ScoutLink is a great resource or any scout or guide, both individually and for groups. Not only can it be used for international work - by talking to people from other countries. But it can also be used as part of Information Technology awards as well.

If you are planning to use ScoutLink Global Youth for an event then here are some things that you may want to take into consideration when planning:

Will ScoutLink be busy at the time I want to use it?

Despite the tremendous potential for using ScoutLink the service tends to be quiet at times, particularly when the regulars are out running their scout meetings. So it's a good idea to check first. There are many ways to do this including:

Coming on at the times you want and seeing if their are normally people on

Take a look at websites that tell you how many people are on such as:
http://ircchan.scoutlink.net/
http://irc.netsplit.de/channels/details.php?room=%23youth&net=ScoutLink
http://searchirc.com/network/ScoutLink

What do we do when the Scouts/Guides get onto ScoutLink?

It might seem a silly question but younger people can easily get bored of talking to lots of people, especially if they are not sure what to say and just end up asking "asl" all the time.

It might be a good idea to set some sort of challenge such as the 1st Oman Scout Troop (British Scouts Aboard) did. You can find a copy of the activity either on their website or on ours.

Do you want to play games or complete #youth-awards?

If so then it would be a good idea to let #youth know in advance that your coming so that we can try and be online - of course we are all volunteers and it may be that there are occasional times when no one is available. But we do try.

You can e-mail the ScoutLink Global Youth Coordinator on This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it