Like most teenagers, I wasn’t sure what job I wanted to do when I grew up. Several ideas raced through my mind, from chef to police officer, forensic scientist to tree surgeon, but none of them ever felt quite right. It wasn’t until I got to college that the idea of becoming a teacher really started forming.

On reflection, Scouting was probably the catalyst that set me on the path to teaching. I had been a youth member for ten years by then. I had also spent the last two years volunteering at my old Cub pack in order to achieve my Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards (bronze, silver and gold).

I stayed on at Cubs even after I’d completed the Awards because I really enjoyed it. This voluntary role then steered me into my first job (that wasn’t a paper round). I started working at a holiday play scheme which had been recognised for providing fantastic care for young people with severe additional needs.

At college, I soon found myself having to attend interviews fairly frequently, for university applications and for other part time jobs. Were these scary at first? Of course they were, however I quickly learnt a trick. If I could bring up the subject of Scouting and everything I had achieved through it, I could often spend a lot of the interview talking about it!

At this point I was clear that teaching was a career I wanted to pursue. On the advice of my college tutors, I successfully applied to do a degree in Forensic Biology. It was reassuring to know that, however far from home my university was, Scouting would still be there, offering me that instant local support network at home and at uni. On completing my degree, I decided to spend some time working in a school before taking the ‘jump’ into teaching. For three years, I worked to support young people with Autism in a mainstream school and this experience felt so helpful to me starting my teacher training. It also made me realise how many of the skills I had learnt in Scouting would be useful, from taking the young people climbing and kayaking to teaching them life skills, like cooking.

Now in my second year of teaching, I reflect on how the different roles I have held in Scouting have shaped my career now - and how they could benefit it in the future. The two most recent Scout roles I have taken on are Deputy District Chair and a member of the Appointments committee. Both these roles are about supporting other adults and I could see a clear link to how they could help my teaching career in future. Skills such as managing adults effectively could help if I wanted to become a Head of Year, for example.

Scouting has a clear focus on skills for life. I would agree that it has given me many of the skills I have needed to get to where I am now. I also think it influences the kind of teacher I am. I believe that young people need to grow up being given the skills to prepare them for the world in which they will live. Both Scouting and teaching enable me to support this.

We think – to get the most out of volunteering - you really have to pick something you enjoy and that you can believe in. There are lots of opportunities to volunteer near to you. We’ve tried to collect some of the larger organisations below but there are many smaller ones that would really welcome your support too.

The Scout Association and Girl-guiding started from very similar beginnings and still share a common believe in helping others and making friends. The Scout Association, www.scouts.org.uk, is open to all while Girl-guiding, www.girlguiding.org.uk, is a dedicated organisation for girls and women. They both offer a range of skills and volunteering opportunities and occasionally the chance to travel abroad! Depending on your age, you could join a youth section or become a volunteer.

Both of the UK’s biggest First Aid charities need volunteers of all ages and give you the opportunity to learn life-saving skills and to make new friends.

The Red Cross, www.redcross.org.uk

St John Ambulance, www.sja.org.uk

All three branches of the UK Armed Forces have ‘cadet branches’ that allow young people to get a taste for the opportunities and disciplines of military life, whilst experiencing all sorts of new activities and responsibilities too. Their websites are:

Army Cadets www.armycadets.com

Sea Cadets www.sea-cadets.org

Air Cadets www.raf.mod.uk/aircadets

If you are over 16 and a lover of animals, you could volunteer with one of the UK’s many animal charities. Visit their websites to find out what is local to you, here are three of the large charities:

RSPCA www.rspca.org.uk

RSPB www.rspb.org.uk

Blue Cross www.bluecross.org.uk

And, if you’re a sports fan, you could volunteer while you indulge your favourite hobby! We found these pages from two of the UK’s most popular sports, but we know there are more out there too.

Football www.thefa.com

Tennis www.lta.org.uk