“Be prepared” is the motto of the Scout movement, but it is unlikely that Robert Baden-Powell intended it to mean that Boy Scouts should know how to procure and use condoms.

They should now, though. After more than a century of teaching boys how to tie knots, sing campfire songs and help old ladies across the road, the Scout Association today starts teaching its young charges about sex, with sexual health advice and even visits to sexual health clinics. Baden-Powell would unquestionably have disapproved. In Scouting for Boys he advised those who feel sexual urges to “wash your parts in cold water and cool them down”.

In a later book, Rovering to Success, he wrote that young men should not indulge their “primitive sexual urges”, but should put their energies into “hiking and the enjoyment of the out-of-door manly activities”, rather than “aimless loafing and smutty talks”.

The decision to introduce the policy – which applies to all age groups within the movement, from six-year-old Beavers upwards – was made after leaders asked for guidance on how to deal with questions about sex.

Factsheets cover questions such as where to obtain contraception and pregnancy testing, and what to do if a young person feels they are being coerced into a sexual relationship. Suggested activities for older Scout groups include discussions about different religious beliefs regarding sex, and “how to say no” role plays.

The Chief Scout, Peter Duncan, said: “We must be realistic and accept that around a third of young people are sexually active before 16 and many more start relationships at 16 and 17. With over 450,000 members, Scouting touches members of every community, religious and social group in the country, so adults in Scouting have a duty to promote safe and responsible relationships, and as an organisation we have the responsibility to provide sound advice about how to do that.”

A spokesman added: “It fits within our remit, particularly when you look at the state of the youth of today and the perils they are getting into with ignorance of sexual health matters. We have a duty of care to them.”

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