Welcome to your new role with Girl Guides of Canada, Ontario Council. We are excited you have decided to volunteer your time with our organization. The information you will find here will assist you as you learn and develop your skills as a Guider in Ontario.
Code of Conduct
The
Code of Conduct is a clear standard of behaviour all members of Girl Guides of Canada are obligated to follow. All members, non members, parent helpers and staff are held accountable to the values outlined in this document.
Cookie Sales and Fundraising
Each year members of Girl Guides of Canada participate in two cookie campaigns:
Every unit has a leader assigned to be Cookie Orderer and she will receive all cookie related information including how to order cookies for your unit. Cookies sell for $5 per box or $60 per cases and the average unit profit is $12.25 per case.
The proceeds from each campaign are used to create a fun and rewarding experience for all girls in Guiding. It helps each unit and girl in the following ways:
- Allows units and girls to attend various camps and events
- Provides funding to support unit activities
- Provides the resources to develop unit specific programming
Cookie All Stars is Girl Guides of Canada’s exciting cookie selling rewards initiative, where girls earn amazing rewards for achieving exceptional cookie sales. Cookie All Stars encourages girls to reach for the stars! Girls earn fabulous rewards and get recognized for their efforts while achieving their own individual selling goals, and collectively raising funds for their unit. More information is available on the National web site. Encourage your girls to participate and be a ‘Cookie All Star’.
Visit our
Cookie Jar for Guiders, which provides cookie resources for Unit Guiders.
Meeting Space Contracts & Payments
Girl Guides of Canada, Ontario Council supports girl units across the province by paying costs for regular weekly meeting space. Use the
Meeting Space Contracts and Payment resource to learn about procedures, contracts and insurance related to meeting space.
Police Records Check (PRC)
All Guiders are required to have a PRC before being placed in a unit. Your PRC remains on file for 3 years, at which time you are sent renewal reminders. It is your responsibility to have your PRC renewed in a timely manner so you can remain in the unit. Ontario Council pays for member PRC and PRC renewals. You are also responsible for ensuring GGC is notified immediately if there are changes to your Police Record.
Non-Member volunteers who help in units regularly, attend overnight events or camps must have a signed Non-Member agreement (A.7) and a valid PRC on file. More information is available in Safe Guide found on the National website.
Learn more about PRC for potential members, members, renewing members, non-member volunteers, and PRC exemptions.
Program Tools
Roles and Responsibilities within the Community
There are a number of ways one can volunteer with GGC, Ontario Council.
Click here to access full details of roles for adult women in Girl Guides.
Safe Guide
Safe Guide is risk management training that GGC provides to members in preparation for planning exciting activities and opportunities for girls. All new members are required to take Safe Guide training within their first 6 months of joining the organization.
Access the Safe Guide document.
Scholarships for Volunteers
Girl Guides of Canada, Ontario council offers annual scholarships to eligible applicants to encourage the further education of our members ages 17+. Visit the
scholarship page to view application details and deadlines.
The Guiding Structure in Ontario
For information on Guiding in Ontario, please see the
Orientation to Guiding (OTG) document. For a list of contact information, please see
Who We Are on the home page of the Ontario website.
Training
Training opportunities are available to all members to support them in their roles with GGC.
The New Guider Learning Path (Member Zone login required) is our nationally developed training program and these modules are offered through various delivery methods such as face to face sessions, conference calls and online e-Learning. To find out what training opportunities there are within your community, please visit the Ontario website
Event Calendar. As well, to find out more information about training, please visit our
adult members training page.
Uniform
Girl Guides of Canada is a uniformed organization. Uniforms identify girls, young women, and adults as members of our organization and all that it stands for. There are a variety of uniform options, and it is up to the individual woman or girl with her parent(s) to decide which uniform options suit her needs best. Uniform options are detailed in the program books and available for purchase through the National e-store. Adult members should lead by example by wearing uniform and encouraging girls to wear uniform.
Click here to access the Girl Guides Store
Girl Guides of Canada name tags can be purchased from Ontario Council.
Click here to for the online order form for Name Tags.
Unit Finance Information
Each unit must maintain a bank account on the Centralized Unit Banking System in Ontario. All funds collected for any event or activity or any other payment must be deposited into the unit bank account. All members of the unit leadership team should be aware of the unit financial status and are equally responsible for controlling spending.
The unit p-card is the method of payment that the unit uses to make purchases. The card is a VISA credit card and can only be used where VISA is accepted (it is not a debit card). All members of the unit are accountable for all transactions made on the card. Units are to use the p-card in a responsible manner and only for unit expenses. For details on Unit Banking and Purchase Cards
click here
Planning Independent Trips
When planning independent trips for units or groups of units, use
this handy resource for all the information you need. Includes Safe Guide information, documentation, budget resources and financial assistance information.
Other Helpful Resources
Alphabet soup - what do all of these acronyms mean?
Unit Guider Best Practices
Welcome Letter
How to input your Unit information:
- Save the blank fillable PDF to your computer.
- Open the fillable PDF with Adobe Acrobat (this program is free for download from the internet).
- Enter all the required information.
- Save the form again with your completed information, on your local drive.
- The form is now ready to email to parents in your unit.
GGC Administrations and Policies:
Guiding Essentials is a National document that provides information on Guiding standards, highlighting the fundamental principles of Guiding in Canada. Please note that there are there are positions detailed in this document that do not apply to the Ontario Guiding Structure.
The
Child Protection document supports the Girl Guides of Canada Girl Protection Policy 01-17-01. (See Governance Policies under Policies and Procedures on Member Zone). It is recommended that all Guiders familiarize themselves with this document.
E-Store
Girl Guides of Canada merchandise can only be purchased through the online e-store. This is where you will find all of the badges, pins, uniform pieces and other Girl Guide merchandise.
Note: When using your unit p-card to make a purchase through the E-Store you must use the following address as the billing address:
180 Duncan Mill Rd., Suite 100
Toronto, ON M3B 1Z6
Guider Recognition/Scholarship Program
Our Members deserve to be recognized for the wonderful contributions they make to Guiding. Investigate the many awards and scholarship opportunities available to all of our Members.