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ANNUAL REPORT 2009

Our Centenary Year is now upon us and we have started to celebrate in the only way only 5000 girls and young women can, with a lot of noise and activity!  September saw the launch of the Girlguiding Centenary and I spent a very busy couple of week-ends travelling around Gloucestershire with our 4ft high mascot, Lucky, visiting all the different parties and celebrations that were going on; and what a range of parties there were, from local exhibitions and parties in village halls to steam train rides, water-slides and bouncy castles.  It was thrilling to see so many young members enjoying themselves and being aware of the 100 years of activity that had gone before them.

We held our County AGM once more at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Centre in Slimbridge and this year were very fortunate with the weather, which enabled people to have a look around the wonderful grounds before the business meeting.  It was my privilege to present 3 County Awards and also 10 ‘50 year’ badges  - what a magnificent achievement; and these 10 ladies are all still actively involved in Guiding in Gloucestershire with a variety of appointments such as Division Presidents, Division shop managers and our County Secretary.  We were fortunate to have the support of a front row of Mayors and Council leaders from all areas of Gloucestershire as well as the Lord Lieutenant and Mavis, Lady Dunrossil, who was then chair of the County Council.

The Lord Lieutenant, Sir Henry Elwes, has been particularly supportive of Girlguiding Gloucestershire this year as in February we were fortunate to be able to host the tearoom at one of his snowdrop week-ends at Colesbourne House.  Guiding members made cakes and turned up in rota to sell them, organised by a competent, if sedentary Irene Catton, who had broken her leg a couple of weeks before.  We were fortunate to be able to keep the proceeds for our work in the County with our young members, but just as important was the opportunity to share Guiding memories and current experiences with the members of the public who were visiting the gardens.

Deer Park is always a large part of our Guiding in Gloucestershire and this year has been no exception.  We held a very successful Friends Day in June, where another 50 year badge was presented, and the girls took part in a Dance Competition which was an entertaining addition despite the frequent showers of rain.  We have now obtained the planning permission for our Activity Barn on Bubbs Hill and 2010 will see the launch of the fund-raising challenge.  We have a lot of money to raise but know that this project will make a huge difference to the opportunities we can offer our girls and also to the use we can make of our own land at Bubbs Hill.  Hopefully next year’s report will be describing some of the extra activities we have been able to offer because of the improved facilities.

This year was the turn of the Guide section to take part in a special outing and we took around 500 excited young ladies up the motorway for a fun, if rather wet, day out at Drayton Manor Park.  The girls didn’t seem to notice the rain as they were getting soaked on the rides anyway and the wet weather also meant that there were fewer people at the park which meant less time queuing at the big attractions.

Our County International selected team went to Holland for an amazing adventure -  camping and taking in some of the Dutch culture.  Their reports make fascinating reading with references to ‘life-changing’ moments.  We also supported young women travelling to India, Iceland and Armenia, all of whom described their adventures as something they would never have dreamed of without Guiding.  A group of intrepid Trefoil Guild members also had an amazing adventure by heading off to Antartica.  They managed to land on the sub-continent and their photographs are testimony to the wonderful experiences they encountered.

GO, our national database, was launched this year and our county co-ordinator, Sue Lambert, has worked hard to get us all trained and kept us informed as changes happened.  The system will make an enormous difference to our record-keeping and should eliminate the files of documents we all keep in the spare bedroom.

Most of our units took part in Changing the World activities throughout 2009 and we are pleased to be able to say that we have raised a substantial amount of money in the County towards charity funding.  We are now looking forward to the excitement of our Centenary Celebrations and have activity days planned for Rainbows, Brownies and Guides (who will also have a County Camp in August) as well as a Dinner Dance for adult volunteers, a residential forum and activity week-end for the Senior Section, a magnificent singing and dancing Show at the Bacon Theatre, and a spectacular finale at Cheltenham Racecourse to seal the Centenary and remake our Promises.

May I wish everyone a very happy Centenary Year and all good wishes for the next 100 years of Girlguiding!

Sue Matthews

County Commissioner, Girlguiding Gloucestershire