Boys Brigade 2013

September 1
2013
The following is my report titled the declining participation rate in the
Boys Brigade Australia

Introduction
This chosen topic was meticulously after observation of the subsiding numbers of The Boys Brigade
Australia 61
st
NSW Carlingford. From being the largest company in Australia in the 1970s with a
quintessential number of approximately 170 boys to a contemptible 12. This was more blatant as I
witnessed a lot of my friends leaving the company and fewer people know about this company. I
believe that project is an imperative investigation in order to provide intuition into vindication of the
declining participation rate of Boys particularly centred within the last decade. I will analyse a
catalyst in the changing patterns. Finally I shall discuss appropriate strategies into the effective
marketing and realistic promoting strategies in order to improve the rate. It will also focus on
changing the image of being more relevant in todays temporal context. My overall concern is that
religion and religious based organisations are discovering their depreciating relevance in todays
world and my concern may convert into suggestions for improving the success of this vital
organisation.
History and contextual values
First Sub Point: Brief History of Boys Brigade
The Boys Brigade Australia was first planted in 1890 the St. Marks Church of England Fitzroy,
Melbourne. One by one, the planting of Boys Brigades within churches quickly spread between
states. The first companies were to be set up in Richmond, Kurrajong, Bathurst, Cobar and Sydney.
Ross Kafer relocated to Carlingford to live and together with his wife Nola commenced the
present 61
st
Carlingford Company in 1958, formed through the a group of Lifeboys which would
be run in the old Literary Institute Hall at West Pennant Hills. The Boys Brigade Carlingford
group quickly and successfully became the largest group in the whole of Australia with
approximately 172 boys.

Second Sub Point: Changing values
I want to make very clear that I believe that there is an inevitable change in values as time passes.
This idea is greatly seen in the change of humanistic expressions, the way people seek their own
spirituality and are able to accept who they are rather than be sculpted by obligation to family
traditions and rituals. In search of greater insight into this topic,

Third Sub Point: Observations and conclusion
In observation of this chart, we can see that there is a gradual decline in the number of people who
are underrepresented in their respective age group.
I personally remember recounts of the 1970s 61
st
Carlingford:
Boys were mainly from Carlingford Baptist Church
It was the largest Boys Brigade Company in Australia
It had over 10 boys
It would take over an hour to get opening parade marked and finished

Other than personal recollections, I have no vindication into the memory of the previous boys
brigade, however, I have researched into what had attracted so many people. The Boys Brigade
offered a time of fellowship, where many boys, would follow in the footsteps of their fathers and
become part of the Boys Brigade. It was often an optimistic time as their friends also were heavily
involved in it. The main reasons for joining the boys brigade were
Fun
Discipline
Something to do
Camps
Fellowship and friends

The studies of the declination in the rate of church attendance will subsequently reflect the
attendance and participation rates within the Boys Brigade Australia
Current Numbers and Justification

First Sub Point: Secondary Data Collection
In search of current numbers and statistics, I had done some Google searching. Two-thirds of all
Australians over the age of 50 can account for their church attendance as a youth or child. Among
Australians aged between 30 and 50, approximately half have that memory. But among Australians
under the age of 30, less than 30 per cent remember attending church frequently. A recent survey of
Australians shows that, while less children are now attending church and most are doing so with
their parents, the retention rates remain low. Of those young people currently in their 20s who
attended church frequently as children, only 28 per cent continue to attend frequently, 34 per cent
attend occasionally, and 39 per cent have ceased to attend altogether. These figures are very similar
to those Australians now in their 60s. Thirty-one per cent of these older people who attended
church as children continue to attend church frequently, 36 per cent attend occasionally and 33 per
cent never attend. Some recent studies have suggested that children are making decisions about
attending or not attending church much earlier than previously. While many children used to cease
attending in their middle teenage years , some are now making such decisions at the end of primary
school.
Personal Observations
There has been a low number of Boys within our company
Anchors: 4-5
Section 1: 4
Section 2: 4
This numbers are often inconsistent as many of our boys also have other extracurricular
engagements involving soccer, school work and family functions.
Also, it is not uncommon for the number of officers to outnumber the boys. This often results in
drill being less effective and less efficiency in the running of badge classes due to low numbers.


Church Attendance in Australia

Percentage Reasoning
47% Irrelevant to my life
26% Dont accept the method it is taught
24% It is obsolete and outdated
22% Issues with clergy ministers
19% Dont believe in the bible
18% Too busy

















Second Sub Point: Christian relevance in todays society




Third Sub point: Analysis
In retrospect, the church has a greater influence on society than the Boys Brigade Australia
(respectively). That said, this declining rate in churches shall subsequently reflect the number of
boys that attend the Company. My personal opinion is that in todays Byronic world, religion is more
of a tool to render warmth and comfort rather than an approach to life. Hence, this has resulted in
the decline in numbers as people also view The Boys Brigade as a redundant company which is no
longer needed in todays society (sadly to say).
Strategies for improvement

First Sub Point: Correctly Marketing the Boys Brigade
The appropriate action is to re-evaluate the way in which The Boys Brigade Australia promotes itself
to be relevant to both church attenders and non-church attenders.
Marketing is the process of developing a product and implementing a series of strategies aimed at
correctly promoting, pricing and distributing the product to a core group of customers. During this
year, I am currently studying Business Studies at the HSC level, and this information has helped me
to develop marketing strategies and ways to implement them.

The approaches to market the Boys Brigade should be following the Selling approach. It is based on
the belief that a business will be successful in selling a product or service if it is able to promote the
benefits of the product to its target market.
Psychological Influences- Psychological factors are personal characteristics of an individual that
affect his or her buying behaviour. They include:
Perception- is the process through which people select, organise and interpret information to create
meaning. Individuals act on perceptions of reality rather than reality itself thus marketing managers
must create a positive perception in the mind of the customer through certain images.
Lifestyle- Different lifestyles attract different types of products and services.
Personality and self-concept- The way we view ourselves and the way we respond to other peoples
perception of us.

Second Sub Point: Changing current activities
Perception: Boys Brigade should focus on being more approachable to younger boys through the
adoption of a contemporary approach. This may involve the casualization of uniforms, more social
events which boys can invite friends and have more events which are innate for boys to enjoy e.g.
The Boys Brigade LAN events.
Lifestyle: The boys brigade should focus on adapting to a Boys lifestyle, this may include having
casual meet ups during the week at church to discuss or just come together through fellowship
Personality and self-concept: as discussed, it is quite obvious that many kids become segregated
from friends because of their beliefs, I believe that a greater focus on gaining numbers through
greater encouragement of invitation to
Sociocultural Influences- are forces exerted by other people and groups that affect an individuals
buying behaviour.

Third Sub Point: Word of Mouth Communication
Reference (Peer) Groups- A reference or peer group is a group of people with whom a person
closely identifies, adopting their attitudes, values and beliefs. E.g. if a friend tells you that they had a
bad experience at a certain store, you will most probably alter your buying behaviour.
The best form of promotion is through word-of-mouth promotion. I think that the boys brigade
should focus on promoting itself through more schools and also fetes. This is a cheap, and effective
way to attract new boys into the company. It is encouraged that boys bring a friend along, and this
could be further encouraged with a reward system.
Finally, another way of increasing numbers is be gaining greater interaction with the Church.
Personally, I remember when they Girls and Boys brigade would have their service dedicated to the
two organisations, then they had been merged with the combined kids service and now church
events with Boys Brigade are no longer run at Carlingford Baptist Church. Another cause of the
decline in numbers is that I am the only section 2 boy who attends the same church as the company.
This does not mean that we suggest boys to switch churches, but mean that there are hardly any
boys who are invited to join from Carlingford. A greater outreach through youth promotion and also
the young adult 5:30 service could also increase the numbers.
Conclusion:
Therefore, through analysis of previous numbers and current statistics, it is obvious that there has
been a subsequent decline in numbers throughout the past decades. However, the best action is to
adapt new marketing strategies to effectively promote the Boys Brigade in a positive manner to both
Christian demographics and non-Christian demographics. There has been a change in the way
people perceive the Boys Brigade as being irrelevant and seldom to be made a joke of, but to the
Boys and men who still see the appreciation and value in this company must continue to effectively
promote the company instead of being nonchalant and accepting the gradual decline. I feel that this
report was necessary in retrospect to the loss of numbers which may eventually cease the running of
the 61
st
Carlingford; which was at once the biggest Company in Australia. Therefore, everyone must
take a role in order to maintain and demonstrate its relevance in todays commercialised society.
References:
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/churchgoers-keen-to-take-a-pew-despite-their-disbelief-20120106-
1posf.html
I see this article as relevant, as this is atypical in todays society, I think he would have been one to
go to the Boys Brigade and that church and spirituality has consistently played a major part in his
life.
http://blog.mccrindle.com.au/Infographic/2013/Church-Attendance-in-Australia-
Infographic_McCrindle-Research-698px.jpg
I used this article as a guide to collect secondary data for the church attendance figures. This is about
the best I could do as primary data collection would be needed to clarify the actual numbers within
the Boys Brigade rather than the church in general which involves numerous denominations which
may prevent obscurity.
Word Count: 2012
Name: Nikolas Cini Date of submission:
Coy: 61
st
Carlingford NSW Telephone number: 9868 3932
e-mail: thenikminnit@gmail.com
I am planning to achieve my Queens Badge this year: Yes