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.

Incident Report

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.