Young Leaders

Welcome to your new role as a young leader. We hope you enjoy volunteering with Girlguiding. We help all girls know they can do anything, and that includes you!

Being a Young leader is a great way to learn valuable leadership skills, make friends and have fun!

I have been in Girlguiding since I was 5 and have always known that I wanted to volunteer. In 2023, I started to volunteer as a Brownie Helper with my old Brownie unit as a Guide for my Bronze Duke of Edinburgh. Being a Rainbow or Brownie helper is a great introduction to being a Young Leader and getting an idea for what it involves.

When I turned 14, I left Guides and became a Young leader. As my area didn’t currently have a Rangers unit, being a Young leader was a great way to still stay involved in guiding, and also gave me an excellent way to volunteer for my D of E.

Once I had settled in, I started the Young leader development programme (YLDP), which is Girlguiding’s scheme that teaches Young leaders about topics like safeguarding, risk assessments but also skills like delegation and communication. There are 12 modules to complete which all cover different parts of being a Young leader, and you can complete as many or as few as you wish. For every four, you get a certificate and a big shiny badge which you can wear proudly on your uniform.

The YLDP took me about a year to complete and has taught me many useful skills for both in and outside of guiding. As part of my YLDP, I delivered sessions at Brownies, attended planning meetings, and helped at Brownie residentials. Girlguiding Suffolk also offers days for Young leaders to complete parts of the YLDP, which I found useful but also fun, as I also got to meet other Young leaders from the county

I would recommend being a Young Leader to anyone in Girlguiding aged 14-17 who wants to have fun, learn useful skills and make friends!