Scout leaders come under fire for ‘woke recruitment drive’ with eight ‘diversity and inclusion’ roles – but furious parents demand more staff who actually ‘know wilderness survival skills, abseiling or canoeing’

Scout leaders have come under fire after launching a massive woke recruitment drive.

Critics hit out at the organisation after it boasted it is looking for candidates to fill ‘no less than EIGHT new ‘equity, diversity and inclusion roles’.

They said hiring the new recruits represented ‘a massive investment’ in the movement’s ‘ambitious new EDI programme’.

Announcing the jobs on LinkedIn, Joanna Gregson, the Scouts’ Head of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, wrote: ‘I’m SO EXCITED to say that we’re recruiting no less than EIGHT new Equity, Diversity and Inclusion roles to support our race equity work and our ambitious new EDI programme.

‘This represents a massive investment by The Scouts, demonstrating its commitment to long-term, meaningful change – and I’m so proud to be a part of it.’

She went on to list the positions saying the movement is looking for an EDI programme manager, EDI project manager, EDI design manager, two EDI executives, EDI learning and development executive, EDI resolutions manager and senior researcher.

And Ms Gregson pledged that there was more to come, adding: ‘For all you HR EDI specialists out there – we’ve also one of those in the works too, so keep your eyes peeled!’

The post was greeted excitedly by Rosemary Ellingham – a full time Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Executive at the Scouts who was appointed in April 2022.

Read more: Scout leaders come under fire for ‘woke recruitment drive’ with eight ‘diversity and inclusion’ roles – but furious parents demand more staff who actually ‘know wilderness survival skills, abseiling or canoeing’