Some badges are worn on a young persons uniform, some are sewn on their camp blanket. This page is for uniform badges only, for details on camp blankets see our camp blanket page.
Uniform Badges
We highly recommend you sew badges on rather than use badge glue. For instructions on how to sew badges onto uniform see the video below. Alternatively, we have a few parents who will sew badges on for £1 a badge with 50p donated towards our group fundraising. For more information, ask a leader or message the group WhatsApp chat.
Uniform badges must be sewn onto uniform in the correct position and OSM is pretty good at showing you were most go. To find a diagram, open OSM and log in, Select Badges from the left hand menu and then click on the uniform placement tab in the top right.
There is also a comprehensive guide to badge placement below, however, if you are unsure, please check with a leader before sewing them to avoid having to redo them.
Core Badges
The badges pictured below are considered core badges and are worn by all sections. They should be sewn on the top half of the right sleeve as shown in the picture. The picture below shows an example of a Scout uniform. Cubs, Beavers and Squirrels will not have the patrol badge (one with the bird on it) but your young person may have leadership stripes (thin rectangular one with stripes on) and this goes underneath the big Doncaster Danum District badge.
Necker Badge
The necker badge should be sewn on the necker. Please make sure you look at the picture carefully and sew it on the right way up!
Membership badges
After your young person has been invested, they will received their purple circular world membership badge. This should be sewn on the left chest of their jumper as shown in the image below. Do not sew it too high up as other badges will need to be placed above it. The best way to get placement right is to imagine the jumper has a breast pocket like the shirt ahs below and to place it on where the pocket would be.
Staged Badges
Staged badges are awards that increase in number as a young person moves up through Scouting. For example, a Scout’s Nights Away badge will be awarded based on all the nights away they have done in Beavers, Cubs and Scouts. Your child should only ever have one of each type of staged badge on their uniform at a time, i.e. if they have two Nights Away badges, the one with the highest number goes on their uniform, the lower number can be sewn onto their camp blanket if you wish.
Staged badges should be sewn on the left sleeve. Although there is no official ruling as to where on the left sleeve staged badges should be sewn, we prefer them to be sewn in a group at the TOP of the sleeve as shown in this picture. It doesn’t matter that this is a Cubs jumper, the badge position is the same for all the sections.
Activity Badges
Activity badges are different for each section though there are often some common themes. Squirrel activity badges are normally green, Beavers are yellow, Cubs are red and Scouts are blue.
Activity badges should be also sewn on the left sleeve. Again, there is no official ruling as to where on the left sleeve activity badges should be sewn, but we prefer them to be sewn in a group at the BOTTOM of the sleeve as shown in this picture. See the image from the staged badges section above which also shows the position of activity badges.
Chief Scouts Award and Challenge Badges
Challenge badges are much harder to earn and are hexagonal in shaped. Squirrels can earn up to 4 blue challenge badges, Beavers up to six red challenge badges, Cubs up to 7 blue challenge badges and Scouts up to 9 challenge badges. The challenge badges should be sewn on the top right chest.
If a young person earns up all of the challenge badges for their section and enough activity badges, they are awarded the Chief Scout Award for their section. This should be sewn at the top above the challenge badges.
An example of a Scouts shirt with all the challenge badges and Chief Scouts Award sewn on is below. The placement is the same for other sections but the badges will be look slightly different.
Joining In Awards
Joining In Awards represent how many years a young person has been in the Scouting movement. They are small square badges with a star and a number on. Up to four of the latest (highest-numbered) Joining In Awards you have earned. For example, if your young person has been in Scouting for 6 years, they would wear numbers 3, 4, 5, and 6 together.
Joining In Awards should be worn above the purple world membership badge on the left chest as shown later on.
Moving On Award
If your young person has a moving on award, it should be sewn on the left chest above the Joining In awards as shown later on.
Occasional Badges
Occasional badges are badges that are worn on uniform to commemorate a special occasion such as Remembrance Day or 120 Years of Scouting. They can only be worn for up to 6 months after which they must be removed but can be sewn onto your young person’s camp blanket if you wish.
An example of badge placement for the moving on Joining In and Moving On Award as well as an occasional badges is shown below.
