Guiders Staff Room Part 4

[Groovee]

Moving on from Part 3

Catching up - the run up to Christmas has been busy.

I saw the trans post but after it locked for comments on fb. Very interesting that there's so many feeling able to be vocal about how damaging trans ideology is, but like you, I suspect at minimum they'll get a toe the line or else email.

Census for us is predicted to be £58 p/h. I'd at least like a working Go. I look at OSM (used by my husband & gang show) and despair.

On the plus side (and why I do it) my units have been great this season.

This is why we do it, the Ranger said she'd learnt what to do in Guides. Knowing the details of the incident, this award was deserved.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02KkZpaiADxE6idrhC3BpgUVTYsZAsW4xpugm4VqcyXkUWwFw6hrsSkVu6w4qXo5hKl&id=100064395474122

I've been looking at the closing ceremonies for Waddow, foxlease and the other Girlguiding tacs. So deeply saddened that what I love so much is now a pale imitation of the core mission.

I feel so patronised and dismissed like an airhead who couldn't possibly understand what the clever blokes or London folk know.

Not sure if it's me or just the thin end of the wedge to asset strip and gut the organisation.

I honestly don't know. But recent discussions within division leave me wondering if its linked to the recent fire regs changes.

But they could have been honest with us if that was the case.

That said- the company I used to work for was asset stripped and sold off over the last 18 months. Wouldn't surprise me that they had £££ signs in their eyes.

As a volunteer, a member, I do not feel listened to or appreciated as a member.

It feels like Girlguiding is at worst being dismantled, and at best restructured into an organisation which is much more standardised.

It doesn't feel as if most volunteers/members are being consulted or kept in the loop at all. I am watching slightly nervously to see what next year brings, because I do not think we have got to the end of the changes yet.

Hi All,
Just found this thread.
I am a young person (25) who has been in guiding for a year. I love my unit, but I am majorly struggling with the leader in training course. I just feel like the website is clunky, there is no room on the many compulsory webinars and it doesn't explain the structure of guiding clear enough (i.e. The badge system, unit vs county vs district, current set up of organisation). No one in my family or friend circle is a member of guiding and it feels like other leaders around me have been in guiding so long they don't know where to start. Does anyone else feel the same? Honestly sometimes I feel like all the leaders and webpages are talking in some other language that i'll never grasp! I would love to progress further and run my own unit someday in the future but I feel like I won't be able to get there with the lack of thorough basic training. I feel like anything like risk assessments, money and basic safeguarding is covered but not the outline of guiding operation. Please let me know your thoughts 😀

@CrazyCrocs You should have a mentor who should be able to discuss this with. If not speak to your local Commissioner who will help. Thank you very much for volunteering but sorry you are not having a good time with this.

That’s tough CrazyCrocs! I guess volunteers who are completely external to Guiding are probably quite rare, most people either were Guides or have daughters who are, so pick this stuff up by osmosis over time.

Definitely worth feeding back to HQ that a ‘basics of Guiding’ thing would be worthwhile.

In the meantime one of the handbooks aimed at girls might answer some of your questions? They’re about £3 from the Guide shop.

@CrazyCrocs I’m also going through the Leader Training and have found the same when it comes to the compulsory webinars, it’s so hard to find any with room!

The more I do the training, the more I feel frustrated by the unit I’m supporting. They hardly follow the programme as they don’t like it so the girls are lucky to get one badge a year, b1tch about some of the girls, but, what frustrates me the most is that the girls have absolutely no say in what we do. Possibly it’s because I’m an “outsider” whereas the other leaders have been there years and the young leader is the daughter of an old leader so it’s very much a clique and is ran with the attitude of we always do things this way so that’s how it will stay, but change isn’t bad!

Just popping in to see how everyone is? I’m finding it hard to attract new guides (rural area - and children around than there used to be). Once they come they stick but it does feel like the end is inevitable once the current batch of 14/15 year olds leave.

Oh @Sittinonthefloor that must be very dispiriting for you - Guides has so much to give but I agree that they are the most challenging section to both "recruit" and retain.

For me, things are very different at the Rainbow end of the spectrum, with huge waiting lists and not enough leaders! But I long ago accepted that we can only do what we can do . . .

My post COVID "I've had a gutsful" wobble (mostly around feral behaviour) has definitely eased. Although my current cohort is "spirited", I can maintain discipline fairly easily.

Still hate the "new programme" (blimey, it must be > 5 years now) but am delivering it with the adaptations most of us are making.

I've also learned to grey rock some of the more "corporate" stuff that comes down from CHQ, instead of letting it wind me up 😂.

At the end of the day, I do feel that I'm delivering the Five Essentials as required.

But way more importantly, I send 18 girls home wearing smiles every week, after an hour of proper fun, with messages of empowerment embedded. And I go home smiling too . .

Sending support your way as you navigate the tricky job of keeping your unit going! x

Lovely to hear from you all!

@CrazyCrocs that's interesting feedback- I'll certainly send it back from my area too after a chat with the LuT in my Guide unit. Are you on any of the FB groups?

Last weekend I was away with my Guides, it was a great weekend. I was QM for the first time ever, with the logic that if I'm in the kitchen, when the other leaders GAW assessor comes I'll be 🤐 😉 . So proud of myself.

I'm finding it really hard to get Brownies to go away though. In May 23 we had 10 come away. Of those 10, only 2 are still in the unit! (5 came away as Guides last weekend though😃). We were going to go away in Jan but only 6 signed up and we decided to postpone it to Oct. Just praying I have more that'll come by then!

I'm finding my Div Comm role hard. Dealing with people really isn't my strength and I've had two complaints come to me that were downright nasty and personal about the leader.

Just spent 30 minutes wincing at this thread of a Beaver leaving a sleepover at 11pm and being found in a housing estate by random teenagers...

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5025125-to-be-horrified-child-escaped-overnight-camp?reply=133647941

Me too, from both a leader and DC perspectives. The poor leaders!

I've been having a break from MN. Our Brownie Unit is thriving right now, I appreciate as a team we are luckier than most.
However, I feel SO tired. Brown Owl is retiring at the end of the summer term. I'm not sure I want to take over...

I've built up my Brownie pack from 5 to 20 with four new to start this term. But now feeling a bit overwhelmed with behaviour/not listening/inability to follow instructions etc! I do finally have a second leader (rather than just helpers from other units and parents].

Feeling despondent here. The demographic change in our area means that the local school is struggling and there are far fewer brownie / guides aged girls around. As in 2 in y6!!! My numbers are low and a couple of girls are moving out of the area soon. Some are unreliable and I’m increasingly cancelling meetings because only one girl is coming. Advertising is a waste of effort as there are no people to target. What’s really making me want to give up though is the total lack of support from any other guide leaders in the division/ commissioners. I feel like I’m doing it on my own!! I’ve had two direct emails in the last 12 months and it was a cross one about an old bank account that I’m not a signatory to and one about subs.

Populations do change and move. It's frustrating doing loads of prep and not having girls to enjoy it.
Where have the families gone? Is there an area close by with a waiting list? I feel for the children with so few peers in school.
Would you consider relocating your unit? Or suspending and getting involved with another district? Maybe a unit desperate for another leader and new ideas.

We seem to have plenty of leaders! I’ll be really sad to no longer be part of guiding (closing the unit is inevitable I think). But I’m not really up for helping another unit for the sake of it if they don’t actually need me - I’m too busy working ft and being a mum for that! The nearest units are quite a drive away too unfortunately, again a time constraint.

That's really hard. Is it possible this is a slump and soon more people will move in? Or does it seem like an inevitable decline? Could you amalgamate into an 'all through' unit Rainbows through Rangers or whatever age range is doable?
Such a shame you aren't getting the support you need.