In October 2010 the second Training Commissioners Network Meeting was held in Madrid. At the meeting it was decided to have a network meeting for national training commissioners once a year to share experiences and work in depth with various topics. The Magyar Cserkészszövetség (Hungarian Scout Association) generously hosts this meeting.

Aims

The aim of the network meeting is to offer a motivating and informative opportunity for experts in the field of volunteering and youth leaders training to share experiences and learn from each other.

During the weekend we will work primarily on three different topics using and introducing the action learning method:

• Quality of training,
• Design and implementation of a Training System, and Woodbadge.
• There will also be space provided to tackle several more topics that are of interest for the participants.

Objectives

The objectives of the meeting are to:

• Create an opportunity to share best practices, to become inspired and reflect on different topics related to training such as: the development of new training systems and the implementation of those systems; how to assure quality of training and the use and development of Woodbadge trainings
• Collect data to compare training provision for adult volunteers in Scouting (and Guiding);
• Co-create a list with recommendations on developing and implementing new training systems;
• Stimulate the participants to reflect on the needs of their organizations related to volunteers support and youth leaders’ training and then possibly to take actions to review strategies and approaches;
• Inform and promote the use of European funding opportunities and other European material for training such as Training Kits
• Facilitate the development of new transnational project and the future co-operation at European level

Dates

13 – 15 January 2012 Participants are requested to arrive on Friday, 13 January, in the afternoon. The departures are from Sunday, 15 January starting at 14:00.

Venue

The Meeting will take place in the European Youth Centre Budapest (EYCB) in Budapest, Hungary. The venue offers accommodation for 140 persons
in spacious bedrooms with private bathroom and balcony, and all necessary working conditions in several meeting rooms with capacities from 10 – 200 persons. You can find out more about the venue at their website www.coe.int/t/dg4/eycb

Preparations

Before attending you should choose between these three tracks:
1. Woodbadge
2. Quality of training
3. Design and implementation of training system

You will be at the track all day Saturday, where we will use action learning to investigate your challenges and solutions. You will learn more about this after you have signed up. The deadline for this is 16th of December. Before attending the meeting you should also complete a form that briefly describes the training system in your scout association. The form will be available at eurotrain.scouthub.org by the 16th of December.

Methodology

Various scouting methods will be used during the meeting, including audio-visual presentations, case studies, group discussions and team tasks, workshops and different other active methods. We will work with action research as a method of learning and developing our training skills

Possible follow – up

It will be up to the participants to form partnerships. There is a forum for exchanging information that is about to be turned into an ongoing platform for exchange at eurotrain.scouthub.org

Languages

The meeting will be held in English with possible interpretation into French where assistance from participants may be required.

Participants profile

• National Training Commissioner or similar
• Aged between 18 – 35 years (some exceptions possible)
• Able to communicate well in English and/orFrench

Number of participants

The event is designed to accept up to 50 participants. We shall accept up to three participants from an association. Priority will be given to have the largest number of different countries represented and to those who have on – hand experience in designing effective training systems.

Applications

The online application form is available here

The online application form should be submitted by 16 December 2011.

After the application deadline, a list of participants will be sent to International Commissioners for their approval.

Travel arrangements

Once participants have been selected they will receive acceptance letters by 23 December 2011. They should make their own travel arrangements and obtain a visa, if necessary. If you require an official invitation to obtain a visa, please indicate this clearly on your application form. Please be aware, that it may take up to six weeks to obtain a visa, so please send your visa form with the application form in order to allow sufficient time for that process. The venue is very close to the city centre. The transport from the Budapest Airport will be provided by the host organisation, if you provide your travel information in time. Travel forms will be included in the information package to be sent to participants with the acceptance letter.

Participation fee

The participation fee is €160 (Euros). The fee covers all accommodation and meals from the evening of Friday, 13 January to lunch on Sunday,
15 January.

The fee does not cover travel costs to Budapest. Bank connections and details for paying the participation fee will be reported to all participants by the Meeting acceptance letter.

Magyar Cserkészszövetség applied for support from the Youth in Action Programme of the European Union. If the application is successful, most of the costs for those who send their Partnership Agreements will be covered by the grant. We still don’t have the answer from the Youth in Action Programme and cannot guarantee that the support will be ensured. Still, we encourage participants to start planning their travel to gain from getting cheaper tickets for the trip.

Insurance

There is no insurance that covers the participants during the event neither during the travel to or from the venue. Please note that this is the exclusive responsibility of the national association to check and be sure that the participants are covered by an insurance (illness, accidents, repatriation etc…)

Planning Team

Bas Dingjan, Scouting Nederland
Anne Sandbeck, DDS, Denmark
Dieter Carré, FOS, Belgium
Olga Cunha, CNE, Portugal
Rossettos Gavalas, Cyprus
Milutin Milošević, WSB – European Regional Office

Additional information

If you need any further information please contact Milutin Milošević, Director, Adult Resources.

More information in official invitation letters in English and French