We love to celebrate and support our members, ensuring everyone feels included and empowered as a part of the Girlguiding family. Today, on International Day of Sign Languages, we’d like to share with you some resources available on the Girlguiding HQ website designed to support hard of hearing or speaking members, and their leaders, on their Girlguiding journey.
Our volunteers and staff do a fantastic job, welcoming everyone to Girlguiding, and we’re proud to support them however we can. If there are more materials you would like to see, please get in touch with our inclusivity and diversity team via angliahq@girlguiding-anglia.org.uk
British sign language alphabet information sheet
Signing the Girlguiding and Rainbow Promise in Makaton
Information and advice on equality, diversity and promoting inclusion in your unit
Signing the Girlguiding Brownie Promise with Amelie from Essex South East County
As the news from Ukraine develops, the continuing events and reports may lead girls in your units to raise questions and concerns, causing you to potentially feel pressure to support the girls and answer their questions. We want to be able to support you, to support your girls on this sensitive topic.
It is likely girls will hear about what is going on through school, online information, the news and overheard conversations. Therefore, if the girls approach you wanting to discuss the crisis, it is important to make time and listen. You can firstly start by asking what they have already heard and open it up to the unit to raise any worries or thoughts they might be having.
Don’t worry about the perfect thing to say. Just opening up this conversation for the girls can help them process what is happening and learn how it fits into their world. There are resources available from credible sources – such as Newsround, Young Minds, UNICEF, Save The Children – to further support you in having these conversations. Girlguiding UK have also created activities to support you in talking about difficult situations, which can be found here.
As a unit you can explore how hearing about the situation is making the girls feel, and respond by validating their feelings, giving comfort and reassurance. One way to do this is to focus on the helpers. Reassure them that adults all over the world are working hard to resolve this – let them know about the organisations, movements and people who are helping to stop the war.
It’s at this point that you could ask your unit what would help them at this time to make them feel safe or less worried. Perhaps look into giving them a practical way to help. During March, Girlguiding released an article on supporting the people in Ukraine during this crisis, how you can support girls at home and in your units, and on welcoming girls, young women and volunteers who have recently fled Ukraine for safety into our units. A Brownie leader and their unit did their good turns by creating care bags for refugees after the girls talked about being upset by footage of the crisis on the television. On a smaller – but still helpful – scale, you could look to support other countries and regions in Girlguiding in their endeavours to aid in the crisis. Girlguiding LaSER have released their Stand Together For Peace badge, information on which can be found here, and Girlguiding Cymru have also released a fundraising badge which you can preorder here.
Having open and mindful conversations with children and young people about how they’re feeling, and sharing how you feel too, is one of the best ways you can support them as these events continue to unfold.
Finally, it is important during this time that you also take care of your own mental wellbeing alongside that of the girls in your care. Don’t hesitate to reach out for advice and support of your own in the coming months. If you’re feeling anxious, take some time for yourself to relax, perhaps look at our latest wellbeing blog for ways to help you rest and recharge.
Super Rainbows events boxes are now live!
Orders are now open for our super exciting Super Rainbows event boxes containing everything you need to run a fabulous super event in October. Each girl will get the resources they need to complete at least of one activity from each of the Super Rainbow themes (excluding maybe crayons and glue) – that’s five activities per girl just in the box! We will share more teasers on these activities across social media as products start to arrive!
The box will also contain a themed map, bingo game, beach ball, superhero masks for each of the girls, fluffy bugs, an event passport for each Rainbow filled with even more activities, themed stickers, plus a few added extras to make your events special! And we can’t forget the all important Super Rainbows badge! There will a badge for each girl included in the box, and if you would like to order additional badges for leaders or other people supporting the event you can do this separately. The event box cost is £5 per girl, and everything will arrive together in one box.
You can hold your events as you see fit during the month of October; as a full day event, during a single meeting or across multiple meetings, or even be arranged with other local units. We have worked hard alongside the volunteer task and finish group to ensure the boxes represent value for money, with additional Super Rainbows downloadable resources being made available to support your event for those who buy the event box. We do appreciate that some of this cost may need to be passed on to parents, which could be a difficult ask during current times, as a team we are happy to support with fundraising ideas and support where possible.
From your Super Rainbows team!
Order your boxes here
FAQs here
Find the Super Rainbows Facebook group here
This year the Mental Health Foundation is focusing on people joining together to beat loneliness – an emotion that has been felt across the country during the pandemic, with lockdowns seeing so many people isolated.
It has been wonderful to have units back together with face-to-face meetings allowing our members to reconnect. Our recent region event at RSPB Rainham Marshes, saw girl guides connecting with members from other units to enjoy nature and learn as a community.
Girlguiding at its core combats loneliness, both outside the organisation connecting with the public through activities in the community, but also within Girlguiding where volunteers make connections with each other, creating mutual support and social opportunities. Girlguiding has always been there to bring people together and forge friendships that can last a lifetime.
As we move forward in 2022, putting the pandemic behind us, we can look forward to more occasions and projects involving face-to-face contact. Keep an eye on the events pages on the region and county websites for exciting events, such as the Girlguiding Anglia and Hautbois Activity Centre Jubilee Beacon event in July; the Super Rainbows event box in October (orders open now); LEAP, ROVE and Safe Space sessions; and much more.
Let’s beat loneliness together. If you or anyone you know is struggling, please reach out to your volunteering friends at any level, where there are people available to support you. We are here for each other, together we can beat loneliness.
