New Girlguiding badges encourage girls to laugh, share and discover

Yahoo

6 days ago

Girl guides will be rewarded for everything from sleeping and laughing to grooving and sharing their 'guiding sparkle' thanks to a range of new badges adding to and replacing traditional ones.
The Girlguiding organisation has launched 72 additional badges co-designed by more than 20,000 girls and volunteers which will be introduced to girls aged four to 18 across Rainbows, Brownies, Guides and Rangers.
The girls will be celebrated for having a good night's sleep, critiquing food, discovering a new hobby and planning a holiday, skills including mechanics and entomology, as well as hosting a party.
Broadcaster and presenter Angellica Bell has joined as an ambassador to help launch the project, saying she wants to encourage girls to tackle the many challenges they face, all while enjoying themselves.
The badges – which are given to girls who complete a certain challenge to wear on their uniform – are divided into sections which encourage wellness, knowing oneself, learning and having adventures, among others.
They were co-designed by around 20,000 people, including 15,000 girls.
More than 4,000 badge design ideas were submitted by girls and volunteers and 11,000 girls from 753 Girlguiding units across the UK helped test them out.
The developments were in response to girls' requests to add more choice to the programme and include activities to help the climate, build confidence and speak about their interests and 'fandom' groups.
Different badges can be won by different age groups and they range from interest badges to skills builders to unit meeting activities.
The youngest, Rainbows, are able to win the 'bee rescuer' badge by helping the environment or for finding and sharing their 'guiding sparkle' and why they love Girlguiding.
Brownies have a reinvented version of the 'hostess' badge called 'celebrations' which can be won by hosting a party and providing food, activities and decorations.
Guides are able to earn a 'thrift' badge by customising, repurposing and recycling objects.
Bell said: 'It was a real blast trying out the new badges with Girlguiding members.
'I know first-hand just how important it is for girls to have activities outside of school to educate but also have fun.
'As someone who thrives on challenges and is passionate about ensuring girls' voices are heard, I feel extremely excited to be joining Girlguiding as an ambassador.
'Girlguiding offers a safe and welcoming space for all girls, and I am so impressed by the work they do to build girls' confidence and wellbeing, whilst tackling important issues impacting their lives such as online harm, sexism and misogyny.
'In a world where the voices of girls and young women are not always fairly heard, I am proud to stand alongside Girlguiding and will be using my voice to speak up for equality and to show that girls can do anything.'
The badge activities were developed with Girlguiding's youth panel Amplify, which is made up of 30 girls aged 12 to 18, and seven partners including The Royal Horticultural Society, which helped with the Rangers' gardening badge, the Children's Book Project, which helped with the Guides' bookworm badge, Bletchley Park, which helped with the Guides' codebreaking badge, and the Wellbeing of Women charity which helped with the Rangers' 'my health' badge.
Amanda Azeez, acting chief executive of Girlguiding, said: 'The launch of these new badges is a huge moment for Girlguiding.
'They've been designed by girls, for girls – which is so important to make sure we are staying relevant to girls' wants and needs.
'The response from girls and volunteers during the consultation process was incredible and really inspiring.
'There's something for everyone among the new badges and I'm looking forward to seeing the impact these activities have on girls, building their confidence and helping them know they can do anything.'