Membership system updates 2025

March 2025

Volunteer roles tables

New guidance has been issued, in the form of tables, set out by volunteering role(s). These tell you what level of safer guiding is required, whether a disclosure check is needed and whether membership is optional.

They also show what access a person has to GO and whether service is accrued.

They can be found on this page: girlguiding.org.uk/information-for-volunteers/volunteer-roles-in-guiding/volunteer-roles-requirements

All helper roles - safer guiding requirements

All helper roles (unit, district, division and county) must complete the full safer guiding course, not the safer guiding basics.

Please make sure that people are aware of the difference and this change.

Commissioners/level support - Safer guiding views and timeline

There are now 5 views under the ‘safer guiding’ tab

The most important date on the views is the ‘deadline date’. This is the latest date a volunteer can complete training, or start a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check before head quarters sanctions are initiated. If there are reasons why this cannot be done, such as personal circumstances, accessibility needs, or there is no training session they can attend please email [email protected] before the deadline. An extension can then be applied for on the volunteer’s behalf.

February 2025

Subscriptions process checks – number of people

Please check early, don’t leave it until it’s too late to correct. Allow time for overnight updates.

Check that your invoice has the correct number of people. We have found invoices that included:

• People who have left guiding
• People appearing twice
• People with their main role in the wrong level.

Subscriptions process – members vs recognised volunteers

If you have people on your invoice who you don’t think should be there, and they are in a role with optional membership, please remember to check if their membership status is set to ‘member’ or’ recognised volunteer’. We pay for members but not for recognised volunteers.

Recent GO updates

For more information on the topics below please see ‘Improvements, features and bug fixing’ under the GO help files

• Adding a completed interest badge or skills builder
  There is a new option for adding completed interest badges or skills builders in one go.
• Safer guiding views
  2 new views to the safer guiding tab for commissioners and level support, showing volunteers who need to complete a safe space level 4, and young volunteers who are recommended to complete a safe space 14-17.
• A safe space level 4
  As part of the safer guiding changes, the valid to date has been removed from a safe space level 4 and instead has been made a pre-requisite for roles that require it.
• Young leader development programme (YLDP) recording
  Young leader coordinators can now add YLDP courses (modules) and badges for young leaders in their area.

January 2025

Young leader roles – automatic change on turning 18

Young leader roles are now being automatically changed to unit helper when they turn 18.

They will need to complete the usual recruitment checks: a DBS, safer guiding training, if not already completed, and have a letter of commendation approved in place of references.

Commissioners - safer guiding/safe space level 3 for units

Please note that a unit must still have someone who has either a safe space level 3 or has completed the new safer guiding training, at each meeting.

Please be aware that the safer guiding ribbon on someone’s record will say safer guiding is complete even if they previously only completed a safe space level 1 and 2. For the moment we are reliant on HQ/region letting county know of any units that are non-compliant and will then pass this information on to commissioners, after checking ‘courses’ in individual records. HQ are working on the report that commissioners will eventually be able to see for themselves.