Girlguiding Dorset Volunteering Roles

It’s time to take the lead and inspire girls!

What's it all about?

You’ll be part of a team of volunteers who plan and run weekly meetings where girls explore new ideas, gain new skills, build friendships and have lots of fun. You could be showing 5-year-olds how to start a campfire, creating a mini festival for 8-year-olds or helping 12-year-olds start an upcycling revolution. Find out more about our programme.

How can I get involved?

It’s entirely up to you! Choose where you want to make a difference:

• Rainbows (4-7), our youngest members, are full of energy and love discovering new things

• Brownies (7-10) are funny, creative and have a great sense of adventure

• Guides (10-14) are becoming more independent and are up for a challenge

Or you can volunteer at a mix of groups. Whatever works for you! If you’re not sure, you can visit a couple of groups and see what suits you.

What will I do?

Being a young leader/young external volunteer is a wonderfully varied role but you will:

• Go to regular unit meetings and help girls to do activities from the Girlguiding programme.

• Get weird and wonderful ideas from the girls that you can bring to life as activities or events.

• Plan and run fun activities and games, adapting them to the needs of the whole group.

• Make sure everyone feels welcome and support less confident girls to get involved.

• Share your own skills, experiences, and ideas to inspire others.

• Attend and help organise exciting events, from day-long trips to sleepovers or whole weekends of fun.

• Be a role model for younger girls – someone they can look up to, and who can bridge the gap between the adults running the unit and the young members taking part.

You can do almost everything that the adult leaders in the group do!

Who can do this role?

You may have already been a Rainbow, Brownie or Guide in the past, but you don’t need to have done so…we equally welcome people who are totally new to Guiding.

You need to enjoy working with children or young people and be able to go to meetings on a regular basis. This is usually weekly, but we are flexible about how often you volunteer so let us know how much time you would like to give.

Option 1 (girls aged 14-17) - Young Leader:

If you’re aged 14-17 and want to level up your leadership skills, get a qualification and have an amazing time, then being a young leader is the perfect role for you. Don’t worry if you haven’t done any volunteering before - you can jump right in and we'll support you all the way!

Take the first steps to becoming a young leader and sign up here Register your interest | Girlguiding

Option 2 (anyone aged 13-17) – Young External Volunteer:

Alternatively, anyone aged 13-17 who is working towards an externally recognised award (such as the Duke of Edinburgh Award) can become a young external volunteer. You don’t have to be female. You can volunteer for the time you need to complete the volunteering section of the award.

Why should I do this role?

It’s great experience working with children and young people, plus you’ll make positive impact on others.

You’ll get to spend time with some amazing young people who’ll make you laugh, boost your confidence and change the way you look at the world.

You’ll also develop loads of skills that look great on your CV, UCAS application or personal statement, such as:

• Planning

• Organisation

• Delivering activities

• Communication

• Behaviour management

• Inclusion

• Teamwork

• Taking responsibility for yourself and others

Our community of Girlguiding members make a difference in the world. You can meet new people and build new friendships that will last a lifetime.

It’s also great fun – you can take a break from the stresses of school and exams to be silly, play games, get messy, try new things and create amazing memories.

How will I get the right skills?

You’ll start with an induction, which will explain all things Girlguiding. There are tons of ways to gain skills. You’ll learn most just by doing the role, but you can also do the Young Leader Qualification. And because you’re part of a team, you’ll never be alone. The other leaders, local volunteers and young leaders in the team will help you.

The safety bit

Don’t worry, as you’re under 18, some of the responsibilities will always sit with other people. You won’t be asked to have the responsibility of girls completely on your own.

Creating a safe space is really important to make sure you can lead safely. You’ll need to complete the A Safe Space for 14-17 year-olds e-learning in the first month of starting to volunteer with a group. Of course, we can help you with this.

Sign up and what happens next

Sign up online and a local volunteer will be in touch. They will ask you where in Dorset you would like to volunteer (we have groups all across the county) and they’ll help get you started.

If you have any questions, please email office@girlguidingdorset.org.uk