Retirement

There is no official retirement age at Girlguiding - find out what that means for your team.

There is no age when volunteers, including leaders, must retire from Girlguiding.

We value our older volunteers

Older volunteers bring many benefits to the organisation by:

• Making sure that more girls who want to join Girlguiding can
• Bringing lots of skills and experience
• Mentoring and supporting the next generation of volunteers
• Ensuring the continuity and sustainability of Girlguiding.

Information for leaders aged 65 and over

If you're a leader who is reaching 65 and you're keen to step back from your role, then you shouldn't feel any pressure to keep it up.

Girls get the best experience when the volunteers in their unit are happy to be there. If you no longer want to be a leader, for whatever reason, then speak to your local commissioner. You can work together on a succession plan to find and support a new leader for the unit, to develop existing unit volunteers or to identify places in another unit for all the girls.

Becoming a leader for the first time

• If you're over 65 and haven’t been a leader, if you'd like to take on that role you can complete the leadership qualification.
• You'll need to complete modules 1 to 4 of the LQ to become a unit leader. If you've already completed modules 1 to 3, then you just need to do module 4.

Volunteering on residentials

Volunteers of all ages can:

• Complete the going away with scheme and any additional modules
• Become an event coordinator for a Girlguiding residential event.

There is no age restriction for adults who count in ratios at residentials. As for any event, the local commissioner will need to ensure that the appropriate leadership team is in place for the type of event and the age of the girls.

Information for commissioners

If you have concerns about the behaviour of an older adult volunteer you should follow the processes for managing concerns, as you would for a volunteer of any age.