Youth Safety

1. Our principles

ScoutNest is designed around the Youth Protection policies Scouting families already know: two-deep leadership, no one-on-one contact between an adult and a youth, parents informed, and trained adults in leadership roles. Where we can, we build those rules into the software itself — enforced on our servers, not just hidden in the app — so the safe way is also the easy way.

Software can support good practice, but it can't replace it. Training, supervision, and the judgment of your troop's adults remain the most important protections a young person has.

2. Messaging

• No one-on-one messages with scouts. When an adult sends a direct message to a scout, ScoutNest automatically adds the scout's parent or guardian as a recipient. The sender can't remove them.
• Scouts' messages copy their parents too. When a scout starts a direct message, their linked parent or guardian is always included, and replies stay in that same thread.
• No parent on file, no direct message. If a scout has no parent or guardian linked in ScoutNest, a direct message to or from that scout can't be sent until the troop adds one.
• Troop-wide announcements are leader-only. Scouts can't send announcements to the whole troop, and youth leaders can announce only to their own patrol. Announcements go to the whole audience at once, like an announcement at a troop meeting.
• Messages are private, with oversight. People see only the messages they sent or received. Troop leaders with oversight responsibility can review troop messages, so nothing happens out of sight.
• Updates go to families. Event updates, departure and return notices, and gear reminders are addressed to parents and adults by default.

3. Scouts' personal information

• Contact details stay with the family. A scout's date of birth, email address and phone number are shown only to the scout and their linked parents or guardians. Leaders, committee members and admins see the scout's age instead, which is enough to plan programs. Leaders also can't overwrite these details.
• Emergency contacts are kept in the scout's record and are visible to the scout's family and to leaders with roster access, so they're at hand if something goes wrong on an outing.
• Minimal by design. Troops decide what to enter, and ScoutNest asks only for what's useful to run the program. We never sell information or use it for advertising. See our Privacy Policy.

4. Who can join, and what they can see

• Invitation only. Scouts can't sign up on their own. A scout can sign in only after the troop sends them an invitation, and troops should have a parent's permission first.
• Under 13: parents decide. A scout under 13 can't get a login without a parent's or guardian's consent. ScoutNest checks the scout's age itself: leaders can't invite a younger scout directly, or change a birthdate to make a scout 13 or older. A leader confirms the parent in person, the parent chooses what their scout may do and signs in ScoutNest, and the parent gets an email they can use to cancel. See the Children's Privacy Notice.
• Role-based access. Each person sees only what their role allows. A parent sees their own scouts; a scout sees their own record, events and messages; leaders see what their role needs. The troop admin assigns roles.
• Each troop is separate. Information is kept apart for every troop, and every request is checked on our servers, so one troop can never see another's members.
• Access can be removed instantly. When someone leaves the troop, an admin can remove their access, and it takes effect right away. Extra permissions can be given for a set time and expire automatically.
• An audit trail. Changes to who holds special permissions are recorded, so troop admins can review who granted what, and when.

5. Photos

• Leader review. New photos uploaded to an event are marked as pending until a leader reviews them, and a leader can remove any photo.
• Never public. Photos are stored privately and shown only to signed-in troop members, through links that expire after a short time. They can't be found or shared by public address.
• Easy removal. A leader can remove a photo, and it's deleted from storage.
• Be thoughtful. Follow your troop's photo policy: share only photos you have permission to share, and avoid images that identify where a young person lives or goes to school.

6. Health information

In line with Scouting America guidance, ScoutNest doesn't store medical records or the contents of the Annual Health and Medical Record. We keep only the date a scout's or adult's form was signed, so the troop can see when it's current, expiring or expired. The forms themselves stay with your troop, under its own procedures.

Meal planning can include a short allergy or dietary note so cooks can plan safely. Keep these notes brief and limited to what the cooking group needs to know.

7. Supporting trained, two-deep leadership

• Youth Protection Training tracking. Troops can record when each adult completed Youth Protection Training. ScoutNest shows whether it's current, expiring or expired (training is valid for two years) and flags gaps in the troop's annual recharter checklist.
• Two-deep reminders. When a leader starts an outing, ScoutNest checks the adults who are checked in and warns if there are fewer than two. It's a reminder, not a block — the adults on the outing stay responsible.
• Safety-first planning. Event checklists suggest must-have items for each kind of outing — such as medical forms, two-deep leadership, transportation and permission paperwork — drawn from the Guide to Safe Scouting.
• Departure and return. Leaders check scouts in at departure and can notify families when the group leaves and when it's heading back, with pickup details.

8. What your troop is responsible for

ScoutNest is a tool. Your troop and its chartered organization remain responsible for Youth Protection, including:

• making sure every adult leader is registered and has current Youth Protection Training;
• practicing two-deep leadership and no one-on-one contact — online and in person, inside ScoutNest and outside it;
• inviting only people who belong in the troop, giving leadership permissions only to entitled adults, and removing access promptly when someone leaves;
• getting parents' permission before adding scouts or inviting them to sign in;
• keeping parents and guardians linked to their scouts, so the parent-copying protections work; and
• following the Guide to Safe Scouting, your council's policies, and the law, including mandatory reporting rules.

9. Reporting a concern

If you see something in ScoutNest that worries you — a message, a photo, someone who shouldn't have access — tell your troop's leaders, and tell us.

• Immediate danger: call 911.
• Suspected abuse or a Youth Protection concern in Scouting America: call the Scouts First Helpline at 1-844-726-8871, email scouts1st@scouting.org, and contact local law enforcement or child protective services.
• Problems with ScoutNest itself — inappropriate content, a safety feature not working, or an account that should be removed: use our contact form and choose "Youth safety concern." We treat these as our highest priority, and we cooperate with Scouting officials and law enforcement.

We'll remove content or suspend accounts that put young people at risk, and we report suspected child exploitation to the appropriate authorities.

10. Always improving

We review these protections as Scouting's policies evolve and as troops tell us what they need. If you have ideas for making ScoutNest safer, we'd genuinely like to hear them.