Scout tool · Finance
Scout camp budget calculator
Start from pre-populated costs, choose who pays with a subsidy preset, and see exactly what to charge per head — so your camp never runs at a loss. Export to CSV or PDF when you’re done.
What is the Scout camp budget calculator?
The Scout camp budget calculator is a tool inside Scoutworks for working out what a camp or trip should cost each person. It comes with a set of pre-populated costs — site fees, food, transport, activities, equipment — that you can add to, and it automatically works out the cost per head against your chosen subsidy preset, with a contingency or surplus target built in so you don’t end up out of pocket.
The whole point is to make sure your event isn’t loss-making. You can optionally link the budget to an event to pull in attendee numbers, link a camp menu to pull its food cost straight in, and export the finished budget as a CSV or a PDF for your treasurer or committee. Create your group to open it, free during your trial — no setup required — and you can price your next camp in a couple of minutes.
How to budget a Scout camp
Five steps from a pile of costs to a fair price per head.
- 1
Start from your costs
Begin with the pre-populated cost lines — site fees, food, transport, activities, equipment — and add your own. You can link a camp menu to pull its food cost straight in.
- 2
Set who’s coming
Enter how many young people and leaders are attending, or link an event to pull the attendee numbers in automatically.
- 3
Choose who pays
Pick a subsidy preset — full, half or free for adults and Young Leaders — or set your own custom split.
- 4
Set a surplus target and check the total
Add a contingency or surplus target, as a percentage or a flat amount, and see the cost per head — the planner flags if the camp would run at a loss.
- 5
Export and share
Export the finished budget as a CSV or a PDF for your treasurer, committee or executive.
The cost-per-head formula
Working out what to charge is simple in principle: add up every cost, divide by the number of people paying, then add a contingency so a surprise doesn’t sink the budget. The calculator does this against your chosen subsidy preset and updates the moment you change a figure — and warns you if the camp would make a loss.
(Total costs ÷ paying attendees) + contingency = cost per head. £900 of costs ÷ 30 people = £30, + 10% contingency = £33 per head.
Better than a camp budget spreadsheet
| A spreadsheet | Scoutworks | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost lines | A blank sheet to fill in | Pre-populated costs, add your own |
| Who pays | Build every split by hand | Four subsidy presets, plus a custom split |
| Attendee numbers | Typed in and kept up to date by hand | Pulled from a linked event |
| Food cost | Guessed or copied across | Pulled from your linked camp menu |
| Avoiding a loss | Hope the maths is right | Flags a shortfall before you set the price |
| Sharing | Email the file around | Export a clean CSV or PDF |
What the budget calculator does
Pre-populated cost lines
Starts with the usual camp costs — site fees, food, transport, activities, equipment — ready to adjust, or add your own.
Subsidy presets
Four presets for who pays full, half or nothing — plus a custom split of your own. A table compares them side by side.
Fair cost per head
Splits the total across the paying attendees for a fair, defensible price.
Never run at a loss
Totals your costs against what you’ll collect and flags a shortfall before you set the price.
Pulls from event & menu
Link an event for attendee numbers and a camp menu for its food cost.
Export to CSV or PDF
Send a clean budget to your treasurer, committee or executive.