Our Heritage

Exploring the rich history and lasting legacy of 1st Herne Bay Scouts

Over a Century of Adventure in Herne Bay

1st Herne Bay Scout Group has been helping young people discover their potential, master new skills, and serve our coastal community for generations. From our pioneering early days to the modern Group we are today, our goal has remained unchanged: preparing young people for the future.

Donate to our Hall Fund Here

Watch or Listen: The 1st Herne Bay History Podcast and Video Overview

Want to listen to a deep dive of our history, or show your young person the history of our group? Make a cuppa, sit back and listen to our AI-generated overview of the Group’s rich heritage, created directly from our local historical archives, or watch the video below!

Our Historical Timeline: Key Milestones

Contents
1906 – The Seeds of Scouting

Mr. Norman Miller founds a Boys’ Guild at the Congregational Church on Mortimer Street. Before “Scouting” was a household name, our boys were busy raising funds for parallel bars and gymnastics equipment. When Baden-Powell’s Scouting for Boys was published, Miller immediately transitioned the Guild into one of the world’s very first Scout Troops.

1909 – The Founder’s Signature

Robert Baden-Powell personally signs the Scoutmaster’s Warrant for Norman Miller. Though active since 1906, Miller had to wait until he was old enough to hold a full warrant. Dated 6th April 1909, this document stands as our official “birth certificate,” proving our status as a founding pillar of the global Scouting movement.

1910-11 – A Gift from the City, and On the National Stage

The Lord Mayor of London, Sir John Knill, presents the Troop with a dedicated Trek Cart. After the Scouts formed an impeccable Guard of Honour at the Pier Pavilion, the Lord Mayor offered them a silver trophy. True to Scout values, the boys declined the reward, so he gifted them a heavy-duty Trek Cart instead, which became a staple of our camps for decades.

In 1911, 1st Herne Bay represents North East Kent at the Windsor Park National Rally. Only the most proficient, highly organised troops in the UK were invited to attend. Our scouts competed in fire-lighting demonstrations, proving the group was operating at a national “Gold Standard” from the very beginning.

1914-1918 – Coastal Guardians

Proximity to the coast meant our Scouts played a vital role in national defence during the Great War, performing coastal watch and messenger duties. Armed with bicycles, scouts like Ted and Reg Russell delivered vital food and dispatches to camps at Reculver School – a moment captured in a famous photo taken by Lady Baden-Powell herself under the eye of the Chief Scout (second from left) below:

1929 – A Home of Our Own

On August 17th, 1929, our dedicated Arkley Road HQ officially opens its doors. Built on land provided via the “Cheerful Sparrows” charity (as a reward for supporting the local town fetes) the hall was opened by Sir William Wayland, MP.

In its early days, the hall relied on gas lighting and two solid-fuel “Bogy” stoves for heat.

The hall was built relatively quickly, with the first bricks being laid in 1928 by Herbert and Ivy Harrington. You can still see the location of the stones marked on the outside of the building today!

The Group’s founding Trustee’s also signed the Title Deed for the land, ensuring that the Trustees remain responsible for the ownership, upkeep and maintenance of the Arkley Road site to this day.

The total cost of building the hall (c.£400) was covered by local fundraising initiatives and generous local benefactors (not much has changed in c.100 years!). That equates to roughly two years of average wages at the time, or around £33,000 in today’s money.

1930s-1950s – The Boxing Ring Era and The Old Stoves

During the inter-war and post-war years, the Arkley Road hall doubled as an active local sports hub, completely equipped with a boxing ring and gym gear. Generations of local scouts trained here, including a well-known local boxer named ‘Hudson’. This era also saw the installation of our classic post-war kitchen stoves, maintained by figures like Mr. Harrington – a keen handyman.

c.1955 – The Additional Land Donation

Local benefactor George Warham officially donates adjacent land to the Scout Group – the precise plot where our current garage sits today. A cherished archive photo captures the presentation of the land deed to the Scouts alongside local solicitor Sid Pateman, giving the Group the physical footprint required to grow.

1960s-1980s – Peak Growth and Expansion

In the early 1960s, the group took delivery of a surplus Army First Aid Caravan to run a “Waste Paper Drive” to help fund operations.

This was an era of ultimate resourcefulness and community action; the 1st Herne Bay Scout Band marching down Arkley Road and playing the Kings Hall; the huge camps and activity days; and rafting in the sea (with part of the old pier still visible in the background!).

Group membership also hits an all-time historic peak, cementing 1st Herne Bay as a massive central hub for local youth. The Group boasted a staggering 72 Cubs across two distinct packs at Arkley Road alone, alongside an additional Cub pack operating out of Herne, and two fully active Scout Troops.

April 1963 – A Legend Steps Down: Mr Harrington’s Retirement

The Herne Bay Press covers a major milestone as Mr. Herbert Harrington steps down after serving as a dedicated Scoutmaster for an incredible 37 years. The community gathered at the hall for a special farewell presentation to honour his decades of continuous leadership and dedication to the young people of Herne Bay.

Sid Patemen – the new Scoutmaster – can be seen handing Mr Harrington an electric drill to symbolise his many years of support for the group, and as the article states, his passion as a keen handyman!

What is striking about the article and Mr Harrington’s reflections are the similarities to all those who volunteer their free time to support our young people – whether in 1926 or 2026:

“Addressing the large gathering, Mr Harrington admitted there had been times where they had said ‘Let’s pack up’. But there has always been something within us that said ‘For the sake of the boys, carry on.’ And we did”

I am sure that there are times when many of us have thought “Let’s pack up“. But then, we remember why we got into Scouting in the first place (One hour a week…!), and why it is so important we keep young people at the heart of everything we do.

1980s-2000s – Constant Stewardship

We saw decades of continuous service led by legendary volunteers like Mick and Penny Hills, who joined the group in the 1960s and then maintained various vital leadership roles across an incredible 40-year span (c.1961 to c.2000). This period was marked by an ongoing legacy of local young people achieving the top Queen’s Scout Award (Mick is pictured above as one of the youngest ever recipients in the 1960s!), alongside steady infrastructure upkeep including new windows, doors, and replaced wood flooring for the Hall.

2026 – The Green Revolution

Phase 1 completion of our modern overhaul, bringing our historic headquarters into the 21st century. Moving from the coal and wood-fired stoves of 1929 to clean solar roof panels and battery storage, this milestone perfectly bridges our glorious heritage with a sustainable future.

Support Our Next 100 Years: The Arkley Road Transformation Project

Our historic Scout Hall at 65-67 Arkley Road has stood strong for nearly a century as a safe haven of adventure, friendship, and character-building for thousands of Herne Bay children.

As you can see from our timeline, every generation of volunteers has stepped up to protect, maintain, and upgrade this building to meet the needs of the town. Now, it is our turn.

We have committed to a major strategic overhaul of the Arkley Road site. Phase 1 brought us solar energy and modern accessibility, but we still have urgent administrative and structural milestones to hit – including critical damp-proofing and hall upgrades to our kitchen and toilets – to protect our building from the elements and turn it into a modern, accessible community hub.

How you can help build the next century of adventure:

  • Volunteer Your Time: We need collaborative, enthusiastic adults to help run our expanding sections or join our Group Trustee team.
  • Fundraising & Donations of Help: If you represent a local business, community trust, or are a parent who can support our capital fundraising drives, your contributions will directly protect the fabric of our hall and enable us to put on more activities for our young people.
Support our Transformation / Contact the Team

Donations

If you have enjoyed reading about the history of the group and/or listening to the podcast, please consider making a donation to our hall fund. Every pound you donate can also be topped up with gift-aid, meaning we can take one step closer to realising our 100-year Transformation vision for Arkley Road HQ.

If you want to add something to our history, we are always interested in hearing stories from previous Scouts and Volunteers – please drop us a line on the general enquiry form and we’ll pick up with you.

Thank you for all that you do to support our Group.

Dan

Group Lead Volunteer – 1st Herne Bay Scout Group

Donate to our Hall Fund Here

Archival Acknowledgements & Disclaimers

  • All historical timeline materials, notes, and records have been reproduced with kind permission and thanks to the incredible generosity of Mick and Penny Hills.
  • Additional photo credits and thanks are attributed to John Davey and others for capturing our historic parades on Arkley Road and the Kings Hall concerts.
  • Newspaper articles and extracts were sourced through Findmypast and the British Newspaper Archive.
  • Disclaimer for historical photos: While every effort has been made by our volunteers to verify the identities of the original persons appearing in our archive photos, some historical errors may remain. If you spot an error, please contact our team and we will gladly update our records.