Scouting is about trying something new and developing skills, and this is where it all starts! Become an expert in something you love, or try something shiny and new. From athletics and astronomy to photography and pioneering, there’s something for everyone.
Membership Award
The membership award is the first badge you’ll get when you join us as a Cub, and you’ll be awarded this when you make the Scout Promise. This badge is worn by every single Scout in the world!
Activity Badges
There are 38 activity badges available to earn in Cubs. Activity badges are earnt by grouping a number of skills together that relate to the same activity. An example would be the chef badge. You’d do things like learning about food hygiene, talk about food groups, and preparing and cooking a meal. Once all the requirements are met, the badge will be given to you! These badges are red, with a yellow outer edge.
Staged Activity Badges
Staged Activity Badges are similar to a standard activity badge and there are 16 of them! The difference is they allow a young person to gain whichever badge is appropriate to the level of skill they have in that particular area. Generally speaking a Cub would start on Stage 1 or 2 of the badge, depending what they did in Beavers, however as an example; a Cub who joins us and they are already an excellent swimmer they’d gain a higher level badge than a Scout who has only just started swimming. These badges are light blue, with a purple outer edge and a number at the bottom which tells you the stage they are at.
Example Activity Badge
(Road Safety Badge)
Example Staged Activity Badge
(Emergency Aid Stage 1)
Challenge Awards
Challenge awards are what they say on the tin! You’ll complete a set of challenges to get the badge. Try out something you wouldn’t normally be interested in. Take the lead on something that scares you. Along the way, you’ll unlock hidden talents and stand tall. There are 7 challenge awards in Cubs. All of the award requirements are held on the Scout website.
Our Adventure Challenge
Personal Challenge
Our Outdoors Challenge
Our Skills Challenge
Our World Challenge
Team Leader Challenge
Teamwork Challenge
Chief Scouts Silver Award
This is the highest award a Cub can earn. To complete it, you need to earn six Activity or Staged Activity Badges of your choice, as well as all seven of the Challenge Awards. The Chief Scout’s Silver Award shows that you’ve given new things a go, played your part, and stuck it out, even when the going got tough. It’s a really big achievement, and you should be proud.
Other Awards
Joining In Award
Joining In Awards are given to Cubs who play an active role in their Pack. You can earn one every 12 months, which means you can collect up to three during your time as a Cub. If you move through all of our sections from age 6 to an adult you’ll get 12 of these!
Leadership Stripes for Sixers and Seconders
Within their Pack, Cubs are part of a Six. A Six is a smaller group of Cubs, headed up by a Sixer and a Seconder. Sixers and Seconders are older Cub Scouts who are chosen to take on leadership responsibilities, such as welcoming new people to the Pack or taking charge of a particular game or activity.
They wear leadership stripes to celebrate their hard work and make sure everyone knows who they are.
Moving On Award
Between the ages of 10 and 11, it’s usually time for Cubs to move up to Scouts. Complete this award to get prepared for your new adventures.
YouShape Award
At Scouts, young people learn how to speak up and take the lead. That’s what the new YouShape Award is all about.
Badges aren’t just earnt by joining us for an hour or so a week. Our badge criteria is flexible and you can sometimes earn badges by doing things outside of Scouting too. Maybe you can play for your local football team, or you’re a keen cyclist. If you can demonstrate or talk to us about the skills you’ve learnt, or print off the badge requirements for your chosen badge and get it signed by your teacher or instructor, we’ll see about awarding you with that badge! Maybe you could even share the skills you’ve learnt with the other Cubs too as part of your Team Leader Challenge Award!
