Girlguiding will furlough 51% of its staff and pause major work projects due to Covid-19 income loss.
Data for the financial year ending 31 December 2018 puts its income at £25m and spending at £22.5m. The charity estimates losses of between £3-5m for 2020 at a UK-level. It has 309 employees.
Angela Salt, chief executive of Girlguiding, said: “Like many charities, Girlguiding is working to urgently secure our immediate and long-term future and sustainability. This is to ensure that we can continue to offer life-changing experiences for girls and young women in the months and years to come.
“The cancellation of our weekly unit meetings and events at our activity centres, a decline in trading and other income, plus reduced fundraising activity, means we are estimating losses of between £3-5m for 2020 at a UK-level. To reduce the impact of the losses, we have made the very difficult decision to furlough 51% of our staff, alongside pausing major work projects and plans.
“Powered by 100,000 volunteers, we support nearly 400,000 girls and young women all over the UK. Our goal is to remain at the heart of local communities and to continue building the confidence, skills and friendships of our girls and volunteers. We’re working with government and other potential funders to minimise the damage of the pandemic to the life chances of children and young people, and to highlight the impact of the pandemic on gender equality.”
Last month the charity launched #AdventuresAtHome, an online hub of activities open to our members and children and young people across the UK.
Volunteers across the UK have also been delivering virtual guiding in order to keep members connected with their weekly unit meetings.
Salt added: “I am thankful to every team member at Girlguiding for their work and for their understanding at this extremely challenging time. I am also thankful to the many volunteers, parents and carers who have taken guiding online and into the home to help us continue to deliver great experiences for girls and young women.”
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