As part of our dedication to giving girls a voice, we have 2 young members of Girlguiding Scotland who sit on the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP), Aine and Martha. In November it was the 82nd sitting of SYP and members gathered at the parliament for the first time since 2017. During the sitting Aine and Martha spoke on the work we do at Girlguiding Scotland to give girls the confidence to use their voice and campaign on the issues most important to them. Read what they had to say in their speech below.

Hello! We are Aine and Martha, MSYPs for Girlguiding Scotland. We are really excited to share what Girlguiding is and what this amazing organisation gets up to! Girlguiding Scotland started in 1910, after a group of girls turned up at a Boy Scouts rally [as that’s what they were called then] and said they wanted to join in. The Girl Guides movement was set up as a space for girls, because a group of girls campaigned for change!

Today, Girlguiding Scotland around 40,000 young girls attending unit meets every week and they are the leading charity for girls and young women in Scotland. Girlguiding gives girls more confidence and gives them the opportunity to speak out and supports them to achieve their goals.

Girlguiding Scotland MSYPs have been involved in SYP and Scottish politics through many ways, such as visiting units during Parliament Week to reach out to Girlguiding Scotland members and talk about why representation of women in politics is crucial and must be encouraged. This inspires a future generation of girls and young women to get involved in decision-making situations and make the change they want to see.

Since being elected, we have been very busy! I’ve (Martha) completed an internship here at Parliament, and am preparing for this year’s Cabinet Takeover to discuss one of SYP’s national campaigns—Ending Gender-Based Violence—in front of the First Minister and Ministers on the Cabinet. To gather Girlguiding Scotland members’ views, we often communicate with our own units and share online surveys to ensure we are successfully advocating on their behalf.

Girlguiding Scotland also uses girls’ voices to deliver campaigns on issues that matter to them. These campaigns are all girl-led, bringing young girls’ voices forward and allowing more girls to voice their opinion on important issues they face. Recent campaigns include Our Own Zone, designed by Girlguiding Scotland’s Speak Out Champions to help create safer public spaces. The 2022 Girls’ Attitudes Survey revealed that 43% of young women don’t feel safe outside alone in Scotland, a statistic which is really telling of how much work needs to be done to improve the safety of women. This prompted Girlguiding Scotland’s support for SYP’s national campaign to end gender-based violence.

Media Mindful, another of their campaign’s, it aims to empower girls to challenge the representation of women in media. This campaign partnered with the University of Strathclyde to change how women are portrayed in media and improve girls’ media literacy skills. This campaign is important as Girlguiding Scotland’s Girls in Scotland 2020 research discovered that 68% girls aged 11 to 21 feel newspapers, magazines, and social media influencers need to do more to stop reinforcing gender stereotypes. That survey aims to learn more about the experience of girls and young women in Scotland. It also aims to bring attention to the challenges we face like sexism, online harm, cost of living, and climate change—all issues talked about in the most recent 2024 Girls’ Attitudes Survey.

Every year, more than 2,000 girls aged 7 to 21 completed the survey, which includes core questions for everyone and specific questions for each age group. Collected data is then weighed and findings are used to create an article that provides insight into girls’ lives. These surveys are important because they use real data from thousands of girls across Scotland. It gives us a platform to speak on issues that we face as women; bringing awareness to these issues let’s us challenge them.

Girlguiding Scotland puts so much effort into supporting all young women in Scotland and its mission to empower girls to find their voice, discover the best in themselves, and make a positive difference in their community is one they are working toward every day. Girlguiding uplifts and supports all young girls and is such a valued community among women across Scotland. We encourage you to follow Girlguiding Scotland on social media and take a look at the Girlguiding Scotland website to find out how to get involved. Thank you for listening!

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