Events and Opportunities

Summer Safari - A Virtual Summer Day Event/Sleepover

Girlguiding Hampshire West County invites all Rainbows, Brownies, Guides, Rangers and Young Leaders on a Summer Safari - a virtual summer day event or sleepover from the comfort of their own homes, with the option to take part just for the day on Saturday 17th July or for the full sleepover event on 17th – 18th July. Registrations close on 5th July.

Girls can join in with this event without any preparation from you as their Leader! 

Activities will include: Baking, Crafts, Drumming, Dance, Fun and Games, Reptile Encounter, Challenges, Virtual Safari, Shelter Building, Campfire Singing and more.

The event will take place across Zoom and a closed Facebook group.

The event starts at 9.30am on Saturday 17th to 8/9pm, or 12.30pm on Sunday 18th July, 2021 - the choice is theirs!

Participants will need to complete 12 out of the 24 different activities and take part in half the Zoom meetings to gain the event badge. The basic programme will be:

Saturday

            9.30am - 12.15pm. Activities 1 - 5

            12.15pm - 1.00pm. Lunch

            1.00pm - 5.00pm. Activities 6 - 10

            5.00pm - 7.00pm. Activities11, 12 and Dinner

            7.00pm - 8/9.00pm. Activities 13 – 16

Sunday

            8.00am - 12.30pm. Breakfast and Activities 17 - 23

            12.30pm - 12.40pm. Activity 24

Please pass the information on to your girls and the Event’s Team will deal with all the bookings. Click here for flyer.

To register for the event parents will need to complete the online application form at:

www.girlguidinghantswest.org.uk/county-events

The event will be advertised on the County’s Facebook page to enable you to share the post on your own pages, plus details will be emailed to Leaders to forward to their parents.

Leaders please note:

As the event is being organised specifically for the girls, applications will initially only be open to the girls in your unit as there is a limit to how many participants there can be on Zoom. Applications for Leaders’ places will be open nearer to the event on a first come, first served basis. We will let you know when places can be booked via the usual ways - the County e-update and Facebook, please do not try to apply now as applications from Leaders will not be accepted yet.

Any queries, please email: gghwsleepover@gmail.com

 Summer Safari - A Virtual Summer Day Event/Sleepover - Badge Competition 

Girls are invited to design a badge for this event. The design must include:

• The Girlguiding logo
• The wording "Girlguiding Hampshire West Summer Safari"
• Maximum of 6 colours
• To be either square, round, hexagonal or diamond in shape
• Have an Safari theme and show that it is a virtual event

Closing date for entries is 1st June 2021.

Entries to be emailed to: gghantswestevents@gmail.com. 

Please share the post from the county Facebook page on your own unit, district and division pages.

Volunteers Needed!

Would you be prepared to make a video that we could use on the virtual event/sleepover doing one of the following:

• Singing a favourite camp fire song - if this a echo/repeat song, please arrange to sing with someone else who would do the repeat (but please maintain government guidelines, etc)
• Reading a safari/animal story suitable for Rainbows, Brownies, Guides, Rangers or Young Leaders
• Alternatively, run some camp fire singing live on Zoom on the Saturday evening at 7pm for 15-20 minutes

To find out more or to volunteer to do one of the above, please contact Jayne before making the video at: gghantswestevents@gmail.com

Hampshire West Summer Challenge

Launching in July will be a summer challenge for the girls in the County to take part in over the summer break to help keep the girls engaged with Girlguiding. Parents will register the girls online and once registered, they will then be able to download the challenge pack. Photo evidence of challenges completed need to be back to the events team by 10th September.

Leaders will not need to keep records of what the girls have done as everything will be recorded by the events team and the badge will be posted direct to the girls, so no extra work for Leaders other than giving the girls the details in July.

Foxlease

Foxlease is offering local units the use of an outside area free of charge for units to be able to meet face-to-face, plus inside facilities at a cost. Contact the Foxlease team to enquire - foxlease@girlguiding.org.uk

A Taste of Adventure sessions are available to book at Foxlease for your unit from 17th May onwards at a cost of £15 per person per day to include three adventurous activities, plus lunch and refreshments. A Taste of Adventure overnight packages are available for September onwards at a cost of £39.99 per person to include four adventurous activities, full catering and an overnight stay.  

Celebrate the Region's Golden Anniversary!

This year the region celebrates its 50th birthday and they would like you to join the celebrations by taking part in The Golden Anniversary Challenge which will run until 31st May 2021. The Challenge can be downloaded here: Golden Anniversary Challenge

There are 50 different activities for all sections and all ages on the themes of Celebrations, 50, Golden, Traditions/Memories, and Counties and Islands.

Whether you like getting outdoors and being active, prefer to be indoors doing a spot of cooking, getting crafty or involved in research and writing, there is something for everyone - plus the opportunity to record all your activities and achievements in a special book.  There is a badge too which is available to buy from the region's online shop for £1.00 plus postage and packing and can be earned by completing 10 of the 50 activities.

A great way to keep your girls engaged is to set them a challenge each week to complete - remember they only have until 31st May this year to complete it.

Unit Meeting Activities

Pack 9 is now available to purchase, plus there are some Spring downloadable UMA’s

Click here

Want more ideas to do with your unit?

Check out the following Adventures at home for:

Rainbows - http://bit.ly/3qcVC0EAdventures 

Brownies - http://bit.ly/309EtKYAdventures

Guides - http://bit.ly/3qcVPAYAdventures

Rangers - http://bit.ly/30b7aXDMore 

Ideas and resources - https://bit.ly/2L7fbcjGirlguiding 

YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/user/girlguiding

Returning to Face to Face Outdoor Meetings

Outdoor face-to-face meetings can resume with no limit on numbers of girls or adults, but bear in mind that mandatory ratios should be met if meeting away from the grounds of your usual meeting place, with a minimum of two adults at all times.

There is now a new outdoor checklist and risk assessment that can be downloaded here. This new document has lots of guidance notes to help you complete the risk assessment and is fully editable in Word format; make sure you edit the information on the downloadable template to explain how you are reducing the risk and what extra controls you are putting in place, as well as including the general risks involved in the activities planned in the blank boxes. One document can be completed to include a term's activities.

Indoor face-to-face meetings - confirmation as to whether these can be resumed from 12th April and numbers will be confirmed by Girlguiding soon, along with a new checklist and risk assessment.

Follow these steps before starting to meet:

1. Contact your local commissioner and let them know that you are planning to start meeting. Find out how much time she will need to sign off your risk assessment - it's likely to be at least 2 weeks.

2. Complete the outdoor face-to-face meetings checklist and risk assessment. Only continue with planning to meet if you can answer yes to every question.

3. Use the risk assessment to consider the specific risks of coronavirus. Think about what you can do to reduce these risks. This could include hand washing facilities, social distancing, and transport.

4. Share the completed checklist and risk assessment with your local commissioner. Wait for them to give you the go-ahead and sign off the forms over email.

5. Keep parents and carers informed by sending them a letter detailing your plans.

6. Get parent or carer consent. Ask them to complete the information and consent form. These forms will be vital for track and trace if someone develops coronavirus symptoms after the meeting. You need to keep these forms for 3 weeks after the activity.

7. As always, make sure that your plans are in line with the Health, Safety and Welfare procedures. Share your completed risk assessment with all volunteers attending your activities.

8. Make sure that you have enough adults to support your activity. During this time of heightened risk and uncertainty, you need at least 2 adults, including parent helpers, at every activity. Depending on the size of your group, you might need more adults to make sure adult:child ratios are maintained.

You need to keep attendance records for 1 month after any meeting, this helps with track and trace and is in line with Girlguiding policies.