Colouring the Community

Scouts in Anlaby have been able to give their scout hut a new lease of life, thanks to a generous paint donation from the local Dulux Decorator Centre on Anlaby Road in Hull.

The Anlaby St Mark's Scout group, which is run alongside St Mark's Church, is made up of 54 boys and girls aged from six to 14 years. The different groups, made up of the Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers, meet once a week to learn traditional scouting skills, such as putting up tents, lighting a camp-fire and tying knots.

These skills are an essential part of the scouting life and it is important that the equipment they use is kept in good condition. The storage room, where the Anlaby St Mark's Scouts keep their equipment, had been badly affected by damp since it was last painted in the late 1980s, and the Scouts wanted to renovate the storage room before any damage was caused.

After the storage room was re-plastered, the team of Scouts, assisted by their parents and groups leaders, used sealing paint before brightening up the walls with Brilliant White emulsion paint, while gloss was used on the interior doors and skirting boards.

Now the storage area has been completed, the Scouts plan to continue with the painting and redecoration throughout the hut by refreshing the main hall, kitchen, toilets and office.

Haydn Bell, assistant group Scout leader, said: "The hut has been in need of a fresh lick of paint for sometime and thanks to Dulux Decorator Centres, we have been able to do this. It has made such a difference to have the storage room sealed and redecorated and we can now store equipment away, without the worry of it being damaged by damp.

"The hut will look fantastic when the rest of it is completed and I hope that the makeover will raise the profile of the Scouts to the parents and children of Anlaby and encourage more to join."

Alan Marsters, store manager of Anlaby Road Dulux Decorator Centres, said: "It was an honour to help the Scouts redecorate their hut. They were all so enthusiastic about starting this project and it is great to see youngsters learning a skill, which may even inspire them to become painters and decorators one day. I will be telling all my customers about the Scout hut and hopefully it will encourage a few to get their children involved in this wonderful tradition."