Rainbows, Brownies, Guides - Has your child returned to meeting in person?

[Ickabog]

I know a few groups have returned but have been meeting outside. However, i'm curious to know if any have returned to meeting inside, and if so how things have changed.

[youdidask]

There is a definite split of parents and leaders on this thread
Parents all feel they aren't getting what they paid for
Leaders are stressed at lack of support and pressure to run sessions.
I am both
I have spent 9 hrs writing risk assessments to get us running face to face. I have spent countless hours planning and trying to run engaging zoom sessions and trying to figure out what we can run socially distant, how we split out group of 20 to allow for the rule around 15 kids at a time while sticking to association ratios which are less.
I have a full on job in the health sector which has been 1million times more stressful and busy during Covid, I have 2 kids -1 of whom has anxiety issues and 1 has a rare disease, I have an oAP parent who lives with us.

Give your leaders a break - they are just people who are giving their time freely for other people's kids.

[Groovee]

The census thing has really bothered me. CHQ have raised their share. Scottish and county have actually lowered this. But £40.50 per head is a lot of money to find when you've not run most of the year.

[reluctantbrit]

Scout parent here. DD is back to outdoor meetings as the leaders and committee members are now working with the church to see if their risk assessment meet the Scout’s one. DH is on the committee and buried in paperwork.

They are are pack who goes by “dark and cold means you just need decent outfit and equipment “ so they will continue meeting outside unless it is pouring down or too windy. They are not worried about breaking bubbles as they have scouts from several secondary schools. Also, most of the children have other clubs and interact outside their school bubble anyway.

[BiddyPop]

Not Guiding but mixed Scouting. Sea Scouting. (Well, Sea Cubs so Brownie age).

We met once in July to invest new members. we took our usual summer break (we’d been meeting by zoom since Easter).

We started back early Sep but we are having 2 sessions, with 2 of 4 patrols in each. Swoping patrols each week (so North and Soth 1st session this eeek, north and east next week and north and west the next week). So more work for leaders but cubs are getting on the water. Parents delighted to get kids doing something.

Leaders getting worried about what to do once boats taken in for winter at end October (a month later than usual). But it will definitely be outdoors, and likely continuing 2 patrols per session.

[averylongtimeago]

As a guide and ranger leader, I share other leaders frustrations with zoom meetings, the endless risk assessments and money worries.

Zoom isn't the answer- it's just a stop gap. At the moment we are allowed to meet face to face, but it is difficult.
Not all leaders are happy about it as they may be shielding or have vulnerable family members. You can't have groups of more than 15, so the unit has to be split, so we may not have enough leaders.

I get that parents are unhappy about things not getting straight back to normal- but why not offer to help? The girls need more supervision at the moment to make sure the stick to the rules, the hall needs cleaning before and after each meeting, an extra pair of hands (or more) would be great.

waits hopefully

[CallingOnAvengingAngels]

which makes Guiding a cheap activity until February comes round and I have to find over £100 for the 3 of us

As a volunteer, you shouldn't be covering this cost for yourself- your annual census as an adult volunteer should be coming from unit funds.

Please speak to your DC if you've been told otherwise!
I know its still £60 odd for your DDs, but still!

[drspouse]

My DS is in Cubs and they've had 3 outdoor meetings and one planned for next week, no real social distancing though but they are all under 11. I think they are grouping them by age though.

DD just started Beavers and they did one outdoor meeting then the weather was awful so one online which she seemed to like, well she shut me out of the room and said "Beavers only mummy". The leader had started the RA for hall meetings but like everyone has said it's a massive job.

[Beamur]

Leader and parent here too.
DD's unit have kept pretty busy since March with zoom, monthly challenges and unit meeting activities being set. Meeting starting outside soon and planned until half term. Different venue and time to usual as we can't use our normal place.
Risk assessments and numbers mean we can only offer the girls to attend every other week for now.
I think we are running lower on fun ideas to do on Zoom. But we have put together a pretty good programme until now and parents seem happy with it.
I think the extra census money is going to be a problem for many units.

[BiddyPop]

We own our own den, but we are only allowed 6 indoors so we will be back on zoom whenever we can’t meet outdoors. But our meeting is saturday morning so we are the lucky section in our group - and leaders are happy to try and run all outdoor sessions twice so we can operate within limits.

[TPS2009]

Zoom still here. I pay my subs and I don’t complain as I know they are seen as a donation and I gift aid them. I wouldn’t dream of asking for a refund. Church still closed and i can’t imagine it being opened anytime soon. It’s getting a bit cold where I am for going outdoors when they’ve been out a lot at school however.

However the fact that our unit hasn’t done a single badge or Girlguiding themed thing on zoom is becoming annoying. My daughter joined the unit in January and compared to her previous unit it’s just a shambles :( I know other leaders have poured their hearts into this. My daughter had her first (virtual) sleepover and I ended up buying her first sleepover badge to mark it. Today I met a child who had just joined another unit and was so excited about already earning her first badge. I was a bit

It’s all a bit sad but I know there are leaders absolutely smashing this, regardless how they are delivering the activities, and we’ll done to them (and I hope I find one!)

[cctvrec]

Most groups will be stuck for a venue.

I'm a member of a committee that manages a community centre. Unfortunately the majority of community buildings often hired out for groups like these won't be able to open. Ours for example doesn't have full time staff or volunteers, particularly not on-site ones. For us to open we would need a member of staff in attendance to ensure Covid compliance by groups using the building. We would then have to perform a full professional clean after each group meaning any money made by an hour long hire would be spent on a cleaner and cleaning and sanitising materials. Groups such as playgroups couldn't come back yet either as they would have to allow the kids in but the parents stay out. Our line dancing, sewing, karate, kids sports and football groups are the same.
The council advised us on reopening requirements and it's not going to happen anytime this year sadly..

It's awful because my girls are really missing the Guides and Brownies.

[BiddyPop]

Also on money, we had an increase in subs required by HQ this year and cut our own subs to reflect the reality of Covid. But we paid out €14k to HQ in jan and got less than €6 from
Parents to cover that. Even at half, that should have been at least €12k. All 4 sections are active, there are different levels of activity but boating is happening for all 4 sections. Some parents are happy to see activity happening, but if there is no payment for next year, we can’t run. It’s not a case of paying leaders, we are all volunteers, but the hq costs, insurance And boat maintenance are all expensive. So there is a significant chance that we will fold next year after over 50 years.

[Ilovesausages]

My DD is in Guides. They are meeting outside, socially distanced with masks on for the whole time. First one last week and DD had a wonderful time!

[HariboHippo]

This is a really interesting thread. Beaver Mom here, have had access to the online badges, a few WhatsApp messages and the odd email with a suggestion for an activity at home but no online anything, no zoom, no contact with each other since March. Own scout hut, but nothing whatsoever about returning (or not). Yet weve been asked to pay full subs throughout. I’ve paid so far but I’m feeling a bit short changed if I’m honest.

[Sittin]

TPS - you do know the leaders are volunteers?
I think it’s a bit much that people expect something like guides to be online if it can’t run in person - that’s not what the volunteers volunteered for. It’s not school and it’s not someone’s business. There is no ‘duty’ to provide an online alternative imo.
Girl guiding hq could easily have made a half hour video a week, a little magazine program, rather than expecting leaders to do it. The people at hq are paid and I really wonder wha they’ve been doing.
Zoom meetings seem much less important now that we are back it school and the girls are busy and seeing people. During lockdown it was great but now most people I know have had enough of zoom.

[JazzTheDog]

Rainbow, Brownie and Guide leader here and about to take a Div Comm role. I am extremely fed up with the census situation, we've taken not a penny in since we paid census this year. Up to summer we put some badge work on our closed Facebook group which no-one engaged with (very small village, 16 girls total across the three sections). We left it as we knew parents were home schooling too so didn't want to push more on to them.

I'm also a community nurse, we're in Scotland so our lockdown restrictions are a little stricter (households not mixing) and although we have dispensation to meet I'm not convinced it's sensible to add in mixing with 16 girls when I visit vulnerable elderly patients daily.

At the moment I'm planning a programme to start after the tattie holidays for the 3 units where we have a 3 weekly rotation eg, wk 1 rainbows are on zoom, brownies have a set task sent out with video instructions left on the Facebook group and we will meet guides outdoors (on the weekend likely for daylight). The following week it'd be brownies zooming, guides on Facebook, rainbows outdoors etc. We hope parents will be willing to pay the full terms subs for this.

It's hard because it's not Guiding to my eyes but if we lose these girls we lose 3 units and 80 years of guiding in the village.

[Murraytheskull]

We havn't had a single email, text or any communication whatsoever from DD's Brownie group since we went into lockdown. I know the pack leader was about to go away for maternity leave and they hadn't decided who was taking over yet so I can only assume the group has been disbanded? It would be a real shame for DD as she loved Brownies but I havn't contacted them as I don't see how face to face groups can go ahead safely and Zoom just isn't the same thing.

[DominaShantotto]

Incidentally - someone took such umbrage within the local community to ours meeting in the park they sent an anonymous email to tell the leaders, the night of the first meeting, that someone had been seen coughing in the playground in an attempt to get the meeting cancelled.

We didn't pay subs last term - this term they were very open that they couldn't cover census costs if they didn't charge - and they've really tried to do something on zoom every week - they've learnt makaton, had a guy show his birds of prey and talk about them (from which I've learnt that owls are actually apparently incredibly stupid as birds go) and things - and the effort's been appreciated. We're all just zoomed out though.

[Ickabog]

Wow I didn't expect so many replies. I've quickly scanned them and it seems like many leaders are having a pretty miserable time of it. Risk assesments, splitting groups, outdoor meetings, no venue and the headache that is census. I'll have a more thourough read through, but I really appreciate all the reponses. 🥰

[TPS2009]

@Sittin yes of course I do. Girlguiding could have done more for them for sure - a little bit from there could have made all the difference to units across the country.

[Beamur]

I think (may be wrong) that GG furloughed some of their HQ staff so there wasn't really many people left to actually develop a new online offer.

[hels71]

I run guides and brownies. I currently can not fInd anywhere willing to let us meet indoors or outdoors. I have tried to provide activities for the girls to do, less than 20% engaged. I can't do zoom for various reasons. I have not had any subs in since January. I have no idea how we will pay census and may have to close both groups.....

[EduCated]

@Beamur

I think (may be wrong) that GG furloughed some of their HQ staff so there wasn't really many people left to actually develop a new online offer.

Yep, and have since made redundancies too, to drop running costs as much as possible. Unfortunately the loss of income from the activity centres, trading and external sources (grants, corporate sponsorship etc.) is vastly down hence the impact on subs

[drspouse]

@hels71

I run guides and brownies. I currently can not fInd anywhere willing to let us meet indoors or outdoors. I have tried to provide activities for the girls to do, less than 20% engaged. I can't do zoom for various reasons. I have not had any subs in since January. I have no idea how we will pay census and may have to close both groups.....

How can a public park prevent you from meeting there?
DS cubs have met in:
Big park
River shore
Scout campsite
Trim trail
Beavers met in the park twice and then the weather was rubbish so they had a Zoom meeting.

[Gotofriggingsleep]

My daughter's Cubs group has, they meet outside one week in small groups then have a Zoom session the next week. When meeting in person they maintain a distance from each other and the leaders so are deliberately doing activities where this can be achieved.

Cubs was a highlight of my daughter's week during lockdown and I am very grateful for all the hard work that the leader's put in.