The 35th Tinto twin event and the 3rd Nox and Dies event held by St Andrew’s Orienteering Club (Glasgow) (STAG) was the final event of the 2024 Scottish Inter Club Championship.

The Scottish Inter Club Championships allows clubs to compete against each other over 12 events through the year. Events area selected to ensure a geographical spread and the event is subdivided into not only senior and junior divisions but also large and small clubs.

This year, the Large clubs senior division was retained by Forth Valley Orienteers (FVO) but it was a close rivalry with Edinburgh Southern Orienteering Club (ESOC) who saw their best result at the Tinto Twin event but it was not enough to displace FVO from the top spot. Interlopers Orienteering Club (INT) were lying in third with the northern clubs Inverness Orienteering Club (INVOC) and Moravian Orienteering Club (MOR) having a tussle for 4th and 5th position.

We all know the Scottish Six Days is an amazing event – can you help us spread the word to
new audiences and encourage even more people to enjoy orienteering?

We’d love to have some quotes that can be used (with or without your name, as you prefer) in publicity and engagement work.  So please tell us what the Six Days means to you – just
complete this Google Form https://forms.gle/hiKhHUCgkZKErsfT7
and answer a few quick questions. 

If you are interested in getting involved to help with promoting the Six Days and building
wider interest in orienteering, please get in touch with Katherine Ivory, SOA marketing
director (marketing@scottish-orienteering.org) or Nic Crossley, Event Coordinator,
nic@scottish-orienteering.org

Many thanks!

The Scottish Six Days is one of the greatest orienteering festivals, and certainly the
largest and most exciting event on Scotland’s orienteering calendar. You’ll definitely want to
be at Royal Deeside 2025 – so get your entry in now! Running from 27th July to 1st August
2025, this promises to be a wonderful week of orienteering in an outstandingly beautiful
part of Scotland, with top-level competition with thousands of participants from across the
world.

With its traditional holiday atmosphere, the Six Days is always a lot of fun for everyone,
regardless of experience or age. Royal Deeside 2025 is a fabulous opportunity to showcase
our amazing sport to newcomers – can you help spread the word and inspire others? Tell us
via the link below what the Six Days means to you and why you love it.
Enter now for Early-Bird Prices!

The Scottish Elite and Development Squad (SEDS) helps Scottish-based orienteering athletes to reach their potential and promotes top quality training which is open to all athletes currently at TD5. It also offers an opportunity for ScotJOS leavers and orienteers aged between 18 – 39 to stay in the sport and develop their skills with a programme of coaching and social trips. The training programme is currently organised by SOA’s performance manager Graham Gristwood – grahamgristwood@scottish-orienteering.org.

As you may be aware this week is Scottish Disability Sport week. Earlier this week we highlighted some of the work SOA have been doing in support of Disability Sport week. Clubs including Forth Valley Orienteers have also been busy supporting disability sport.

This year Stirling University were the hosts of the 2024 Scottish Student Championships with the support of Forth Valley Orienteers. The championships consist of an individual event followed by a relay. The individual took place on Saturday at Kippendavie alongside the FVO club championships, meanwhile the relays took place at the Falkirk Wheel. Seven higher education institutions were represented across the weekend. 

This autumn has seen the SOA Lead Welfare Officer, Nikki Howard, talking to Club Welfare Officers, juniors, parents and the Scottish Junior Orienteering Squad about the importance of safeguarding and wellbeing in orienteering. We are committed to ensuring that good and appropriate practices are in place and this applies not just to children but also to adults.

The SOA has a Child Safeguarding and Welfare Policy but also an Adult at Risk Safeguarding and Welfare Policy. These policies apply to everyone involved in the sport in Scotland from Board members, staff through to members and volunteers. As you will be aware the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) was incorporated into Scots Law in July this year and as such SOA policies promote not only safeguarding but also promotes the health and wellbeing of children by providing opportunities for them to participate in a safe and enjoyable environment.

The policies can be found in the Child and Vulnerable Adult Protection and Welfare page of the website (here) or the Resources section.

Further Club Welfare Officer meetings will be held shortly but please ensure you are aware of who your club welfare officer is and ensure that should you have any concerns, no matter how minor, these are raised with the Club Welfare Officer or the SOA Lead Welfare Officer so we can ensure that our sport is a safe and enjoyable environment for everyone!

With lots of calls on all our member’s expenditure at this time of year we are grateful to those who have renewed their SOA membership ( 2025 membership opened on 1st November) – either through British Orienteering or direct through SI entries. Did you know that you could give SOA an additional gift this festive period at no cost to yourself if you are a UK taxpayer?

If you are a UK taxpayer and have signed the gift aid form, the UK government will pay an extra 25p for every £1 of your membership fee?

Gift aid is a simple government initiative which allows you to increase the value of your donations at no extra cost to you. HM Revenue and Customs regards membership subscriptions as ‘donations. Therefore, the SOA can claim gift aid on your membership fees.

The Scottish Score Championships hosted by Interlopers Orienteering Club (INT) at Vogrie Country Park outside Edinburgh were the penultimate event of the 2024 Scottish Inter Club Championships. The last event of the 2024 season will be St Andrews Glasgow Orienteering Club (STAG) Tinto Twin Day Race being held on 24th November at Strathclyde Country Park near Motherwell (entries close this Monday -18th November).