How to Track UMAs and Skills Builders Without a Spreadsheet

Girlguiding's programme is built around six themes: Know myself, Express myself, Be well, Have adventures, Take action and Skills for my future. Across those themes, girls take part in Unit Meeting Activities (UMAs), work through Skills Builders and complete interest badges — and leaders need to keep track of who has done what so theme awards are presented at the right time.

In most units that record lives in a spreadsheet, a notebook or one leader's memory. It works until a girl misses a few weeks, a co-leader runs a session you weren't at, or you need to work out who is ready for an award the night before a ceremony.

What actually needs recording

• Which UMAs each girl has taken part in, and in which theme
• Skills Builder progress for each girl, stage by stage
• Interest badges completed — including ones girls work on at home
• Theme awards earned, and whether they have been presented yet

Why progress records drift

Progress tracking usually fails because it's a second job. The register is taken on the night; the progress sheet is updated later, if someone remembers. Every girl who was absent, arrived late or left early then has to be adjusted by hand.

A simpler workflow: plan, register, credit

1. 1

   Plan the activity before the meeting.

   Choose the UMA or Skills Builder activity you'll run and attach it to that week's meeting.

2. 2

   Take the register as normal.

   Mark girls present, absent or late as they arrive.

3. 3

   Credit everyone who was there.

   When the register is saved, every girl marked present is credited for the planned activities. Absent girls are not.

4. 4

   Adjust individuals.

   If a girl only did part of an activity, or caught up at home, edit her record directly.

This is exactly how the Unit Progress Tracker in UnitSolutions works. Because credit comes from the register, keeping progress up to date takes no more effort than taking attendance.

Knowing when an award is due

Once every girl's activity history is in one place, award readiness becomes a lookup rather than a calculation. A per-theme progress view shows which girls are close to a theme award and which awards have been earned but not yet presented, so nothing is forgotten at the end of term.

Keeping GO up to date

GO, Girlguiding's membership system, remains the official record for your unit. Use your weekly progress record to make updating GO quick and accurate, not as a replacement for it.