Scout groups held their weekly meetings and enjoyed many activities without the glare of publicity.

But there were plenty of occasions when the Oxford Mail was delighted to record those events of interest to the wider public.

Picture 1 was taken in 1977 when two stalwarts of the 14th Oxford group, Gweneth Thomas and Stan Revell, retired from Scouting after 30 years.

READ MORE: Community group running pub says goodbye

Mr Revell, a butcher in Abingdon Road, Oxford, had been Cub Scout leader and Miss Thomas, who lived in Kennington, had been assistant Cub Scout leader.

They are seen with Cub Scouts after a cheque presentation in the church hall in Vicarage Road, Oxford.

In Picture 2, Oxford Scouts had set up a radio link to contact Scouts in other countries as part of a Jamboree-on-the-Air weekend in 1971.

Oxford Mail: They linked with Norway, Denmark, Sweden and New York, but bad weather hit connections with Australia.

Ian Cooper, front left, of Oxford University Radio Club, who helped organise the event, is seen with Oxfordshire Scout commissioner Paul Gore, radio operator Tony Garrett-Read and brothers Jonathon and Jeremy Gray.

More than 300 Scouts, Cubs and Sea Scouts, some seen in Picture 3, marched through Oxford to mark St George’s Day in 1977.

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The parade started in St Giles, where the Sheriff of Oxford, the Rev Tony Williamson, took the salute, and ended at St Aldate’s Church, where a special service was held.

Four members of the 48th Oxford St Andrew’s troop at Headington received Chief Scout awards in 1976.

Seen with their leader, Peter Preston, in Picture 4, they were Richard Bowley, 15, Aidan Robson, 15, Richard Loughman, 16, and Jonathan Bagnall, 15.

Picture 5 shows the Lord Mayor, Bill Fagg, starting a sponsored walk by 150 Cowley Cub scouts in Florence Park in 1976. He joined them on the first lap.

The walk was organised by nine packs in the Cowley district to raise money to buy a £75 machine to help deaf children learn to talk. The 14th Oxford (St John’s) group attracted dozens of customers to an outdoor autumn fair at Eastwyke Farm, off Abingdon Road, in 1975 to raise money for new headquarters. Picture 6 shows bargain hunters surrounding one of the stalls.

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

You can also read his weekly Traffic and Transport newsletter.