Our History

Scouts, during the wars, had been allocated various roles in the field of Civil Defence – fire fighting etc. It was to this end that we had formed a War Service Patrol from the older boys. During 1945, Eddie Perkins joined the Group and formed these older boys into a Senior Scout Section and, as our boys were reluctant to leave us, in 1946 Stuart Manning started the Rover Crew. The Cub Pack too got underway again with Joyce Sutton becoming Akela – thus we started the post war years with a complete family.

It was also during 1946 that Chief, in his capacity as General Sunday School Superintendent, organised a Sunday School trip by narrow boat to Kerridge with the scouts going along to provide refreshments. It was on that trip that the youngest scholar, perched on the front of the leading boat, conceived an ambition that fifteen years later would be realised.

In 1947 we held our twenty first birthday celebrations and there were many cubs who were guided through their Tenderpad test so that they could have their uniforms for the event by our recent import and grand old man of the Group – Skip Blackwell. The celebrations were a great success and the main hall of the Sunday School was packed. This period was one of immense activity and achievement – at one point we had eight boys with the King’s Scout Badge. We were moved from Stockport to Cheadle District and our Parents’ Committee, following a week’s continuous rain at Borth in 1949, provided us with a Marquee – quite a unique accomplishment in those days.

We entered the fifties full of optimism – the Cubs in 1951 held a camp at Aspenshaw and the Scouts held the first of what were to be many camps at Tal-y-bont. Then, just when things looked so favourable, we ran into a very bad patch. The death of Chief in 1953 coincided with a movement of Scouts out of the area and the opening of the 3rd Hazel Grove Group. Our new leaders struggled on but without assistant leaders and with dwindling membership, it was a daunting task and the continuity of training and tradition was lost. The Seniors, Rovers and Parents’ Committee ceased effectively to exist and the number of boys in the Troop fell to a handful – such were conditions that the District Commissioner issued orders for the Group to be closed. Fortunately the Assistant District Commissioner, Alf Moston, who was to have executed the closure, pleaded for a stay of execution. But, things were desperate, and it was then that Michael Vernon a seventeen year old, the son of our founder, started to lead the Troop.

The bright side of this gloomy period, and possibly the main reason for the A.D.C.’s charity, was the Wolf Cub Pack. Akela, Ken Mackreth Senior, together with his parent helpers had the necessary authority and ability to control a large Pack and win their affection. Mike Vernon well remembers attending one Pack meeting in the Junior Room and being so astounded by the numbers present that he was led to count them – there were over sixty.

It was because of the large numbers of boys coming from Pack to Troop that, despite the large drop-out rate, generated to some extent by Mike’s inexperience, enough remained to gradually build up our strength again. By the end of the fifties, all four sections were growing again and the Parents’ Committee, then called Group Council was back in operation.

In the sixties the Group really got moving – all sections with ample and enthusiastic leaders, the Seniors ran District Senior Challenge Weekends and the Rovers a Jamboree on the Air Station. Some of the Scouters had purchased a converted narrow boat called “Chief” and many weekend cruise camps were enjoyed on it. The cub “waiting list” became such an embarrassment that a second Pack was formed. After Bas Smethurst, who ran both Packs, left us to serve the District Team, Jenny Castle took over Jacala Pack meeting on Mondays and Mao Pack meeting on Friday was led by Winnie Davenport. In 1960 we were again moved to a new District — Hazel Grove and Bramhall — which we liked and joined with enthusiasm in its fresh and eager approach to things.

The biggest blow for the Group in that period occurred mid-decade when a tremendous re-organisation of the whole Scout Movement commenced and the first thing on the agenda was the abolition of the Rover Section. The Rover Crew had, under the leadership of George Sykes (Bosun), developed into what was undoubtedly one of the first in the land and it was a sad moment when the flag was finally laid up.

The next few years were ones of general all-round progress. New Troops were started in Hazel Grove. Cub camps became annual events, the Troop experimented with different types of camps from the Isle of Skye to Switzerland and the Seniors started to have independent annual camps. All the Sections became enthusiastic competitors and forces to be reckoned with in District events. The Group Council organised many social as well as fund-raising events and the 1^st Hazel Grove catering corps became famous throughout the County.

The 1960s closed with the full weight of the re-organisation being felt. Wolf Cubs became Cub Scouts; Scout age went up to 16; Seniors and Rovers were abolished and replaced with Venture Scouts; long trousers for all except cubs; berets in place of hats; ties for Venturers and Scouters; compulsory retirement at 65; 2^nd/1^st Class out; Scout Standards in and a whole lot of other changes affecting every aspect of the Movement. The Group survived this experience and most of the more ill-advised changes were eventually rectified.

The biggest change was the formation of the Venture Unit and it was with verve and success that its new young leader, Anthony Brookshaw set about building up the Unit. Fate plays unkind tricks at times and his untimely death was a great shock to everyone. The Unit was inevitably in a state of limbo for a while but then, Richard Smethurst came back ‘home’ and under his leadership the Venture Unit once again charted an impressive course.