About the award
The King’s Scout Award (KSA) is the top achievement for Explorer Scouts and Scout Network members and comprises of a variety of activities to complete.
It’s closely linked to the Duke of Edinburgh’s Gold Award, so it’s worth considering working on the two awards together.
To gain the award you must complete all of the requirements before your 25th birthday.
Young People who gain their KSA will be invited to celebrate their award by attending an event held at Windsor Castle. This National Day of Celebration and Achievement is normally hosted on the Sunday nearest to St George’s Day in April. KSA award holders and their invited guests, will join the Chief Scout and others to recognise their achievements in an informal parade around the Quadrangle in the castle grounds.
Award participants must:
- Be aged 16 or older to start the award and complete the award before your 25th birthday
- Be a member of either Explorer Scouts or Scout Network (or a combination of both) for at least 18 months to complete the award
- Be a member of Explorer Scouts or Scout Network at the time you complete the award
- Complete 24 nights away as an Explorer Scout or Scout Network member, of which at least 12 must be camping
- Hold the Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award or complete the KSA challenges
International, community and values (ICV)
You must complete six activities in total, two from each topic area of the ICV activities list.
If you have completed your Chief Scout’s Platinum Award, you will have already done two activities and will only need to do a further four activities.
If you have completed your Chief Scout’s Diamond Award, you will have already done four activities and will only need to do a further two activities.
Presentation and sign-off
After completing your award you will make a presentation covering all elements of your award to a suitable audience, with the aim of inspiring and motivating others to achieve the award.
Finally each requirement needs to be signed off by an assessor. This is someone who can vouch for the activities you have undertaken and provide some basic evidence (a short statement) about your participation. This is often your Explorer Team Leader or your District 14-24 Team Leader.
Once you have completed all of the above requirements, a relevant person must approve your award as complete by filling out the ‘KSA Logbook approval’ section.
