Visits Abroad
Travelling abroad is an exciting dimension of international Scouting. It’s an opportunity to learn about another country and culture, to meet new people and experience new things, and to take part in a whole host of activities.
Hertfordshire Scouts International Team are here to help with your visit abroad whether you’re thinking about planning your first trip abroad or working on your tenth; going alone or taking 250 young people; using a travel company or planning it yourself.
Whatever the nature of your trip abroad, there is a simple approval process you always need to follow. The first step is filling the Visits abroad Form A online as soon as you are thinking of planning a trip; it doesn’t matter how early stage your planning is or if you subsequently decide not to go ahead – you must fill in the form at the start of the planning process.
Resources
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Visits Abroad Form Part B (to follow)
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Visits abroad process on the UK Scouts website
The Visits Abroad (VA) process
Step 1
What you need to do
Fill in the online version of the "Visits Abroad Form A". In Hertfordshire, we have replaced the MS Word document used by UK Scouts with an online version to make the process easier and quicker for everyone involved.
Filling in the form should take about 15 minutes, provided you have the basic information about your trip to hand.
What we do
We will acknowledge by email that we have received your form. This should be immediate. A VA Recommender will begin reviewing your trip with a view to recommend it for approval or rejction.
At this proint, we will provide you with an information pack with tips for the planning of your trip.
You will be notified ASAP, usually within 2 weeks of the approval to continue planning or for reasons of rejection of your plan.
Visits Abroad Form Part A
Step 2
What you need to do
Once you have received approval from Hertfordshire International team to continue planning, you can start getting into the more detailed planning of your trip. Using the information and guidance provided by us in Step 1, you will be able to cover the various aspects of the trip.
Share relevant documents with us such as your itinerary, insurance policy, risk assessments, critical incident plan.
What we do
We will help you with any questions you may have and support you along the way. We may also send you emails with reminders to prompt you to think about the various important aspects of your trip.
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We will review the documents you share with us and give feedback on anything that requires more detail.
Detailed planning
Step 3
What you need to do
Visits Abroad Form B should be submitted for approval at least 8 weeks before departure. Alongside the form, submit the final version of the documents required that we have worked on with you since you submitted Part A of the form
What we do
We will complete a final review of the trip you have planned and one of the Visits Abroad Approvers will send you the official approval of your trip. This will be accompanied by any relevant information and documentation from UK Scouts that you may require during your trip
Visits Abroad Form Part B
Step 4
What you need to do
The time has come to reap the rewards of your hard work and enjoy your trip!
What we do
We will try to follow the progress of your trip and would love to get a report from you and the young people about their experiences.