Is uniform in Girlguides compulsory?

[GirlGuidesUniform]

8yo DD.

I work on Brownies night, so I get her from after school club (who feed her for me), then she takes off school cardigan and wears the Brownies hoodie on top of her uniform for the meeting - she then has a clean school uniform the next day.

She does have a tshirt she wears for weekend events and camps and also a cap she uses for school. Also if a message comes out for full uniform, for example at Christmas when they sang in town or in summer when they did a walk around town I always try and work around it (e.g. the walk around town I asked if she could wear her school trousers and asked the TA running ASC very very nicely if DD could change into her tshirt and hoodie before I picked her up but they can’t do this all the time as the club is open until 6pm and is packed until then so they can’t be changing 50+ kids clothes all the time)

Brown Owl is now saying DD needs to be in proper uniform from after Easter. I asked what this meant and she said brownies tshirt (either long or short sleeve), brownies hoodie or gilet and either brownies trousers or brownies shorts.

I am happy to buy shorts and/or trousers for events but if she has to wear full uniform every week she’ll have to give up, which seems unfair as she absolutely loves Brownies. This is the only group that I can get her to, as it starts at 6pm, I finish work at 5pm and then have 30 minutes commute on public transport, then a walk to the school. If we went home first to change we’d be late for Brownies which I’ve done a few times when unavoidable but DD hates being late.

I’m a single parent so no other help. I drive but don't currently have a car as due to COL I just can't afford it.

This is the only out of school activity DD does due to me working so much so seems a shame to make her give it up.

Is the uniform compulsory? I always thought that the way we did it was fine, but happy to be told wrong

After school club aren't being very helpful but they shouldn't need to get her changed - she should be able to do it herself.

Ask brown owl what space she can have to get changed at the hall. If no toilets (which is surprising) they must have a cupboard or something.

It is a uniformed organisation so not surprised this required but the leaders should be willing to work with you to support a solution.

My kids are expected to wear uniforms in scouts and my daughter has to wear the correct kit to football. It's not unusual.

1969 to 1973 I think

I recently finished as a brown owl after 20 years. I was quite relaxed about uniform. I expected everyone to have a top (and had a box of second hand if anyone needed them), but always said leggings or trousers (preferably in a darker colour) were fine.

in your situation I would be changing her in the toilets when we got there. If the leaders are saying there are no toilets, I think that is actually a bigger problem than the uniform. What happens if someone needs the loo?

Yes!

and we definitely had to sew our badges on too.

I was a Brownie from 1970 to 1973.

I went back to help in 1978, and it was bobble hats then. Stayed for 4 years - I loved it!

I predate the wee.button! We had a triangular scarf which.we had to learn to fold (real Marie Kondo stuff), then turn the folded scarf into a tie which fastened under the collar under the back. And the woollen stocking cap with the pompom! I was in the kingfisher six.
We were all so proud of our uniforms and of our emergency things in the flap pockets. OP,

It's a bit cheeky to join a uniformed organisation and then demand the uniform rules be changed especially for your.child. Your reasons for that are pretty flimsy. You have had several suggestions about how to get round 'difficulties' in changing. What not try them and let your girl have the whole Brownie experience, starting with the uniform which marks her out as one of a special group of girls she can be proud of.

My DD isn't quite that small ( normally wears 5-6) but I managed by getting the smallest leggings and sewing the waistband over at the back ( there's probably nicer ways to do this but I'm not great at sewing and wanted something I could unpick when she grows). She just rolls up the bottoms.

I have a spare Brownies top, trousers and zip up hoodie that you're very welcome to. I'll post it to you for free. Just PM me.

My DD12 is now in Guides and I just hadn't got round to getting rid of the Brownies uniform!

Can’t you change her in the loos just before she goes in to Brownies, or at pick up from after school club? Talk to Brown Owl; she might relent if she knows it means she might have to drop out.

We have the hoodie with badges on.

On the toilets issue they use the leisure centre next door and have a break half way through where all the girls are taken over to the toilet. It's a tiny building smaller than a portacabin classroom at school, they're outside as much as they possibly can be because of it.

Will look into changing at the leisure centre, and if we can't and BO has no solution will just pull DD out, she loves going though so don't want but you're all right about it being part of it.

I did Brownies (not Rainbows or Guides though) and don't remember having a uniform - this will have been in the late 90s early 00s, my mum can't remember me having a uniform either.

If you can't change there would ASC let her change then put her school jumper on over her brownie uniform - that way they'd still know which school she belongs to and she'd just have to change the jumper when she got there.

In the late 90s my uniform was brown culottes and yellow tshirt and jumper.

I was a Brownie ‘87 to ‘91. As I moved up to Guides mid-‘91 they changed the uniform. I had the dress for Brownies and a jumper and polo for Guides.

I was in gnomes, and bluebell. My eldest is a Scottish Kelpie and my goddaughter became a gnome this week.

I’m actually a Rainbow leader, we encourage the girls to wear red leggings or shorts because the fit on the official ones is abysmal. They get a t-shirt and badge book with their joining fee. Most have bought the hoody.

I would talk to Brown Owl - I volunteer at Brownies and we'd hate any girls to miss out because of something like this! All units do it differently - we just request one piece of uniform, either a tshirt or a hoodie, but we're quite relaxed.

Our Brownie pack is pretty relaxed - girls normally wear just the t-shirt and hoodie and jeans! Never had any issue. For formal occasions they were just asked to wear school uniform style plain skirt or trousers. It’s difficult to source the skort and leggings, too - I did get some from eBay but they are often not easily available.

Guides (which DD is now in) don’t even have a bottom half uniform any more - the idea is that they just wear their own stuff with the top and hoodie.

The whole organisation is so secularised and informal now compared to what it used to be like 25 or more years ago — I’m surprised they are that bothered about being “uniformed” to that degree for Brownie-aged girls. It’s not like they have in practice any remaining links with churches/other “uniformed organisations” like they used to.

They aren’t even in practice a single sex organisation any more — they recently had a gun-toting transwoman as a leader, who was posting pics of herself wearing a leather fetish outfit complete with riding crop all over social media! Being strict about whether an 8 year old has the right kind of brown leggings I’d say is the least of their problems!

Have a look at scouts if she does end up leaving (though hopefully brown owl will see sense). Both my big kids go through it, and only the top/necker is obligatory.

I’m quite old and reading through was remembering we had a brass badge that had to be polished, a leather belt with a buckle that had to be polished, dress and neckerchief that had to be ironed, polished shoes…and yes, all the pocket items and inspection. Getting your stuff ready was quite a chore and we were expected to sew our own badges on too. Funny memories of very different times.

Guiding has always had uniforms. Yours would have had brown culottes. And a yellow t-shirt with a cap.

Both mine go from ASC to Brownies/Beavers, we just take uniform with us and they get changed - it takes no time.

I am a Guide leader, they are both uniformed organisations and most leaders will want the members in uniform, those saying its not inclusive - every unit I have worked with have helped girls who need it with the cost of uniform. Scouts locally is a lot stricter.

It is by far the cheapest activity they do, including the uniform costs.

You definitely had a uniform. Would have been a blue shirt

My DD was a Brownie 2002 to 2005 and wore the culottes and T shirt. I thought they were really nice actually. I seem to remember her having some sort of sash that the badges were sewn on to?

Hopefully Brown Owl will help find somewhere your DD can get changed at the meeting but another idea might be for DD to change into uniform bottoms at ASC. She could keep her school top on, so no complaints about not knowing which school she's from, until you collect her. At that point, she can swap her school sweater for her Brownies hoodie. Another idea might be to ask if she could get changed at the end of ASC, as you arrive to collect her.

One of my DDs is a Guide and is still wearing the old uniform i.e. not the weird neoprene type hoodie with lots of red on it. She can't tolerate the feel of the hoodie next to her skin and doesn't like how it squeaks. It's the only piece of clothing she has ever had issues with and although she does have one of the squeaky hoodies, I think she'd give up Guides rather than wear it. Luckily, the leaders are very understanding. When it was introduced I did wonder about the wisdom of such a weird fabric.

There must be toilets at school or brownies you can change her in. My dd has T-shirts & hoodie but that’s it, she just wears plain leggings, it’s never been an issue for her or her older sister. I’m guessing Brown Owl is clamping down on lax uniforms.

I agree with the changing but, you mentioned SN, that gives you access to 'reasonable adjustments'.

I know you said there are two schools using the space but primary uniforms are normally fairly similar from the waist down and the difference is in the tops / cardigans / shirts.

So could she a) go in her brownie uniform for school or b) change her trousers at lunch time?

And yes I had the brown dress, belt, badge, cravat etc.

My child changed into the uniform there sometimes