Growing Guiding Project

Girlguiding South West England Leader Workshops

Growing Guiding – Underpinning Principles

• Our overarching aim is long term growth of youth membership

• Any drive to increase volunteer numbers derives from this

National

• Every girl should be offered the chance to participate in the guiding programme. If this cannot be delivered in a unit setting, it should be offered in a different format

Regional

• Not a PR or training exercise

• About quality and flexibility, not numbers

• Removing barriers, myths & legends, outdated practice

• Innovative ways of delivering Guiding and getting everyone in who wants to join

• Action at local level

What is Growing Guiding?

Growing GOOD Guiding

I’m Guiding in 2015.

What year are you Guiding in?

What we had already done?

• Annual Growing Guiding Conferences

• Commissioner Day

Now needed to get leaders involved

Format of Leader Workshops

• Direct invitations to leaders• No cost to leaders – Growing Guiding grant• Flexibility & 2 other sessions of choice• 75 minute sessions

Aim: to help leaders Grow Good, Flexible, Guiding in their area

Objectives for workshops

• Working with other section leaders

• Think about local issues and priorities

• Identify some solutions • Develop a local action plan

Topics covered

• Flexible Guiding – ways to do things differently

• Excellence Everywhere• GO & Join Us – Rainbow/Brownie• Managing larger Guide units• Moving On• Brownie Adventure• Guides beyond the meeting place

Follow up• Each leader identified 3 key targets,

written on post cards

• Follow up 3 months laterWhat leaders didWhom did they share it with?What workedWhat didn’t work, and why?Further support required?

Next steps• Use follow-up as focus for next Annual

Conference, and identify barriers

• Identify and celebrate successes • ‘How to’ guidelines on website

• Lead Volunteer for Adult Support to use format to provide leader workshops across Region as alternative to County Days

Some of our feedback…………………

Summary• Training needs to change attitudes and

practice, not just give ideas

• How and why, not just what

• Achieve something positive

• Make a change

• Take action – get on with it!