The heart of WOSM Services
In 2018, the World Organization of the Scout Movement revolutionised its capacity-building support for its Members, launching the WOSM Services, thanks to funding from the Messengers of Peace Fund via the World Scout Foundation.
In just over five years, this phenomenal one-stop shop of tailored support, best practices and practical resources has supported 84% of Members (191 National Scout Organizations and Associations) with over 715 delivered services and over 500 quality resources.
Discover the volunteer consultants at the heart of the WOSM Services and the long-term impact of this vital support on the Movement, in service of more young people.
Who are the consultants?
These are volunteers from National Scout Organizations (NSOs) with specialist skills and experience in one or more of the 12 WOSM Services areas, who are passionate about Scouting and are dedicated to building the capacity of NSOs to ensure young people can benefit from everything Scouting has to offer.
“WOSM services allow you to access resources, e-learning and much more. What makes WOSM services so impactful is a global team of over 200 consultants who are ready to work alongside our member organisations and help them reach the next level.”
Consultants carry out a range of activities including sharing outside perspectives, developing and reviewing policies and programmes, delivering training, supporting events, and more! They use their training, consultancy, and coaching skills, to provide the best support possible to NSOs and build capacity by facilitating and empowering individuals and teams. There are currently 269 active volunteer consultants, out of which 122 were trained and appointed in 2023, following five regional training courses run with support via the World Scout Foundation.
Quality training
Each new consultant receives expert training to enhance their key consultancy skills and service area knowledge. Topics covered include change management, motivational interviewing and coaching, cultural differences, solution-based questions and dealing with resistance.
The trainings enable the consultants to tailor proposed solutions to meet an NSO’s reality and long-term goals, and increase the sustainability of the service delivery so that NSOs can produce more meaningful impact in their communities.
“The consultants’ training was a unique experience, rich with knowledge, and motivated all to explore a new side of themselves. I believe that the training made me more confident, professional and culturally sensitive, and I will be more able to build strong relationships with NSO stakeholders, understanding their needs and supporting them effectively.”
Impact measurement
The greatest impact measurement of the WOSM Services is surely the Movement’s growth, including the post-pandemic recovery, which saw 5.4% growth in 2023 compared to the official 2022 census, i.e. more quality Scouting for more young people.
In 2023, the Scout Movement also welcomed its 174th NSO from the Republic of Congo, and continued to support potential Members from Mali, Central African Republic and Albania.
Testimonials from NSOs which received a service
Reflecting on the quality of the services provided, NSOs that have received a WOSM Service consistently give a score of 9 out of 10 when asked how likely they would be to recommend one.
“GSAT (Global Support Assessment Tool) is a good snapshot in time of where our Organization is and where it could be. It allows us a tool to be used as we work on our strategic plan. The in-person evaluation really gave the evaluation more of a 3 dimensional view of our organization.”
“The Humanitarian Action service allowed us to develop our practical skills thanks to collaboration with the NGO Medair, and helped us to further strengthen our collaboration with the National Office for Risk and Disaster Management.”
“Since 2005, Scouts of Honduras made many attempts to reform its constitution, without succeeding. This time, with the help received through WOSM Services, we set another stage and a smooth procedure for people to understand that it was necessary. Never in our history a 100% approval was achieved with a reform! We learned a lot about institutional governance and procedures… Great job!”
“When we started developing a diversity and inclusion policy for Venezuela and requested a service for support, I realised that we had a really great global force and that we were not only alone. As a result of this experience, I am motivated to carry out other activities, such as online courses on this topic and others. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of this growth and to meet wonderful, professional people who want a more inclusive world.”
“The board induction training showed us the benefits of the national board working systematically towards the development of the NSO, and that the proper division of responsibilities between the national board and the national office is the key to success in the implementation of our strategy.”
Innovating the Services: Social impact
In 2023, exciting work continued to develop a new Social Impact Service to provide NSOs with the tools and resources necessary to measure the impact of Scouting on the personal development of young people.
The new Service will empower NSOs to undertake impact measurement using a toolkit, reducing their reliance on external consultants and, importantly, the research methodology has been developed specifically for the context of Scouting and non-formal education — it’s tailored to be implemented by NSO volunteers and staff. Over time, as more NSOs adopt this methodology, the service will help paint a detailed regional and global picture of Scouting’s profound impact.
At the time of writing this report, the service had been successfully launched, NSOs are exploring the resources, including the Impact Measurement Toolkit, a key outcome of the Measuring the Impact of Youth Organisations project — a joint effort between the European Scout Region, YMCA Europe, and Maynooth University, and building on the first two Impact Studies undertaken with external parties thanks to World Scout Foundation support. Plans are now in discussion to further extend the service to include community and institutional level impact measurements.
WOSM Services: A funding priority
This is a key funding priority for WOSM supported via the World Scout Foundation since 2018. We also seek partners and resources — education, in-kind support and funding — for specific Service areas, in particular Safe from Harm (child safety), good governance, youth programme and youth engagement, communications (and branding), growth and Scouting’s Humanitarian Action. Please get in touch with us to find out more today!
