Hi everyone.

I hope you are all staying safe and well, we have seen a change over the last few weeks with the coronavirus infection rate increasing, which I’m sure you are all very familiar with. As a region we have not experienced any local lockdown as yet, but some areas have been on the watch list. Other parts of the country are currently under tighter restrictions which of course impacts upon their guiding. We want to reassure you that we have plans in place in case an area within our region does have a lockdown situation and support and guidance will be in place.

There is an autumn feel to this morning, and I can’t quite believe we are heading to October already. As we have commenced this autumn term, we are very much looking at our blended offer to our members. A blend which suits you as leaders, your girls, and the situation around you. When I think of a blend, it’s about a mixture of the best things creating a whole, something may be a little different than we have tried or offered before.

All the guidance you need can be found on the Girlguiding website with guidance on risk assessments (remember to make them individual to your situation), lots of help with planning virtual activities, a six week programme plan and guidance on indoor and outdoor meetings. The region website has resources and information to help leaders continue to offer great guiding along with our unit newsletters which will continue through this term. I know the current situation is challenging and we have never encountered this before so we have to plan and review Government and National Youth Agency guidance in order to keep us all safe and well. As a region we endeavour to update our guidance as soon as it is available to support you all.

Recently the membership subscription figure for 2021 was announced by Girlguiding and some of you will have joined the recent Zoom calls with Amanda Medler, Chief Guide and Angela Salt, CEO. They both explained the membership subscription payment and what this goes towards providing, for those unable to join, Girlguiding’s figure will be £17.70, a slight increase from last year. The region membership subscription figure will be £10.00, and we have budgeted on the same amount as last year. I know this doesn’t make up the whole amount as counties will be adding their levy too. I am aware all our county commissioners are working hard to look at their budget in order to keep the costs as low as possible. If you are concerned that your unit will struggle financially, do raise this now with your commissioners, so support can be offered. We will all have to look at grants and other avenues of fundraising too.

I’m looking forward to our next virtual region events with R.O.V.E training day taking place Saturday 17 October and our Under the Stars festival on 24-25 October. These are made possible by our lead volunteers, task and finish group members and our staff members, working together as one team. This brings me back to our Girlguiding strategy, Today, Tomorrow, Together, working together for today and for the future.

Let’s keep our guiding light shining.

Keep smiling and stay safe.

Tracy

#togtherweinspire

We are pleased to announce the launch of our first unit meeting support videos. Created by our summer project group these videos are designed to help explain and demonstrate some of the trickier UMAs that typically take leaders more time to prepare for. Visit our YouTube channel or click on the links below to access the videos. If you like them please let us know, your feedback makes a difference.

Rainbows

Brownies

Guides

Rangers

*Century time travel can also be used for Brownies (Brownie pocket challenges)
*World centres welcome can also be used for Rainbows (World Centre postcards)
*All tied up can also be used for Brownies (I can knot and Kite fighters) and Guides (Treasure hunters)

Project overview

From volunteer and project lead Madelyne Newnham a Brownie leader and Trefoil Guild member from Lincolnshire working towards her Queen’s Guide Award.

The project has been completed over the summer by five members who are working towards their Queen’s Guide Award, and one member who is a prospective trainer. The project aimed to deliver a minimum of 12 videos spanning across the four sections and the six themes. We started by reviewing the Unit Meeting Activities (UMAs) and chatting about which had potential to be supported by a video, then each team member identified the UMAs they had a particular interest in developing further. We have made a total of 14 videos which we hope enable leaders to deliver some of their section UMAs more easily, and that members will enjoy the videos!

Our project team

Molly Andrews

I am a young leader for brownies in Norfolk working towards my Queens Guide Award.

Emily Fisher

I am a Guide leader in Oxfordshire and a prospective trainer.

Charlotte Johnson

I’m a Brownie leader and Guide unit helper from Buckinghamshire. My Brownies know me for running all the activities relating to camping and campfires!

Eleanor Teather

I am a Ranger leader, a member of the Birmingham Universities Scout and Guide Society, and my favourite thing about Guides is camping.

Hannah Wilson

I am a Ranger and a Brownie young leader in Oxfordshire working towards my Queen’s Guide Award. My favourite things about Guiding are camping and the opportunity to meet new people.

Hello, my name is Katie and I have just started as the new Digital Lead Volunteer for Girlguiding Anglia’s Communications Team. I have just taken over my own Guide unit in Oxfordshire and have been volunteering in Anglia for 6 years.

How did you begin volunteering in Anglia?

I started in guiding as a Brownie, and then a guide.

I began volunteering when I turned 14 as a young leader in my Guide unit. At this age I was extremely shy, and quiet, however, being involved in Guides has taught me how to be confident, how to make friends, how to form my own opinions and stand up for those opinions. Even now as an adult, I am constantly reminded of how volunteering for Guides has helped me.

Guiding gave me a really strong support system, and group of incredible female role models. Under their leadership I got to learn so much about what makes a good unit leader, and now always strive to be able to provide to the girls coming into my unit the same experiences that these amazing women gave me.

Why did you apply for the role in the communications team?

I am really excited about my new role as Digital Lead Volunteer because it means that I am contributing to other young girls finding their own units and getting those experiences and lessons that were so crucial to me when I was their age.

Guiding has supported me getting into university, and in job applications. I now work as an events assistant, and my experience with guiding is one of the things that made me stand out in my job interview. I have always looked at guiding as an opportunity to widen my experiences and make sure I highlight it on my CV and job applications. I always wanted to move into the digital marketing world, so this position felt like the perfect way to gain experience in that field in a way that was flexible with my day job.

I am most excited about being able to watch different projects take shape from start to finish, and make positive changes to the way that Anglia engages members and non members using digital communications. Having only been in the role for a month, I am already involved in a couple of projects, and am really excited to start working more closely with the team.

For more information on the voluntary positions available within Anglia, click here.