A SCOUT leader who conned parents into handing over £3,500 for a trip will never be allowed to work in the organisation again.

Barry John Rhodes, 34, who was a Scout leader and assistant district commissioner with the Salisbury Plain District Scout group, was charged with fraud after suspicions arose when he asked members of 1st Amesbury and 1st Tidworth Scout groups to pay a deposit for a trip he was organising to France.

The trip was to take place in October last year and in August 2011 Rhodes, of Forest Drive, Tidworth, convinced members and their parents he needed to pay a £3,500 deposit to reserve the trip. But when only one of the groups was booked on the trip Wiltshire Police were called in to investigate.

Rhodes originally pleaded not guilty but changed his plea last month and was sentenced at Salisbury Magistrates Court on May 30. He was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work in the community and to pay compensation of £3,500.

A Scout Association spokesman said: “We are disappointed that Rhodes has betrayed the trust placed in him by the Scout movement. He was suspended from the movement as soon as we were made aware of his actions.

“The Scout Association has strict rules around financial matters and governance and Rhodes clearly broke these rules. He will never be allowed to work with the organisation again.”