Dudley Forde
Dr. Reginald Dudley Forde
Founder of the Patrol Leader Training Unit
The Educationist
Reginald Dudley Forde was born in Johannesburg on 20 April 1940, but received his education in Natal. He attended Clifton School in Nottingham Road, and Michaelhouse. He holds four degrees from the Universities of Natal and Kwa Zulu Natal.. These include a B Comm, BA (Hons) a Master's in Philosophy of Leadership and a Doctorate. In 1964, he was the Student of the Year at the Durban Teachers' Training College.
He has proved himself to be an outstanding leader in the field of education. His Headmastership sees him through being a young, enthusiastic principal in Welkom to a maturing headmaster of Kingsway High School, and then the re¬nowned Maritzburg College, and Durban High School and later Rector of the prestigious Michaelhouse in the KZN midlands before retiring. He was also a lecturer at his alma mater, Natal University.
The Scouter
Throughout his entire career he inculcated strong values of leadership, discipline and commitment to young people. This was through the Boy Scout Movement of South Africa in which he became very active in the 1950's.
From 1959, he held various positions such as Area Commissioner: KwaZulu-Natal, National Commissioner for Training South Africa and Chief Scouts Commissioner South Africa (1995 – 1999). He is well known in most spheres concerned with leadership training and has published several papers on his studies and practical work in this area. He was inspired by the principles of leadership by adults and began similar courses to train leaders among the boys in the Boy Scout Movement. The immediate success of these early courses in training boys to become leaders was followed by regular successive courses, each building on gained experience, new innovative ideas and all-round improvement in standards recognising the need for scouting to keep abreast with new developments in a changing South Africa. These courses began with the training of the Patrol Leaders of his own group and laid the foundations of what was later to become the PLTU.
An ardent sports fanatic, a private pilot and yachtsman Dudley Forde has collected a number of awards in his long career. These include the Long Service Medal for 40 years of service to scouting; the Honourable Citizen Award for Service to Education; The Rotary Vocational Service Award; The Silver Protea and The Silver Springbok for exceptional service to scouting.
Civic Recognition
On the 27 April 2011 the President of South Africa awarded Dudley Forde as Counsellor of the Order of the Baobab (C.O.B) for his "outstanding leadership in the field of education and contribution to the community service through the channels of the education system and the Boy Scout Movement of South Africa".
Dudley passed away peacefully in his sleep on 4th September 2025.
Scout Heritage 2025
Youth Leadership, the legacy of Dr Dudley Forde
Dudley was not just a Scout, he was a pioneer who championed youth development, and a leader who led by example in living the Scout Promise and Law. From founding the Patrol Leader Training Unit (PLTU) in 1959, to serving in numerous leadership roles across the Scout Movement, his vision and commitment helped shape generations of young people into capable leaders of character.
Dudley joined the Movement in 1958. A year later he became Troop Scouter of the Sea Scout Group at 2nd Durban YMCA. In 1962 he became an Assistant District Commissioner in South Durban, was Area Commissioner for KZN Scouting and also an Assistant Deputy Camp Chief and Deputy Camp Chief on the Southern Zone Training Team. He later led the training team in the then Natal Division, he also held National appointments as National Training Commissioner, SAHQ Adult Leader Training Commissioner (two terms), Chief Scout’s Commissioner, and was a member of the Governing Board.
He had a great understanding of the Scout philosophy and values, of the power of Baden Powell’s Patrol System, the “learning by doing” methodology, and the value of the voluntary acceptance of a code of conduct. So much so that he became instrumental in designing and initiating the Patrol Leaders Training Unit course which is still being implemented today in various regions. In July 1959, he led the very first Patrol Leader Training Course at Lexden. It was a bold experiment designed to stretch, challenge, and grow young Scouts into skilled leaders. By 1967, that course had evolved into what we now know as PLTU — a cornerstone of leadership training in our Movement today.
Dudley once said: “In a world aware of the importance of value-laden leadership in so many aspects of our lives, the development of leaders is surely one of Scouting’s greatest potential contributions to society. Well run, a PLTU course can contribute significantly to that ideal.”
For his service to the Scouting Movement he was awarded with the Medal of Merit, the Long Service Medal, the Order of the Silver Protea and the highest award within SCOUTS South Africa, being the Silver Springbok. In April 2011 Dudley was named Counsellor of the Order of the Baobab by President Jacob Zuma for his services to Education and Scouting.
When not Scouting, Dudley served as a teacher at Maritzburg College, a Headmaster at St Andrew’s Welkom, Bellair Primary School, Kingsway High School, Maritzburg College and Durban High School and was Rector at Michaelhouse until 2001 when he retired. He also served as S.E. [M] in the Natal Education Department, lectured at the University of UKZN and assisted as an External Examiner for Rhodes University. He has had several books published on Leadership and Leadership Development and sat on a number of School Boards and Trusts.
Dudley taught us that leadership is not a badge you wear it’s a responsibility you carry. Scouting was not just an activity to him; it was his way of life. It is clear that his vision through PLTU has – and will continue – to inspire generations of young people to be the very best versions of themselves. He has truly lived up to Baden-Powell’s charge to “try and leave this world a little better than you found it.”