Why does Girlguiding go to the party conferences?
The advocates, our spokespeople, go to them each year
Party conferences are the annual meetings for political parties of the UK.
MPs, party members, key speakers and organisations come together to discuss priorities for the next year. The two biggest political parties in the UK, the Conservative party and Labour party, hold their party conferences in the autumn.
The advocates, our spokespeople, go to them each year. Our advocates are a group of Girlguiding members aged 14 to 25 that lead our advocacy and research and help us make sure we are girl led in everything we do. They do the important work of making sure the voices of young people are heard at the highest level, like politicians.
At the conferences, they’ll speak with decision makers, MPs and other organisations. They do the important job of telling decision makers about the lives and experiences of girls and young women, using their real life experiences and through our Girls’ Attitudes Survey, our annual piece of research that provides a snapshot of girls’ and young women’s lives.
They’ll also host fringe events at the conferences. Last year, at the Labour conference, they hosted a panel event, sharing statistics from our research about sexual harassment, and personal experiences of being a young woman today. Find out more about what the advocates got up to at the 2021 party conferences.
A group of advocates will go to the Labour conference on Sunday, 25 September and the Conservative conference on Sunday, 2 October. They’ll be doing a takeover of our social channels, tweeting and posting on Instagram stories throughout the day.
Girlguiding is committed to improving the lives of girls and young women. This is a really exciting way to, each year, go directly to the decision makers who can make things happen at the highest political level.
If this sounds like something you’d want to do, apply to be an advocate for the chance to go to next year’s party conferences, and make change all year round in loads of different ways.
And if girls want to develop their skills in influencing others on the issues they care most about, whether it’s campaigning, debating, lobbying or petitioning, have a go at the Influence Skills builder.
Young members will identify key local decision makers and feel empowered to use their voice. There are at least two ways at each stage for girls to influence people or influence change on an issue that matters to them.
Young members will identify key local decision-makers and feel empowered to use their voice. There are at least two ways at each stage for girls to influence people or influence change on an issue that matters to them.
Keep a look out for all the fun the advocates get up to at the party conferences this autumn!
