"" 1984, Asa Briggs and Anne Macartney provides: "Already in the 1890s, there had been increasing interest in what would now be called youth work. Now in 1908, the year of the Children's Act and of the Prevention of Crime Act - boy scouting arrived at Toynbee Hall, and the 1st Stepney Toynbee Troop was inaugurated on 27 May 1908 'at a meeting characterised by the greatest enthusiasm'. Dr T. S. Lukis, a new Toynbee Resident, was the scouting enthusiast who was responsible. He had read Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys published in that same month and he was determined to act at once. Later in the year, J. Landsberg organised a further troop, and soon many of the Residents were involved. They contributed both to the practice and to the philosophy of scouting, noting that Baden-Powell in his Yarns for Boy Scouts had quoted Gorst's statement that the university Settlements had succeeded in training and civilising some of the most difficult boys in every city. Perhaps not surprisingly, Baden-Powell selected the Toynbee troop at the Earls Court Rally of 1909 as the most efficient troop present."
adds: ".. a very early Jewish scouting troop, the Landsbergs. Or, as founder Captain Jose R Landsberg explained, although all of the early members happened to be Jewish, the troop was in fact open and inclusive. The main difference was undertaking scouting activities on Sundays instead of Saturdays to allow for the Sabbath."
At the this image is captioned "Woodpigeon Patrol at Toynbee, November 1908".
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