Our ongoing commitment to black lives matter

How we're getting to work

27 September 2020

Black lives matter. And will always matter at Girlguiding.

Being inclusive is a core value of Girlguiding and it’s also a key theme of our new 2020+ strategy. At Girlguiding we strive to create an environment where everyone feels an equal sense of belonging, is free to be themselves and where different experiences are valued. Our new strategy aims to take this further and we are wholly committed to becoming more inclusive and impactful.

We know that to be truly inclusive we must be led and guided by people of all backgrounds. We shared our voice and stood in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, but we know that true allyship lies in actions, so here is our commitment and how we’re getting to work.

What are we doing now?

Diversity and inclusion audit

In June we launched a diversity and inclusion audit, the results of which will help inform Girlguiding’s Inclusion and Diversity Strategy.

This started the process of listening more, improving our understanding, and continuing to learn from the experiences of members throughout our Girlguiding community.

This work centres the voices of people - girls, volunteers, parents and staff - that are underrepresented within Girlguiding so that their lived experience can shape our priorities.

The audit examines:

  • Equal representation throughout the membership base and workplace
  • Best practice processes and policies which benefit all volunteers, girls and staff
  • How underrepresented and marginalised volunteers, girls and staff can thrive, and whether skills are appreciated and nurtured
  • Whether members and staff fully understand equality, diversity and inclusion
  • How we can extend our reach into communities beyond those already involved in Girlguiding
  • Whether all girls and parents/carers feel they are supported and valued
  • Whether Girlguiding is a place where underrepresented and marginalised girls, volunteers and staff feel supported, heard, and valued

The recommendations from the audit will inform our Inclusion and Diversity Strategy and action plan.

Supporting our community

Together with messages of solidarity from our CEO, chair of trustees and chief guide, we have:

  • Collated and released resources for all our members to support conversations with family, units and girls about Black Lives Matter, race and privilege
  • Centred conversations around allyship and anti-racism in our Adventures at home July monthly challenge
  • Released guidance and support for senior volunteers to encourage conversations about Black Lives Matter
  • Centred stories of allyship from our volunteers and young people on our website and in our magazine.

What are we doing in the future?

  • The results of the diversity and inclusion audit will create an Inclusion and Diversity Strategy, and it will also feed into our work on race equity in the future
  • We’re releasing training for staff and senior volunteers to encourage conversations about race and racism
  • We will be reviewing our historic roots to understand better how we can tell the Girlguiding ‘story’ in a way that educates and informs and helps us all learn from the past
  • We are releasing new programme activity specifically to support conversations around race to coincide with Black History Month
  • We’re continuing work with our lead volunteer for inclusion and reach to establish a network of advisors to champion diversity and inclusion across guiding in the UK

At Girlguiding, we recognise that it’s not enough to not be racist, we must be anti-racist. We all have a role to play in being actively anti-racist while living our values at Girlguiding.

We'll continue to hold ourselves to account, to work hard to do and be better, to learn from each other – and most importantly to elevate the voices of and stand in solidarity with our Black girls, Black volunteers, Black staff, Black parents and carers, and all Black people.