A group of scouts took time out of their Christmas holidays to volunteer at at an alcohol and drugs homeless project.

The 1st Molesey Scout Group have been proudly volunteering at the Joel St. Peter’s Night Shelter in Norbiton, helping to facilitate a soup kitchen and activities for guests at the shelter.

The group also provided transport to the Christmas centres set up by national homeless charity Crisis.

Max Harvey, of Surrey Scouts said: “Scouts support others and take care of the world in which we live. Our organisation exists to actively engage and support young people in their personal development, empowering them to make a positive contribution to society.”

The volunteering scheme is a result of the newly formed partnership between 1st Molesey and the Night Shelter.

Daniel Wheeler, an ex-Scout and now the night shelter manager at Joel St. Peters said: “I hope that this is the start of a lasting relationship between these two important community based organisations.

“I enjoyed my time in the Scouts immensely and it’s fantastic the 1st Molesey Scouts are continuing to help others in their community.”

With over half a million members, the Scout Association is the largest co-educational movement in the UK.

It offers a range of activities across the country made possible by its 110,000 volunteers, however there is a waitlist of 38,000 young people due to the shortage of volunteers.