A leading light in the world of Wolverhampton’s scouts who dedicated most of his life to the movement has died after losing a year-long battle with cancer.

Don Hargreaves, who was aged 59, joined the Wolf Cubs group as an eight-year-old and rose to become a district commissioner. Mr Hargreaves, from Dunstall, was said by friends and family to have lived for the movement.

He would regularly go camping with youngsters and was most recently the warden of the scout camp site at Patshull.

He died in New Cross Hospital last week after a short battle against lung cancer.

Mr Hargreaves, who never married, was born in Wales but his parents moved to the West Midlands not long after.

He worked for an engineering firm in Rugeley but was made redundant and concentrated on his scouting activities.

Mr Hargreaves, who lived on Dunstall Road, Dunstall, rose though the ranks to become a group scout leader of 3rd Wednesfield Scouts.

Then he was district commissioner of Wolverhampton North District for 18 years until two years ago when he stood down.

He then continued his role as warden at the Patshull site, off Patshull Lane near Albrighton.

His cousin Barry Rowlands, aged 62, said today: “Don joined the scouts when he was a lad. He loved going camping and he was always at Patshull Scout Camp.”

Dave Roberts, the current district commissioner, said: “He just enjoyed helping kids and he would go away for weekends with them.

“At one time he had a van that was converted into a minibus and he would ship them around in that.”

Scouts are planning to carry Mr Hargreaves’ coffin at his funeral at Bushbury Crematorium’s West Chapel next Wednesday.