Dd aged 9.5 - start Brownies or wait a term and go straight for Guides?

[FionaJT]

That's it really. She's been doing Cubs for over 4 terms and enjoys the activities, but has been the only girl in the pack for nearly 6 months now and doesn't feel comfortable with that. She's keen to give Brownies/Guides a go, though, in the Autumn. Given that there will probably be waiting lists and she will turn 10 at the beginning of January is there any point in trying to join a Brownie pack at this stage? Or would it be better to start out in Brownies anyway and move up a bit later? Any experienced advice much appreciated!

Well it depends on how your local pack works. In our village pack you get kicked out the term after you turn 10. So, dd1 has a mid January birthday and stayed at Brownies until Easter. Depending when your daughter's birthday is and how your pack operates she might be there for 2 terms.

Put her down on the waiting list anyway (you have to register centrally and would be automatically assigned to brownies based on age) . If you were in my area, I would contact you to tell you that there is no chance she would get in to Brownies before she was 10 and would get her put on a Guide waiting list.

We generally find that girls who are Brownies are more likely to stay in Guiding, than girls who start as Guides (though as your DD has had experience in Scouting that may not prove absolutely true) so I would suggest a term or 2 in Brownies would be be a good idea if you can find somewhere to take her!

I would ask first about waiting lists before you look at that.

In our area there is no way you'd get into guides without having been a brownie first. There is a shortage of guide units.

Depending on the time you might or might not get into Brownies. Our area has had times when they've been saying "if you have any friends who would like to..." and times when (like now as a pack's just closed due to lack of leaders) they're not even finding spaces for every Rainbow who wants it.

In my cousin's area for Scouts, if you didn't get your name down before age about 4yo, then you wouldn't get into Beavers, so you wouldn't get into Cubs, and you probably wouldn't get into Scouts.

In our area the waiting list for Scout group things operates strictly on an age thing. So if you joined the list at age 8, you would go straight to the top of the Beaver's list. Which has some common sense in it, although I suspect it wouldn't work so well if there was a huge waiting list.

What I'm saying, is you need to ask at the waiting list places as to what is possible. In our area they've changed from a central list to specific lists in the last couple of years, I believe. So you'd phone up a pack and ask, and they would let you know. Before then, as redsky says for her area, it was a central list.

DeWee everyone has to first register centrallly on the girlguiding site. Different areas may then administer differently. You can ring up individual units and ask them about spaces, but they will still require you to register centrally. Also, unless you have a specific unit in mind, there may well be lots of units that you are unaware of, that you could be filtered through to by someone who has more of an overview of what places exist.

Please OP, register centrally now (even if just to get your DD's name into the system)! Then you will find out what options actually exist to you.

Thanks everyone. I've discussed it with her again, and she is now thinking she would like to stay on at Cubs until she is 10 but wants to look at Guides rather than move up to Scouts. So I will get her on the register and see what happens.
Starting Cubs was very simple, as there were fliers in the school book bag promoting an expanding pack locally, and it was just a case of turn up and get on with it! But I know from other mums that the local Brownie packs, certainly, are more oversubscribed (we don't know any local Guides).

Most brownies don't go to guides until ten and a half or later tbh guides is rubbish.

:o soon
I am a Scout leader and would say that if your DD enjoys Cubs (aside from the only girl thing) then she may well flourish at Scouts rather than Guides. We have an equal number of boys and girls and the dynamic works really well. Perhaps look at local Scouts as well and see if there is a troop where she will not be the only girl if you think her interests lie in the more robust :o

we have just had info from DD's Brownie pack that they can stay up to their 11th birthday.

If I had space in my unit, I would take her. We can keep them in the unit until they are 11. But sometimes they are ready at 10 to move on.

If you register her on join us. Some guide units are very active like scouts. It usually varies on what the girls want to do and not what the leaders want.

Another vote for her trying Scouts. My DDs both tried Rainbows & Brownies but found them a bit boring. One of DD1's friends moved up to Guides but quit because she didn't enjoy it. My DDs love Scouts. DD1 was one of only 2 girls in the troup at the time but more joined a year after her. I know not all Guides groups are the same & the ones in your area might be better but, if your DD is enjoying Cubs, she might find Guides to be a bit erm tame. In my area, they don't camp out in tents or do hikes or other activities like go karting, etc.

soontobesix how do you know that guides in my town is rubbish? I assume you are only going on your experience of your local guides, so it's very unfair on the whole movement to make such a general assumption.

round here Brownies generally leave to go to guides the term after they are ten if they want to, if they want to go later that's fine if I don't have a waiting list of girls wanting to come in. Occasionally we get them leaving as soon as they are 10, eg, their best friend is waiting for them to 'come of age, so they can go to guides together'.

I would check what is local to you. I know that my Guide unit would allow her to join few meetings or for an activity to see if she likes Guides beforehand. My unit currently have 2 girls doing this at a very similar age. It does depend on the Unit if they do this or not however due to the Brownie Birthday celebrations I would try to ask sooner rather than later as some Brownies have been allowed to stay a little longer to take part. You may find that the Guide unit is on a waiting list because of all the Brownies going up in bulk.

There is a Going to Guides activity pack that explains what Guides is like and, from memory, will give her a Go For It badge as soon/if she joins. If she does want to go into Guides it might help to ask about that. It's not a "smooth" transition because there are a few diffrences in how things are done but that Go For It! should really help bridge the gap. If you have anymore questions I'm happy to answer them as a Guide leader, I don't do much Brownie stuff.