How to talk about 'Being our best'
Introduction
‘Being our best’ is Girlguiding’s plan for the next five years. It is a commitment to deliver a bright future to all
girls and young women in guiding – and to those who we hope will be joining. It is a commitment from all of us –
volunteers and staff – to get even better at what we do.
You can view the plan at http://new.girlguiding.org.uk/beingourbest.
To help communicate the plan, Girlguiding has developed a clear commitment, vision and mission for the next
five years, with six words that reinforce our values. We have also created images and icons to represent the
themes of the plan. Following several requests from our members to use these materials, we have produced this
document to help you identify where and how these icons and images can be used at a local level.
Talking about the plan
The wording that forms our commitment, vision and mission, and the six words that reinforce our shared values
can be used whenever you’re talking about Girlguiding.
Our commitment to girls
By 2020, we will empower more girls to find their voice and be their best through high quality, girl-led
programmes delivered by inspirational Leaders.
Our vision for the future
An equal world where all girls can make a positive difference, be happy, safe and fulfil their potential.
Our mission as a charity
Through fun, friendship, challenge and adventure we empower girls to find their voice, inspiring them to
discover the best in themselves and to make a positive difference in their community.
Our shared values
Caring, Challenging, Empowering, Fun, Inclusive, Inspiring
Our plan consists of four themes to help guide our actions and support everyone in being their best.
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Excellence: We will get better and better at all that we do for girls.
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Access: We will work together to ensure that more girls from all backgrounds benefit from what we do.
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Voice: We will listen to girls and promote their voice.
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Capacity: We will work collaboratively to improve our processes and decision–making.
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How to talk about 'Being our best'
© Girlguiding 2015 www.girlguiding.org.uk
Images and icons
The icons and images associated with ‘Being our best’ have been designed to help us communicate the five-year
plan. We use them in any printed and digital content that refers to the plan or to specific actions within it.
We use the visual elements together when presenting key information about the plan, such as in the ‘Being our
best’ leaflet and web hub (http://new.girlguiding.org.uk/beingourbest).
Here is an example of how to use the visual elements of ‘Being our best’ together.
We use individual icons to highlight work that is linked to the plan. For example, each article in guiding
magazine has icons to show what themes of the plan the content relates to.
To thread the themes of the plan together and to show how each part of the plan links together to form a
whole, we developed a wavy line graphic, which is used to connect the visual elements of ‘Being our best’.
How should the images and icons be used locally?
Every volunteer, staff member, girl and young woman in guiding has a role to play in helping us to be our best.
When you are talking about the plan locally (for example at a District or Division meeting, or when planning with
your Unit Team, or at events), it is important that the images and icons are used consistently.
These images and icons have not been developed to replace the Girlguiding branding and should be used only
when specifically talking about our plan for 2020 or to highlight areas of your own work that relate to it.
These visual resources offer a useful tool to help you talk about the activities, projects and events you’re doing
in your local area as part of the plan. They are to be used within this context only – and not as a general design
feature or to create localised merchandise.
‘Being our best’ title graphic
We developed the ‘Being our best’ title graphic to help illustrate the overarching plan for 2020. It is not a logo
and should not be used in place of a localised logo, which can be created on the Girlguiding Online Print Centre
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How to talk about 'Being our best'
© Girlguiding 2015 www.girlguiding.org.uk
(www.girlguiding.org.uk/opc). Guidance on using localised logos can be found in the Girlguiding Identity
Guidelines (www.girlguiding.org.uk/brand).
Tips on using this image
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The title graphic should be used only when talking about
Girlguiding’s overarching plan, or to highlight what you’re doing
locally as part of this plan.
The title graphic should be used as a full image – including the
shaped box, title text, subtitle text and wavy line. None of these
elements should be removed from the image when you are using it.
None of the elements that make up this graphic should
be edited in any way – please do not change any of the
colours, fonts, or shapes.
None of the elements that make up this graphic should
be localised – please do not edit the subtitle text to
show your local area name.
This graphic should not be used in place of a localised
Girlguiding logo. Where the graphic is used on a
publication/presentation/digital resource it should
always be accompanied alongside a localised logo.

The graphic should not be used as a strapline or slogan.
‘Being our best’ theme icons
The projects and areas of focus that form Girlguiding’s plan are grouped under one of our four themes:
Excellence, Access, Voice and Capacity. Colourful, easily identifiable icons were developed to help explain and
highlight these themes when we talk about our plan.
Theme
Excellence: We will get better
and better at all that we do for
girls
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How to talk about 'Being our best'
Icons
How can these be used?
Do:
 use the icons when talking
about the themes locally
 place icons next to each other
in the same order (Excellence,
Access, Voice and Capacity) if
describing more than one
theme (even if some of the
themes are not being
referenced, you should follow
this order)
 always use alongside your
© Girlguiding 2015 www.girlguiding.org.uk
Access: We will work together
to ensure that more girls from
all backgrounds benefit from
what we do
Voice: We will listen to girls
and promote their voice
localised Girlguiding logo.
Don’t:
 use the icons as stand-alone
graphics – they will not make
sense to audiences out of
context
 use them on items that are not
related to the plan
 change the colour of any of
the icons (as well as the main
colour, don’t change the black
outline element of the image
or the white highlight area in
each image)
 distort any of the items
Capacity: We will work
collaboratively to improve our
processes and decision-making
 edit the icons – eg do not add
text or images to the icons
 use the logo as part of a
pattern and do not incorporate
it into a design.
Other assets
We have developed a number of design elements that feature in the communications for our plan and that
together create a cohesive visual identity for ‘Being our best’. These can be used in presentations and other
documents that aim to communicate Girlguiding’s plan locally.
As mentioned earlier, the wavy lines that feature throughout the ‘Being our best’ imagery were designed to
show how every element of the plan ties together. When using graphics and images that relate to the plan you
should not remove or edit these lines.
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How to talk about 'Being our best'
© Girlguiding 2015 www.girlguiding.org.uk
How can these be used?
Wavy line (blue)
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The wavy line images can be used as a design
feature when communicating about the plan
locally. They have been developed to fit a
standard Microsoft PowerPoint document.
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Do not attempt to redraw the lines.
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Always use the lines horizontally.
Do not stretch or distort the images.
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Where the wavy lines are used alongside the
other graphics and images, these should appear
joined together rather than suspended.
Wavy line (raspberry)
Wavy line (white)
Please get in touch with Girlguiding’s Marketing team at [email protected] if you have any
questions about using these icons and images.
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How to talk about 'Being our best'
© Girlguiding 2015 www.girlguiding.org.uk