History of the group and our current challenge to save the Hall
The Scouts have met in Darley Abbey Village since 1909 (as the 7th Derby Scouts), becoming formally incorporated as the 63rd Derby Troup in 1927. The 63rd Derby (Darley Abbey) is the oldest Scout Group in Derby North District and the 5th oldest in Derby and have benefited from wide and enthusiastic support since Baden Powell’s visit to Drum Hill Camp in 1937.
The Methodist Hall, where the Group has met since the 1960s, recently closed as a Chapel. We have thoroughly investigated numerous places as an alternative location in which to run our Scouts group, and found that there are no other suitable venues in the village; so our historic Scout Group may be forced to close or merge with another troop.
The 63rd Derby Scout Group have been offered a chance to buy the Hall outright. If we can raise the money the site will be kept intact, retaining our meeting place and preserving a valuable asset for the village. If we do not reach our goal of raising the money, our fear is that it will be demolished by housing developers and our group will fold to the detriment of our young people and other community members who now use the hall throughout the week.
If we can raise £400,000 we can secure our meeting place for years to come!