Kent Scouts Launch First-Ever Scout Expedition Project to Svalbard
24th March 2026
Kent Scouts are set to break new ground this April as they become the first Scout team ever to undertake an organised expedition project to Svalbard, the High Arctic Archipelago just 1,300 km from the North Pole.
From 6–18 April 2026, fourteen participants will take part in a two-week leadership, research, and cultural exploration journey across Norway and into the Arctic. Led by Expedition Leader David Wraight, with Alan Noake as home contact, the project aims to build resilience, global awareness, and environmental understanding through hands-on fieldwork in one of the planet’s most extreme environments.
After cultural and educational visits in Oslo and a voyage north along Norway’s iconic Hurtigruten coastal route, the team will fly to Longyearbyen on 12 April to begin the historic Svalbard phase. Hosted by local experts, participants will take part in ice-cave hiking, dog-sledding, snowmobiling, photography and research hikes, and a low-impact wildlife and glacier cruise aboard the hybrid-electric MS Bard.
Between activities, the Scouts will complete structured project work on climate change, sustainable tourism, polar exploration, wildlife conservation, and life in remote communities.
The team returns to the UK on 18 April.
This landmark venture sets a new benchmark for what young people in Scouting can achieve—and marks a major first for the movement on the global stage.
[225 Words]
Media contact:
Alan Noake MBE – Home Contact, Kent Scouts ArcticQuest2026
