Patrol Leaders Council

The patrol leaders’ council plans the yearly troop program at the annual planning conference. It then meets monthly to fine-tune the plans for the upcoming month. The PLC is made up of the senior patrol leader, who presides over the meetings, the assistant senior patrol leader, all patrol leaders, and the troop guide. The troop scribe also attends to take notes and keep the minutes.

The PLC is the troop’s elected and duly appointed governing body. Resting on their shoulders is the planning, preparation, and presentation of the troop’s Scouting program. It’s up to them to see that the promise of Scouting is delivered. Though this might appear to be a daunting proposition, with the proper training, they can gain the required tools and skills needed to run things in a fashion that results in a thriving program benefitting all the members of their troop.

The first thing a really successful patrol leaders’ council needs is a shared vision of how the senior patrol leader and the entire PLC would like their troop to perform and function. How do they want the Scouts to feel and how do they want them to behave? What would this look like? Finally, what do they want to accomplish within the framework of the Scouting program? Once they have a well-defined picture, and how it translates into an ideal meeting, and for that matter, any troop gathering, they can use this as a point of reference to gauge how they are doing and towards what they might need to strive.