The World In My Pocket

After four weeks of ‘build’, the Jamboree site is starting to come to life. Scouts from all over the World are making their way to Hylands Park to be part of the International Service Team for the 21st World Scout Jamboree.

Four weeks ago Hylands Park was just like any other public park, a quiet haven for dog walkers and family picnics. As people walked their dogs on those late June evenings, they probably didn’t appreciate what their park would be transformed into over the coming weeks.

After many years of meetings and planning, the time finally came for the Big Build to commence.
The Jamboree Build Team (JBT) ‘hit’ Hylands Park to start the immense task of building our Jamboree town on Saturday 30th June. Ever since it's been a fantastic experience, as buildings and services were put into the site to make life as welcoming as possible for the young people who are crossing the globe to attend the world’s largest ever World Scout Jamboree.

Building was an international affair during the Build period thousands of volunteers arrived to help with the construction process. Even this was a truly international affair - Scout Leaders came from as far as southern Chile and Australia to help with the Build. There is even one remarkable team of volunteers walking from Serbia, just to be part of the event.

I remember early in week one, we stopped off at the Adult Camping Area to witness the first marquee being erected. It was raining and quite windy on the field and as we stood there talking about the layout of the Island Hub, it was hard to imagine the transformation that this empty field would undergo over the coming weeks. Now, four weeks later, our Jamboree town is near complete and as the sea of tents continues to grow, it is warming to think that as I sleep after another day's end, I do so with the World in my Pocket.