Rebecca's certainly done her best!

“BE prepared” is their motto. And a 10-year-old Norfolk girl has certainly lived up to the Cub Scout pledge after being awarded all 33 of the movement's activity badges.

“BE prepared” is their motto.

And a 10-year-old Norfolk girl has certainly lived up to the Cub Scout pledge after being awarded all 33 of the movement's activity badges.

The Scout Association says that Rebecca Hooper, from Toft Monks, near Beccles, is one of only a few youngsters to gain the full sweep and is likely to be the first girl.

She is also believed to be the youngest, having gained all the badges before her 10th birthday earlier this month.

The youngster has been praised for her “determination and enthusiasm” in accomplishing the feat, which has seen her tackle activities including astronomy, animal care, DIY and martial arts.

It has taken Rebecca, a sixer from 1st Burgh St Peter Cubs, just over a year to achieve her goal. She spent time during her summer holidays working through the badges and collecting evidence for others.

The youngster set to work after a Cub Scout leader jokingly told her that she needed to “pass all the badges” before she could achieve her silver award. Rebecca thought he meant all 33 activity badges - and only later realised she actually needed to gain five “challenge” badges to get the award.

During her efforts to reach her goal, she has taken her first flight in a small private aircraft, attended judo lessons and learned how to protect herself, made a computer desk for her DIY badge, cooked her family a roast dinner, repaired the puncture on her bicycle, visited a synagogue, learned how to read a map, looked after farm animals, sailed a boat and helped tidy the local churchyard.

Rebecca, who hopes to become a vet, said she particularly enjoyed the work involved for her animal carer badge.

“I really like animals; we have quite a lot of animals at home, so I really enjoyed that one,” she said. “I also enjoyed the martial arts one

because it gave me a chance to start something new. I got 17 badges in the summer holidays last year and I wanted to carry on and get the rest.”

Rebecca, a pupil at Glebeland Primary School, will join the Sea Scouts in September and her next aim is to get all those badges.

Rebecca's mother Helen said: “I am really proud of her. She has been really dedicated and has had to work very hard to achieve this.”

Scout Association spokesman Simon Carter confirmed that Rebecca is likely to be the first girl to collect all 33 activity badges.

He said: “To have achieved all

the Cub Scout award badges

shows great determination and enthusiasm.”

Ben Spratling, 10, from Norwich, became the first boy to achieve all 33 badges last December. Leon Johnson, also 10, from Stockport, Greater Manchester, also achieved all 33.

In 1997, two boys, Tom O'Connell and Thomas Allen, achieved the then maximum number of Cub Scout badges on offer at the time - 40 in total.