Girlguiding in the news 2025
Catch up on some of the latest big mentions of Girlguiding in the press
Originally published 14 February 2025.
We're spreading the word about the issues girls face, and how we're working to help all girls know they can do anything.
Check out some of our recent press coverage below.
8 March: New ambassador Ashley James
On International Women's Day (8 March) we revealed the news that broadcaster Ashley James is our new celebrity ambassador and received lots of press coverage in the Daily Mirror (one print page lead and one online feature), The Sun Bizarre showbiz column, Daily Star Hot TV column and regional publications the Hexham Courant and Northumberland Gazette. Ashley was born in Northumberland.
Ashley also mentioned her ambassadorship on This Morning during her This Morning slot on Friday and shared some Girls' Attitudes Survey data during the news review segment.
She credits being a Rainbow and Brownie for developing her confidence and in her new role Ashley will help empower girls and challenge change makers to develop equal opportunities for all girls.
Check out the article in the Daily Mirror online here
7 March: UK Space Agency
We're partnered with the UK Space Agency to share the wonder of space with girls and inspire them to engage with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) through unique and exciting opportunities.
Astronaut Meganne Christian went on the Fun Kids radio and on their Science Weekly podcast to talk about the partnership with Girlguiding and the work the UKSA is doing to encourage more young people into STEM, as well as her journey to becoming a reserve astronaut, space food and her passion for singing.
You can listen to it here:
But that's not all we've been up to with the UK Space Agency!
Before Christmas, members had the chance to interview Meganne herself, and in February 500 Brownies from the Midlands blasted off to the National Space Centre to learn all about the universe and complete the activities which make up the space interest badge, which is sponsored by the UK Space Agency.
We secured a feature to shout about these fantastic opportunities in First News, the UK’s only children’s newspaper! The Brownie event was also featured in local Midlands newspapers, like the Northamptonshire Telegraph, Nottingham World, and Derbyshire Times.
You can see the piece here:
Special report by Hannah Timson. Issue 977 First News. 7-13 March 2025
A starry encounter
This week marks both British Science Week and International Women’s Day. To celebrate, we’ve teamed up with Brownies, Guides and Rangers to share their amazing interview with astronaut Meganne Christian. Here’s what happened…
Interviewers: Hi Meganne. So, when do you hope to fly into space?
Meganne: I’m a reserve for the European Space Agency, which means there are no guarantees for me. I might never get to space, but it’s not looking too bad; if the things that are being worked on come off, then it should be in the next couple of years, but no guarantees.
Interviewers: If you had a bedside table in space, what would you put on it?
Meganne: Well, I would have to strap it down very well because obviously things fly around in space, but I would definitely take my knitted penguin. She’s called Pengaroo and I knitted her about ten years ago now… no, more than that – 14 years ago, actually for my husband, and he started taking her with him around the world. So Pengaroo travels around the world. She’s been on my parabolic flights [a way of getting zero-gravity in an aeroplane], she’s been to Antarctica, so next she will have to go to space. I would also have to have a good book.
Interviewers: If you could take any TV character into space, who would it be?
Meganne: I think Buzz Lightyear has a lot of experience, so I’d probably have to take him!
Interviewers: How long is a trip to the moon?
Meganne: Going to the moon is complicated. It’s a long way from Earth compared to the International Space Station, which is only 400km away. To get to the moon it takes three to five days, and then it depends how much time you’re going to be spending on the moon. So not long from now, there’s going to be a station called Gateway that’s going to be orbiting the moon. Astronauts will go to Gateway for probably about a month and then come home, so a trip to the moon might be a month and a half.
Interviewers: What kind of food do astronauts eat in space?
Meganne: We try to eat pretty similar food to what we have here on Earth when we’re in space. Things that we like, because food’s really important for keeping up morale, it helps you stay happy. But the thing is, the things you take to space need to be as light as possible and take up as little space as possible, so what you do is you dehydrate the food and get rid of all the water that’s inside it. You have to put the water back inside it and maybe heat it up when you’re up there in space. But then the kinds of things you eat might be normal meals, like you could have rice and some vegetables and meat or something like that. They’ve had pizzas in space before, sometimes ice cream and biscuits. And then healthy snacks. When a new mission comes in for example, they tend to have some fresh fruit come in with them, and astronauts are always really excited when the fresh fruit arrives on the station.
Interviewers: What’s your favourite planet and why?
Meganne: My favourite planet is Earth. I suppose it’s fair to say I haven’t been on any other planets so I wouldn’t know, but I think there’s something so special about our own planet and that’s why we live here. I would love to see some other planets though!
Interviewers: How long do you have to train to become an astronaut?
Meganne: All astronauts go through basic training, which takes about a year. Then depending on the mission, you’ll have specific training for the kind of experiments that you’re going to be running. For example, if you’re going to be doing a spacewalk you’ll spend a lot of time in the pool. So it can take anywhere from a year to about four years to train for a mission to the International Space Station.
Interviewers: What advice would you give us if we wanted to be an astronaut one day?
Meganne: If you wanted to be an astronaut, I think the wonderful thing is that at this time there are more and more opportunities that are becoming available. We’re in a really special moment. In the 2040s the aim is that we’ll have humans on Mars, which is really exciting. My advice is to do something that you really enjoy doing because you have to be at the top of your game in whatever you’re doing in your life to be selected as an astronaut.
Did you know? It takes several hours to prepare for a spacewalk, including putting on the spacesuit!
Inspiring future generations
Back in February, more than 500 Brownies took over the National Space Centre in Leicester for an out-of-this world adventure, which was made possible thanks to Girlguiding’s partnership with the UK Space Agency. Girls aged seven to ten came together to learn about astronaut training, create sunspot viewers and map constellations. The aim of the day was to inspire more girls to get involved with science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).
22 February 2025: World Thinking Day
To celebrate World Thinking Day, Girlguiding ambassador Anna McNuff was invited to speak on BBC Radio about her incredible efforts as an inspirational adventurer showing girls they can do anything.
The former GB rower and European medalist chatted to presenter Alice Hopkins about her Barefoot Britain challenge running around the UK minus footwear, where she hailed Girlguiding units she met along the way for boosting her energy levels.
Anna also told of the benefits of volunteering and shared the messaging that our doors are always open to more people joining in the Girlguiding fun.
You can listen to the clip here (Anna's interview starts from 16:53): Alice Hopkins on BBC Radio Oxford - 22/02/2025 - BBC Sounds
20 February 2025: The Big Conversation
On the Children's Commissioner's Podcast, youth ambassadors Aaliya and Tamar spoke to Girlguiding CEO Angela Salt about the importance of World Thinking Day to Girl Guides across the world, the history behind Girlguiding, the ongoing fight for equality, and how we can ensure young women’s voices are heard in matters that affect them.
Listen to the episode below.
11 February 2025: Safer Internet Day
Keeping girls safe is a top priority for us, so we commissioned some research for Safer Internet Day (11 February) to understand what both girls and boys are being exposed to online.
The data was incredibly shocking, including:
- More than 1/4 (26%) of children have seen a sexualised deepfake of a celebrity, friend, teacher or themselves.
- 1 in 8 girls aged 13-18 have received sexual threats online.
- More than 2/5 (42%) of young people think more needs to be done to ensure they're safe online.
We must continue to raise awareness of these issues so more action is taken to improve the lives of girls.
So far, we’ve contacted 80 MPs and colleagues in the education and women’s, youth and children’s sectors to share this data. You might have also seen the story in The Times, The Daily Mail, Charity Today and Verge Magazine.
