Policies

Girlguiding policies set a universal standard for great guiding

Find the policy you need.

Our policies and procedures explain how to make sure your guiding activities are done safely and meet regulations and legal requirements. 

Policies set the standard that you need to meet. The procedures will explain the practical steps you can take to be confident you're following the policy.

All volunteers must read and follow these policies and procedures to make sure we keep giving girls the best experience of guiding. If you have any questions you can contact us.

Our glossary lays out what we mean by a few key terms we use across our policies and procedures.

Term Definition
Adult volunteers and adult members Those who give their time to Girlguiding without being paid, in a registered volunteer role, and are aged 18 and over. This includes volunteers working directly with young members and those with no direct contact. Some roles have a membership subscription, and everyone is represented by the council. 
Board of trustees Trustees of The Guide Association are known as the board of trustees, and they manage the resource of The Guide Association to deliver our vision and mission.
Commissioner A volunteer who manages other volunteers at country, region, county, division or district level.
Countries and regions At the highest level, Girlguiding is split into 9 countries and regions. Each country or region has an administrative office with their own staff. 
Girlguiding Girlguiding is the operating name of the Guide Association. Where we refer to Girlguiding in policies we mean the guiding movement made up of all local units, districts, divisions, counties, countries, regions and The Guide Association.
HQ, headquarters Refers to the team of The Guide Association staff and appointed lead and specialist volunteers.
Leader, unit leader A volunteer who’s responsible for running a unit, leading a team and helping to plan and deliver unit activities and events. They will have completed, or be working towards, Girlguiding leadership training.
Parent or carer The person who has legal responsibility for the young member. This includes those who act as guardians. 
Policy Explains Girlguiding’s position and commitment on a topic, and includes what we expect of our volunteers and staff. 
Procedure Explains the practical steps you must follow to meet the expectations of the linked policy. 
Section The different membership groups in Girlguiding which are categorised by age: Rainbows (4-7),  Brownies (7-10), Guides (10-14) and Rangers (14-18).
Staff All employees of The Guide Association (operating name Girlguiding) whether permanent, fixed term or contracted. In policy this doesn’t include staff employed by other parts of Girlguiding. 
The Guide Association The registered charity no. 306016 – the legal entity that sets mission and values, strategy and policies. The Guide Association operates under the name of Girlguiding. 
Trustees Defined in law as ‘the persons having the general control and management of the administration of a charity.' 
 
Trustees exist at all levels of Girlguiding to manage resources in the best possible way to deliver the aims of that level. 
 
At a unit level, the leaders, assistant leaders and leaders-in-training are typically the trustees, but administrators who act as treasurers could also be included.  
 
For other levels, it’s usually the voting members of a county executive committee or the members of a division or district committee who are charity trustees, along with anyone recruited as a trustee for their specific skills. Trustees have specific responsibilities under charity law. 
Unit A local group of girls in Girlguiding who meet regularly to take part in activities delivered by volunteers.
Unit helper An adult member who helps out with a local unit on a flexible basis. They don’t have any formal Girlguiding leadership training, but they volunteer to help
Unit leader See 'leader'.
Unit leadership team The adult volunteers who run a unit. This must include at least 1 leader or leader-in-training, and could also include assistant leaders and unit helpers. 
Young external volunteer A role for those aged 13-17 who are working towards an externally recognised award, like the Duke of Edinburgh’s award. They work with adult volunteers to plan and run weekly unit meetings.
Young leader A role for those aged 14-17 who work with adult volunteers to plan and run weekly unit meetings. 
Young member Anyone who’s a Rainbow, Brownie, Guide, Ranger, young leader, peer educator, or advocate aged under 18.

Policies A-Z

Adult volunteers and adult members policy

Our policy on who can be a member of Girlguiding and the benefits and expectations of membership.

Adventurous activities policy

This policy explains what we consider an adventurous activity and the risk management steps you need to take.

Annual subscriptions policy

Find out why we need the annual subscription, how we decide the amount, how we use it and who pays it.

Anti-bullying and harassment policy

Find out how we define bullying and harassment, and what the roles of our volunteers and members are in upholding our ethos.

Code of conduct

Our code of conduct maps out what is expected of you and your responsibilities as a volunteer, and how to work with others in Girlguiding.

Complaints policy

Our complaints policy supports all Girlguiding members, volunteers, staff, parents or third parties who have a complaint.

Digital safeguarding policy

This policy covers all activities online – such as email, social media, blogs, virtual meetings – as well as all devices provided by Girlguiding.

Donation acceptance policy

This policy for volunteers, staff and trustees explains our approach to donations and how to decide what to refuse and to accept.

Equality and diversity policy

Discover our policy on including everyone – whatever their faith, race, culture, nationality or sexual orientation.

Finance policy

Our policy explaining our approach to finance and property.

Fundraising policy

Our fundraising policy is for volunteers and staff, and explains our approach to fundraising and how to fundraise.

Health safety and welfare policy

Find out what volunteers' responsibilities are when it comes to the health, safety and welfare of our members and anyone in contact with us.

Managing concerns about adult volunteers policy

Setting out the approach Girlguiding will take when we have concerns about adult volunteers and how a person’s role or membership may be affected.

Managing information policy

The managing information policy covers data protection and records retention. Find out how to collect and use personal data appropriately and store it safely.

Partnership screening policy

Our partnership screening policy is for all volunteers, staff and trustees. It sets out how we consider risks and benefits associated with partners.

Recruitment and vetting policy

Discover our policy for recruiting and vetting volunteers, including reference and DBS checks where relevant, so that we keep our members safe.

Safeguarding policy

Safeguarding and promoting the safety and wellbeing of girls, young women and adults is the first priority of Girlguiding. Read our safeguarding policy.

Whistleblowing policy

Our whistleblowing policy supports people who raise a serious concern to make sure we uphold the law, our polices, values and code of conduct.

Young members policy

Read our young members policy to find out about the benefits and expectations of being a young member, and how parents and carers can best support their child.