Question 1

Can I import my data from OSM or spreadsheets?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Scoutworks includes an importer tool that brings across your existing member data from Online Scout Manager or spreadsheets. Your data is mapped and validated during the import process.

Question 2

How does the Transition Planner work?

Accepted Answer

It looks at your members, your waiting list, your priority tiers and your section capacities, and suggests who should move, where, and on what date. You agree the moves you are happy with, and they stay as they are. When the day comes, you preview the email parents will receive and run the moves — one at a time or in bulk. Any move can be undone for 30 days.

Question 3

Can parents apply to multiple groups at once?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Parents can apply to multiple groups through the waiting list portal. Scoutworks detects duplicate applicants across groups, giving districts a true picture of how many young people are waiting for a space.

Question 4

Can moves happen at different times of year?

Accepted Answer

Yes. There is one plan with a default movement date, and every move can have its own date. Groups that move everyone at once use the default. Groups that move young people as space appears give each move its own date.

Question 5

How does sibling detection work?

Accepted Answer

Scoutworks spots likely siblings from shared parents or a shared parent email, even across groups. You confirm the relationship and link them, making family management straightforward.

Question 6

Do parents need to download an app?

Accepted Answer

No app download required. The Parent Portal works in any web browser on any device. Parents get a direct link to their dashboard.

Question 7

When is census data actually collected?

Accepted Answer

From the very first moment a member joins. The joining form includes the census questions, so there is no separate census exercise. When census time comes, you download an anonymised summary of your group to help you fill it in.

Question 8

Is member data GDPR compliant?

Accepted Answer

Your group's data is hosted in the EU (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) and processed under UK GDPR, with Scoutworks as your data processor and every sub-processor named in our privacy policy. Care plans and bank details are encrypted in the app, a young person's record is never shared with another group without a parent's consent, and you can export a member's data whenever you need it. See Security → Data Protection, Hosting & Portability.

Question 9

How do Young Leaders use Scoutworks?

Accepted Answer

Young Leaders use the same app as leaders, scoped to the sections they help with. Their login is linked to their member record. They take attendance, draft events for a leader to publish, follow badge progress and read risk assessments. A guidance note on each page tells them what their role can do there.

Question 10

Can Young Leaders see sensitive member data?

Accepted Answer

No. Young Leaders cannot open member records or the member list, so medical details, contact details and consents stay with the adults. They see what they need to help run the evening, and nothing more.

Question 11

Can parents defer or withdraw from the waiting list themselves?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Parents can withdraw at any time through a secure email link. When you offer a place, they can accept, decline or defer it from the email — without needing to contact a leader. Leaders can also send bulk interest checks to confirm families still want their spot.

Question 12

How do data verification campaigns work?

Accepted Answer

Send a verification campaign to selected parents asking them to confirm or update five tracked areas — emergency contacts, medical info, permissions, personal details and address. Each member's row shows green, amber or red dots per area. A live tracker updates every 30 seconds. Parents' own edits count as a check, and rolling prompts ask them to confirm one stale area when they say Yes to an event.

Question 13

Can I share or transfer a member with another Scout group?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Sharing gives another Scoutworks group a membership for the same young person — useful for a Young Leader helping another group — so both groups work from one record. Transfer moves the member to the new group for good, and the receiving group can undo it within 24 hours. For under-18s a parent consents first, then the receiving group accepts, and a request queue tracks everything in flight.

Question 14

What happens to money owed when a member leaves?

Accepted Answer

Before you archive, delete or transfer a member, Scoutworks shows anything they owe — missed subscriptions, failed Direct Debits, unpaid event fees — and lists their active subscriptions so you can cancel them in the same step.

Members & People

Member records complete from day one

Tidy Records, From Joining to Leaving

Care Plans

Attendance Register & Heatmap

Waiting lists that rank themselves

Transition Planner

Data Verification Campaigns — GDPR-Friendly

Parent Portal

Young Leaders in the Leader App

Youth Member Portal & Youth Voice

Moving Into Roles & Volunteer Hours

Always-Ready Census Reporting

Frequently asked questions

More features to discover

AI Assistance

Badges & Awards

Finance & Payments

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