All of the sections have awards that recognise young people's involvement in the Programme

In the Beaver Scout and Cub Scout Sections these are called Joining In Awards and take the form of Badges. In the Scouts and in Explorer Scouts, they are referred to as Participation Awards.

As a member reaches the appropriate age, they take part in a Moving-On Award, which eases their passage to the next Section.  The individual requirements for each Moving-On Award differ from Section to Section. However, they always require the young person to renew their Promise.

The Programme also has three Partnership Awards, which can be gained by Members of a Section. These are Environment, Faith and International. These Awards also strengthen links within a Group or District and give young people an opportunity to find out about other Sections.

The Chief Scout’s Award is the highest award that can be gained in each Section. These provide a chance to show the skills gained in the Section and to display responsibility and leadership. In the Beavers, Cubs and Scouts a young person must complete a specific number of Challenges to gain the Chief Scout’s Award. 

In the Explorer Scout and the Scout Network Sections, young people have a little more to do. They need to complete a number of Challenges and a series of further requirements to gain the Chief Scout’s Awards. In these Sections, the Challenges are directly linked with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.