As Girlguiding bans transgender girls from becoming members, which youth organisations welcome them instead?

Girlguiding - which has roughly 300,000 UK members across the Rainbows, Brownies, Guides and Rangers groups - has announced that from now, only children who were recorded female at birth are allowed to join.

At the time of publication, there is no news on whether existing transgender members will be allowed to stay in the organisation. Under the policy, trans boys will still be able to join as they will have been recorded female at birth.

Members range in age from four to 18 and Girlguiding said it does not collect gender identity information and therefore does not have numbers for how many might be affected by the rule change.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Girlguiding said: “From today (December 2), trans girls and young women, and others not recorded female at birth, will no longer be able to join Girlguiding as new young members.

“Girlguiding believes strongly in inclusion, and we will continue to support young people and adults in marginalised groups. Over the next few months, we will explore potential ways to champion this value. A new task force will look at ways to do this, in partnership with members.

“While Girlguiding may feel a little different going forward, our core aims and principles will always endure and we remain committed to treating everyone with dignity and respect, particularly those from marginalised groups that have felt the biggest impact of this decision.”

But advocacy group TransActual has described the move as “horrible” for excluding trans girls, suggesting that the decision does far more harm than good.

Policy lead Tammy Hymas said: “It’s awful that an organisation, which would happily be inclusive and has been for many years, is being forced to exclude young trans girls by adults with bigotries and institutional power. There is no problem being solved here, only harm being done.

“Our thoughts are with the young people who may be outed by their exclusion, or lose access to their vital social groups and support networks.

“This is yet another horrible act of violence against the most vulnerable trans people for which the government is ultimately responsible. Another trauma that will leave a generation of young LGBTQ+ people scarred for life.”

If you are either a trans girl or a parent for one, you might be looking for another youth organisation that will be accepting of a person’s identity.

Fortunately, there are organisations that welcome all members with open arms.

Scouts

Via the Scouts website, the organisation makes it clear that transgender children are more than welcome among their ranks.

On their page about diversity and inclusion, it reads: “Scouts is open to all and actively welcomes transgender young people and adults.”

There is also plenty of advice for Scouts who are transgender, as well as for Scout leaders on how to support them.

The Girls’ Brigade

The oldest youth organisation for girls in the UK, the Girls’ Brigade is certainly not stuck in the past either.

Part of the organisation’s ethos is to “commit to providing a warm, welcoming space for all girls and young women, including those who are transgender.”

Safe spaces and appropriate facilities will always be provided, and transgender boys are also included in the organisation’s ministry.