As you will all be aware there are proceedings under way to merge both Petersfield and Rotherfield Districts to form one new District in the East Hampshire area. The merger will take effect on 28th February 2025.
A competition has been held for the new District name and a New District badge. The competition entries were submitted to the Rotherfield District Administrator, where they were anonymised so nobody knew who was submitting what. Myself and the two Rotherfield Deputy District Commissioners spent an evening judging the entries.
New District Name
A person submitted the name Longmoor District, stating that this was the centre point of the new District. On closer examination it seemed they had missed a Group out. The Team re-plotted the Groups and found a new centre. We spoke to the winner and they have agreed to the new name.
The New District will be known as ‘Oakhanger And District’. The ‘And’ is important to us. It shows the combination of two Districts. It shows we are inclusive, and above all, it’s a little bit different. The winner of the District name is Malcolm Vincent, from the Rotherfield District Team.
New District Badge
The new District badge has literally stunned the County team. It combines the Hop flowers from Alton and the Lupins of Petersfield. A clever twist on the old district badges with a red line from the old Rotherfield badge and the yellow from the old Petersfield badge puts a bold orange stripe across the badge. The winner of the New District Badge competition is Anna Lavelle of 3rd Alton.
A new start
So now, with a new name, we can start building a new identity; there is much for us to do, not least a new District badge to get made and issued free to all our Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, Explorers Network, and volunteer adult Leaders. I’m really proud to lead this amazing team of people who provide the very best experiences for 4-24 year olds in East Hampshire.
We are looking for people to join this team; if you want to see what’s on offer, take a look at our open opportunities page here. We are in particular looking for those ‘backstage’ roles as Trustees and Support Team helpers.
For now, though, it’s business as usual. Parents may not notice any difference other than a new badge, but a bigger District opens us up to more opportunities for exciting Scouting. People are now wanting to join us, and we are starting to match roles with skills from Parents, Carers and other adults.
I’d like to congratulate both Malcolm and Anna for their contribution to the new District and will be in touch with you both soon.
