British Girlguiding Overseas
Growth & Retention
British Girlguiding Overseas membership has been hit by the recent pandemic. Other factors have also been in play, the withdrawal of the British Military from Europe, Brexit, the recession in the oil industry and just a general economic decline. All this means that units have closed and families leaders have had to return to the UK. In order to strengthen and grow our membership throughout BGO, we need to inspire more people to volunteer with us, give our volunteers a reason to keep coming back and reach out to new communities. We need to open more units – and help units to stay open - to move girls off our waiting lists faster and to help more girls to stay in guiding as they grow. Of course we also need to shout out about all the amazing things we do and share the incredible benefits and opportunities girls get through guiding.
Every time we go into a local shop, sit down for a coffee break at work or attend a school meeting it is a chance for us to do just that and a big thank you to those that already have the confidence and passion to shout loudly about us!
Every time you help a new member to join or an existing member to continue their journey, you’re making a difference. We’re all so proud of Girlguiding and understand what our movement has to offer, so let’s give these opportunities and experiences to more girls, young women and adults.
Membership Growth Key Messages
- Remember that every girl matters - try to involve just one more.
- Ensure that activities are girl-led, provide a high quality programme and bring adventure into the meeting place.
- Make that welcome warm - new members of all ages want to feel they belong.
- Understand the importance of a warm welcome and recognise good practice.
- Make every meeting great! Girls vote with their feet.
- Be aware of simple things you can do to increase units by one girl.
- Ask for help - more volunteers means more benefits for both adults and girls.
- Encourage participants to get others involved and share how great guiding is!
Recruitment Toolkit
You can use this following toolkit to help you plan your recruitment campaign!
Interested in getting parents more involved then why not use a parent rota to get them along?
This letter was written for you!
We have a warm welcome booklet available for those who are just starting their Girlguiding journey.
We also have a booklet which is available for our newly qualified leaders.
And coming soon, a booklet available to download to send to Parents to explain more about Girlguiding