Girls’ Brigade responds to Girls’ Attitudes Survey 

Girls' Brigade Ministries has issued a faith-based response to Girlguiding's annual Girls' Attitudes survey results

 
Girlguiding's survey is the biggest survey of its kind in the UK, asking the opinions of more than 1,900 girls and young women aged 7 to 21 (not just members of Girlguiding). It gives an insight about how girls feel about a range of issues, emerging pressures and what they need to support their happiness, wellbeing and opportunities in life.

Three key messages from the latest survey were:

• girls feel pressure to conform to gender stereotypes in certain aspects of their life, such as career and sports;
• girls don’t always feel safe because they’re facing threats to their own personal safety and well-being;
• and girls are demanding change and are passionate about transforming the culture that surrounds them.

In response, Girls' Brigade President Rachel Gardner said, ‘Just like Girlguiding, we at GB want to encourage a more hope-filled narrative for girls and young women. It matters that 55 per cent of 7-21 year old say the negative messages in culture about how they should look affects their ability to say what they think. It matters that 54 per cent of 11-21 year olds have come across violent or graphic images online that made them feel upset or disturbed.

'Jesus offers life in all its fullness, and at GB we do exactly that - work with girls inside and outside GB to explore their God-given potential and worth. Women who have been through GB have gone on to lead companies, churches, and families. They've become parents, teachers, aeronautical engineers, athletes, attentive neighbours and innovative creators. Our GB groups engage girls in activities from rugby and advocating in Parliament on issues that matter to them to talking about coping with anxiety and building resilience.’

GB Ministries is home to four key initiatives that specialise in enabling this generation of (primarily) girls and women to openly explore and engage with real life and Christian faith in a fun, informative and hopeful way.

They are The Girls’ Brigade England & Wales, koko, The Esther Collective, and UK Girl. Visit GB Ministries for more information.