless. However, we were pleased to discover that the anorak and thermos image of scout leaders past is no longer true of the modern scouting movement. The ethos is simply around providing new learning experiences for youngsters in a fun and engaging environment, letting them try things that they may never have tried before and safely allowing them to push the boundaries of their comfort zones. 

For the adults, meanwhile - who are all unpaid volunteers - the experience provides something completely different. Leading a group of 18 six to eight-year-olds is as rewarding as it is challenging. Their attention spans are minute, so all your sessions have to effectively be broken into five or ten minute chunks, but their fascination and enthusiasm is infectious. Sit a group of five Beavers around a table and tell them you're going to allow them to light a candle with a match and you'll be rewarded with five of the broadest grins you'll ever see in your life. You're giving them freedom and responsibility that they may never have experienced before, at home or at school, and they soak it up like sponges.

Of course leading brings with it responsibility and a duty of care - together with a baffling amount of administration when it comes to awarding badges - but none of that side of leadership should ever put anyone off trying it for themselves. It is a genuine privilege to be charged with a group of young people for an hour a week and I think every dad out there should try their hand as a parent helper and see how they get on. 

Scouting is the UK's largest mixed youth organisation with 450,000 young people currently enjoying the new adventures that it brings. However, every colony, pack, group and district is run by volunteers and it is only through them, giving up their time, that your children can enjoy all the incredible things that Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers can give them. So my rally cry to you all is to join me and the army of volunteers out there and discover just how rewarding modern day scouting actually is.

Dib dib.