Scouting first started in 1907 after the publication of the fortnightly magazine written by Baden-Powell called “Scouting for Boys”. The first Scout Troops in Sheffield were at Croft House and Darnall Church. Each Troop officially registered were given a number, in these cases 1st & 2nd Sheffield.  

The first registered Troop in the Totley area seems to have been at Cherry Tree Orphanage in 1911, and was the 21st Sheffield. This was followed by the 42nd in 1914 and the 85th in 1915, so it seems that Scouting in Sheffield was becoming very popular. It is not known where the 42nd met until its close in 1922, but the 85th met first at St. Johns Church, Abbeydale Road and then, after the 21st combined with it in 1919, shared its time at the orphanage.  

The 115th came along in 1919, based at the URC on Totley Brook Road. It closed in 1926 but was revived in 1962 and continues to this day.  

1934 saw two Troops registered; the 209th at Totley Methodist and 215th at Totley All Saints. 209 th closed after a few years but the 215th continues now, based at the Scout Hut on Aldam Road. So for over 100 years now there has been at least one Scout Group continuously in Totley, and sometimes three. At 215th there are now over 120 boys and girls involved, aged 6 to 18 years.  

If anyone has any further information or memories we would love to hear from you.  

In 2015 we intend to celebrate this achievement in various ways, including a Centenary Camp in June for Beaver, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers, when we hope to have over 100 attending at a nearby camp site that we are taking over for the weekend.  

Although we bought extra tents last year we will need to do so again this year in order to accommodate the growing number of children. We will use funds raised from our annual 20p challenge, as we did last year, to pay for the new tents. This involves giving each child a tube of ‘Smarties’, letting them eat the contents and then refilling with 20p's.  

Lastly please take a look at our job advert if you are also  interested in helping any of our sections. We have a growing number of men and women helping but we need more.

Richard Frost, Chairman, 1st Totley Scouts 

February 2015