Hi Wolveschick. I am a Guide leader and used to be a Rainbow and a Ranger Guide leader, so hopefully I will be able to put your mind a little (or a lot!) at rest. All volunteers who a regular helper or warranted leaders within GirlGuidingUK have an enhanced CRB check, as does everyone who is staying overnight at a camp or sleepover. But the CRB process takes so long that it is simply not possible to have every adult who attends a meeting - often, as in this case, at short notice - checked. Instead, we have safeguards in place to ensure that everyone is protected - both the girls and the adults in question. In practice, these mean that no 'ad hoc' adult is ever left alone with a child; they are always 'supervised' if you like by an adult who has been checked. Our insurance restrictions ( and practical sense) dictate that no fewer than two adults are present at any meeting, and for Rainbows (the youngest age group, this is extended to three adults. As most units are run with the absolute minimum number of adults purely because that is how many adults have volunteered to give up their time, if someone is sick or going to be away with work or is not going to be there for any other reason, we have the Hobson's choice of looking for another volunteer or cancelling the meeting. Often we will ask the other leaders in the district to help out, but that is not always possible, so the parents are our next best bet, and if the parent can offer another suggestion - trusted babysitter, au pair, 'adopted' granny from next door who the kids love, has some free time and would be willing to help out - they will be just as good. We're not asking them to run the meeting, just to be present, and hopefully hand out sheets of paper, help a little one with the cutting and sticking, or even just smile and say "well done" to a girl who has just managed to complete a task for the first time.
As part of our training as Guiders, we all receive training on Safe From Harm, which is the Association's policy document on practical steps to keep everyone safe. The Guiders will know about how they can best use an ad hoc volunteer and will already have planned their activities with this in mind.
Can you volunteer to go along to help out? It is a great way of seeing what goes on and as leaders we really do appreciate every bit of extra help we can get. Almost all of us have jobs and families of our own; the days of well-off women running Guide units as something to keep them busy and look good are long gone!
If not, why not chat with the Guider in charge - either at the beginning or end of a meeting, or give her a call at home - sometimes the start and end of a meeting can be very busy, particularly if another unit is using the hall straight after Rainbows, so you might be able to have a calmer chat at another time. She will be able to reassure you and to give you an idea as to what the unit will be doing on the evenings in question.
Hope this helps.
Jenny