Rainbow Guides are aged between five and seven years, Brownie Guides between seven and ten years and Guides between ten and 14 years.

At 14 a girl can become a Ranger Guide and at 16 can start working toward her Adult Leader Qualification, which will be awarded once she is 18 years old.

Leaders have to retire from work in a unit at age 65 at present and can then join the Trefoil Guild although anyone who has made a Guiding Promise can join the Guild, you don't have to wait for retirement age!

Girlguiding in Ammanford started in August 1927. The town of Ammanford is part of the Guiding Division of Amman Valley. There are five such Divisions in Carmarthenshire County.

One Rainbow, two Brownie and one Guide group meet weekly in Ammanford through the school term with a Ranger group meeting fortnightly.

Volunteer adults lead each group. All people over 16, working with children in Girlguiding have a Criminal Record Bureau check.

The girls are offered an exciting and varied, modern programme, with leaders receiving regular training through our county trainers or at Girlguiding Cymru headquarters in Powys.

Girls in units in Ammanford learn to make their own decisions, help plan their meetings, cook, make crafts, perform in plays, achieve challenge badges, learn First Aid, learn to socialise and be confident individuals. They take part in outdoor activities including walking, and camp cooking, and go on indoor holidays and camp under canvas.

Guides can be put forward for International Camping events. An Ammanford Guide was selected to go to Canada as part of a group representing Wales in 2006 and one of our Adult Leaders helped take a group of Guides to Mexico.

Ammanford Guides were represented at the international selection for 2007 and one of our Ammanford Guiders will help take a group of Guides to Denmark in the summer break.

Ammanford Guiding groups helped to plant trees woods during 2005. We have an annual Fun Day, take part in a bi-annual County Show, help raise funds for other charities, learn about the world around us, promote good citizenship and have great fun in the process!

Girlguiding has a place for all girls and women; we are multi-faith, multi-cultural, multi-taskers!

Joanna Gallanders

Find out about Sara's Canadian Guiding Trip.