Scout Patrol Flags

Patrol flags are fun to make and help identify a patrol

By Scouter Liam Morland, February 2002

Scouts may wish to make a flag for their patrol. Deciding on a design is a good teamwork activity, as Scouts will have different ideas which can be put together to create a single design. When the flag is done, it helps the patrol to feel like a team. A patrol flag is normally carried on a staff by the patrol leader. A flag can help the patrol to get organized. Scouts can easily find their PL in a group by looking for a flag held in the air. The flag staff can be put in the ground to mark where a patrol should pile their kit when leaving for camp.

The traditional shape for a patrol flag is a pennant (BP nd:40). Flags should bear the patrol animal and the name of the troop, but the design of how these appear is up to the patrol. The easiest way to make a flag is probably to cut the patrol-designed shapes out of felt and sew these with a sewing machine onto a nylon or other cloth pennant. The shapes can first be sketched on the felt, making it easy to cut the right shape.

Patrol Flag Outlines (PDF)

To help your Scout design their patrol flag, you can print them copies of this patrol flag outline (PDF). This PDF file contains one page with two pennant shaped outlines.

Reference

Baden-Powell, Lord Robert.

nd. Scouting for Boys: A Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship Through Woodcraft. Scout Brotherhood Edition. Scouts Canada.