Over 100 Scouts attended a hands-on flood preparedness day
The new BeFloodReady badge(Image: supplied image)
Scouts from the Humber region were the first to earn a new BeFloodReady badge, during Flood Action Week. With support from the Floods Minister, the new BeFloodReady badge is now available to all youth organisations to encourage flood preparedness education.
Over 100 Scouts earned the new BeFloodReady blanket badge at a hands-on flood preparedness day, held at Raywell Park Activity Centre, near Hull. Young people from across Market Weighton, Melbourne, Pocklington, Stamford Bridge and Winterton took part in the free event during Flood Action Week, meeting flood resilience professionals and learning how households and communities can prepare for flooding.
Flood resilience experts delivered a host of activities, including using an interactive sandbox to mimic natural flood management, building a flood barrier, and a hook-a-duck water safety game. Everyone also attended a water safety awareness session and listened to a reading of the new children’s story, Missy and Stanley’s Tale, which was led by Sally Glover from Project Groundwater Greater Lincolnshire.
Participants, aged from four to 17 years old, collected stamps in their Flood Passports following the completion of each activity, which explored different types of flooding, their effects on people and places, and how to prepare, take action and recover from a flood. Once completed, everyone was presented with a BeFloodReady 2026 blanket badge.
Peter Kirby, group lead and Vikki McCausland, Cub Scout team leader with 1st Pocklington Scout Group, welcomed the day. Vikki said: “The activities made flooding feel real for our young people.
“They asked lots of questions and started thinking about what it could mean for their own homes and families. Earning their badge gave them something to be proud of, alongside useful knowledge to take away.
“The day was fun and informative and really gave them a chance to work together, learn from experts and discover practical ways to be flood ready.” The BeFloodReady youth badge was born through positive conversations at a trade flood risk management event, Flood & Coast 2026, which led to industry representatives working together to bring the concept to life, in readiness for Flood Action Week.
Floods Minister Emma Hardy said: “I’m thrilled that this new Scouts badge is helping young people understand the impacts of flooding and encouraging them to think about how we can be better prepared, now and in the future. Flood risk affects us all, and we all need to build awareness into our everyday lives.
“What better way to start that than through hands-on learning that makes preparedness fun and memorable for the next generation. I thank Flood Re, IPFRA and all the parties who arranged this fantastic event, and I encourage other Scout groups to get involved.”
CARO Group produced ten bronze stamps in its own foundry for the Flood Passports; Watertight hosted a practical water wall activity to show how non-return valves work; Floodmatik’s “Dry as a Bone Cottage” interactive vehicle tested children to see how many water buckets were needed to activate their automatic barrier, while JBA Trust provided STEM models to explore.
Other volunteers included the local emergency services, Arup, Flood Re, Resilico, Living with Water, Nene Rivers Trust, Aire Rivers Trust, Connected by Water and FloodSax, alongside JBA Consulting, IPFRA, The RAIN Project, Blue Heart, Resilient Roch, North Yorkshire Council, East Sussex County Council and Lincolnshire County Council.
Shelley Evans, technical director of JBA Consulting and director of International Property Flood Resilience Association (IPFRA), said: “The flood resilience industry has brought their time, expertise and creativity to this wonderful BeFloodReady initiative, helping young people to discover what flood preparedness and resilience mean in practice.
“It was fantastic to see the children getting stuck into the activities and asking so many questions. We hope they went home with plenty of practical ideas to share with their families.
“Importantly, this is an inclusive youth badge, intended to be available to Scouts, Guides, Brownies, Cadets and other similar youth organisations across the country. We hope it becomes a resource that groups return to year after year, helping more children to understand flood risk and how to be better prepared.”
The fireside story, Missy and Stanley’s Tale, follows a cat and dog as they experience flooding at home. Missy and Stanley’s Tale was developed by Blue Heart and Project Groundwater Greater Lincolnshire, which are funded by Defra as part of the £200m Flood and Coastal Innovation Programme and managed by the Environment Agency.
The animations and characters were produced by Aardman and the book authored by Tales from Mother Earth. The book, animations and resources are available via https://befloodwarned.uk/missy-and-stanley
Kelly Ostler-Coyle, director of corporate affairs at Flood Re, said: “Flood Re is delighted to support the launch of the BeFloodReady badge, following the recent relaunch of BeFloodReady as a trusted national platform for flood resilience. By helping young people understand flood risk and the actions they can take to prepare, the badge is building resilience in homes and communities across the country.
“It also reflects the collaborative approach highlighted in Professor Peter Bonfield’s FloodReady review, bringing together communities, youth organisations and flood resilience experts to help build a more flood-resilient future.” The BeFloodReady badge is now available to all youth organisations, with scope for flood preparedness activities to become an annual part of Flood Action Week each October. To register interest, email Shelley.Evans@jbaconsulting.com and for more information, visit befloodready.uk
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