Jenny Maskrey

How long have you been in Girlguiding?

Since I was seven. I started as a Brownie at the age of 7 and have never left.

Describe your journey to being a County Commissioner:

I saw the role description for county commissioner in Hertfordshire and thought that I the skills and experience that was needed. I had a passion to take on a challenge and make difference to the county, so I agreed to take on the role. I have done a lot through my time in Guiding, including lots of international travel and achieving my Queen’s Guide.  An interesting fact is that I have not been a commissioner before.  I have gone straight to being a county commissioner from a unit leader.  One person doesn’t have to have done everything or be able to do everything. I believe that is all about the team you have around you and the enthusiasm that you bring to your role.

Anything that stands out, any proud achievements:

I started in September 2019, before we went into lockdown, so I have had very limited time to get out and about. We have been very busy in Lockdown and have introduced flexible units within Hertfordshire. We are able to offer girls a guiding experience while they wait for their unit to have a space as well as those who can’t travel to a physical unit.

We also had an amazing Thinking Day challenge, we did an online promise renewal and a fun packed badge which was really well received and brought us all together virtually, even though we couldn’t physically be together.

During lockdown we have also sorted out a lot of our back-of-house systems, working on the new website and IT systems, making documents and information available to commissioners and advisors and brought us all together as a much more collaborative team.

Our PR team have been amazing throughout the lockdown, posting stories and activities every day and increasing our social media presence massively. It has been really inspiring for people and something to be proud of.

What do you enjoy the most in your role?

I like organizing things and love change and trying something new. The real advantage of this role is trying to implement some change and modernise some of what we do.  Lockdown has forced us to rely on technology – we have really embraced it and updated a lot which has enabled us work together better but will hopefully also help support our busy volunteers and attract new members.

What do you enjoy the most about representing your county?

I am proud to be able to say we have so many members in Hertfordshire. Girlguiding is such a great thing for young members and adults, you get so much out of it that’s why I am pleased to promote it. Having such a strong county team has been so key for success.