How being a Girlguiding advocate helped us in our careers

This year we are celebrating 15 years of the Girlguiding advocate panel!  

Since 2009, over 200 Girlguiding members have learned new skills and taken part in exciting opportunities through the advocate panel. And since their time on the panel, many advocates have begun exciting career paths! 

Previous advocates can be found working in journalism at the BBC or working for the government in the civil service.  

Many have gone on to work in charities, including Scouts, Duke of Edinburgh, Great Ormond Street Hospital, UK Youth and Cats Protection.  

Other previous advocates have gone on to work in health and social care, as a children’s social worker or a mental health nurse.  

One advocate went on to work in the sports industry, helping more women and girls get involved in sport, while others entered the military field - with one working at the Ministry of Defence, and another becoming an army doctor! 

Previous advocates have studied a range of subjects at university – some related to advocacy, like politics, international relations, and law, but also other subjects like geography, physics, and astrophysics. One advocate even went on to be the president of the National Union of Students during her time at university. 

And many advocates have stayed involved in guiding – one ex advocate is now our lead volunteer for communications, while others have been on the lead volunteer team for youth voice and participation in their region, and another previous advocate is now even a Girlguiding trustee! 

In this blog, a few past Girlguiding members who were on the advocate panel tell us about their time on the panel, and how they have used the skills they learned in their careers since.  

Meet Leah: Leah was a member of the advocate panel from 2009-2011, and now works at the Ministry of Defence at 42 Commando Royal Marine Barracks. 

Meet Larissa: Larissa was a member of the advocate panel from 2014-2016. Since then, she was elected president of the National Union of Students, and has founded Talawa, a collective of students & young people focused on Black feminism, climate justice and liberated education. 

Meet Abbie: Abbie was a member of the advocate panel from 2021-2023, and is now a mental health nurse working in child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS).  

What was your favourite thing you did on the advocate panel? 

Leah: 'My favourite campaign was the airbrushing campaign, where we tried to get airbrushed images in magazines to be labelled, because of the negative affect the images were having on girls and young women. I can still remember all the various stages of this campaign - from the initial ideas, to celebrating our achievements at an event we hosted in the Houses of Parliament. This campaign really helped me understand that beauty standards and expectations are different for everyone. I became more confident in myself, and stopped comparing myself to others or caring what they thought of me.' 

Larissa: 'My favourite thing was being at party conferences. There’s just nothing like it! When you’re 16 or 17 and you’ve never been before, and suddenly people are coming to you to hear the voices of girls and young women. It was incredible to feel that change is possible. It was special to be asked to speak at panel discussion events, but also to have quieter moments over a coffee where you talk with an MP or a Lord - someone who has the power make a difference for your community. It taught me a lot about what influencing looks like in the political space.' 

Abbie: 'Some of my favourite experiences included attending the Labour party conference and speaking on the radio about the Girls’ Attitudes Survey. I also attended a private screening of the King’s Coronation, as well as attending some internal events where I engaged with senior staff members and volunteers at Girlguiding. All these opportunities gave me the ability to grow as a person and develop my skills.' 

How did your time on the panel help you get to where you are now? 

Leah: 'During my time as an advocate, I learnt and developed so many different skills. From public speaking opportunities and media interviews, I learnt how to be clear and confident in speaking and thinking on my feet. This is something I have used a lot in my work and personal life.

'From being an advocate, I also developed my confidence in travelling independently. Travelling to meetings at HQ and taking up various opportunities in my teenage years helped me to feel more confident travelling alone. After being an advocate I later decided to apply to be a volunteer at Our Chalet at 18 and moved abroad - something I don’t think I would have done had I not already developed confidence to travel independently!

'It also gave me the confidence to try new things and jump in with both feet. The best skill I learnt from being an advocate is the ability to talk to anyone! Being able to start up a conversation with a stranger or a group of people has been so valuable for a variety of jobs in my professional career.

'My career is in an incredibly male-dominated sector, and although historically my role has been done by a man, I applied not even thinking of this element. Since starting my career with the Ministry of Defence I have not faced any tasks in my role that I have not been able to achieve. I don’t think anyone should ever be put off a job or a career because of stereotypes.' 

Larissa: 'I often talk about the advocate panel being key to growing my capacity to be a campaigner. I’m former president of the National Union of Students, and in that time I was always drawing on my experience from being an advocate when I spoke to the media. It taught me how to make sure you’re getting your point across, and that the voices of people you represent are being heard.

'I also came away with some super practical campaigning skills - whether that’s drawing up a theory of change, or taking research and turning it into action. I also learned what it means to be part of a team. I absolutely loved that in the advocate panel we all worked together from across the 4 nations of the UK, with our different perspectives and our different lived experiences. That teaches you how to go out into the world as a campaigner and know that you can work with people to make a difference.'  

Abbie: 'As an advocate, I grew my confidence in public speaking thanks to the training we were given, and from brilliant opportunities like speaking on the radio. My writing skills also improved, as I had the opportunity to write quotes and newspaper articles. Being able to concisely write letters and notes is a key part of my job now!

'I was able to get involved in opportunities focused on mental health. This helped me realise that I wanted to work in mental health. It also helped me write my application for university, as I was able to give lots of examples of experiences from my time on the panel. I also learned how to work within a team. This is a crucial part of my role now, as I work as part of a team, and with patients, families, and other services.

'As an advocate, I also gained experience communicating with a huge variety of people. This helps me in my role now, as I have to be able to communicate clearly with everyone I work with. Being under pressure in an interview situation is something I also experienced as an advocate. It has definitely supported me to develop the skills needed to remain calm under pressure.' 

How you can get involved

Let us know if you’d like to be a member of the advocate panel, and we can send you updates so that you’ll be the first to know when we start recruiting new advocates! 

You can also email [email protected] to find out more about what the advocates do, and how you can work with them in your local area to help more Girlguiding members to speak out and make change.