Dubbo scouts using lockdown time to rebuild, upgrade

Among the improvements will be an air-conditioning system for the Dubbo based scout hall, but also a range of signficant upgrades to the group's facilities out at Narromine.

Cubs and Joey troop leader Vaughn Simmons, who was one of the organisers who helped secure funding for the various grants that made the work possible, said the support from the NSW government was 'wonderful'.

"We're still going through the development applications at the moment, the actual work on the ground won't start until July," Mr Simmons said.

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"We're going to go through and renovate all the buildings out there at Narromine, that means putting in disabled access, re-roofing the buildings and installing new water tanks to start."

Thanks to a generous gift from the Lithgow branch of the scouts, two new accommodation blocks will also be installed at the Minnamurra facility in Narromine, outside of the 290,000 worth of funding secured through the Stronger Country Communities Fund.

The accommodation buildings will be used as conference rooms and meeting rooms to supplement the campsite and allow the scouts and other youth groups like army and air force cadets to use them as planning grounds.

"It will do for smaller groups, we can put about thirty kids up in there, the buildings won't be done up as accommodation buildings, they'll be done as conference rooms and meeting rooms, it's primarily a campsite," Mr Simmons said.

"It's a great spot, it's in the middle of nowhere, it's landlocked, it's perfect for being away from everything," Mr Simmons said.

"The buildings out there are from the 60s and 70s, though, so they've seen their day and we wanted to upgrade them so our youth and other groups can use the facilities to the best of their ability."

The air conditioning system, installed closer to home at the group's Welchman street address, will make the scout hall a viable destination all year around.

"It's our pride and joy here at Dubbo, we want to put as much as we can into the place," Mr Simmons said.

At present, the scout hall is undergoing it's own renovations, with Mr Simmons tending to the gardens and other areas for the children in their absence.

"While the kids have been away I've been tending to their gardens, the ones planted by our Joeys, the younger kids, and we send them pictures to reassure them that everything's going alright," Mr Simmons said.