We've included lots of ideas for Winter Warm Up below. You'll also have your own ideas and contacts for projects for helping your community as winter approaches. Any activity that meets the objectives of the week and can be carried out during October 2026 will be fine.
Guiding for Good Winter Warm Up - ideas for action
Guiding for Good encourages members of all ages to get involved in a range of community activities, raising awareness of Girlguiding and what it means to be a member.
Here are some ideas to explore:
Community ideas
- A day helping at a food bank or baby bank
- Warm clothes collections for your local charity shop
- Organise a collection of winter coats, working with local councils or libraries
- Ambient/non-perishable food collections for your local food bank – ‘Bring a Tin’
- Speak to your local food bank to investigate what else you could collect – e.g. warm items such as gloves and scarves, items for Christmas celebrations, etc.
- Collect outgrown and no longer used children’s clothes, toys and equipment for a baby bank or charity shop
- A knitting circle – e.g. knit or crochet squares for knee blankets for the elderly – donate to local old people’s homes
- Organise a Winter Warm Up event and invite volunteers from charity shops, food banks and local authority, etc.
- Hold a tea party at your local old people’s home - or why not an indoor campfire
- Offer to volunteer for a special day at a charity shop – a Winter Warm Up Day – with a poster ‘Warm up for Winter with the Guides
- Helping with food provision for the homeless (note, this won’t be in every area but usually charity run - see the links below)
- In a cold snap, organise a ‘warm space’ morning, providing tea and coffee
- Fundraise for those living in fuel poverty
Nature ideas
- Make bird feeders
- Collect used blankets and covers for a local animal shelter
- Create a winter den for frogs, toads and newts. Amphibians like to hibernate in a cool, dark and damp shelter that is safe from predators
- Find out how to help hedgehogs and bats in the winter moths
Explore local charity shops, food banks and other charities working in your area. Most national charities will have local details on their website or pop your head in and say hello.
Find organisations helping people in fuel poverty
Find charities accepting knitted items
Find out about local food deliveries for those experiencing homelessness
Check out wildlife care ideas
Make a house for frogs and toads
Get knitting or crocheting
Learn to crochet with this Girlguiding scrunchie tutorial
More charities accepting knitted and crocheted items and patterns
Register for Guiding for Good
Register here to help us plan and be the first to find out about how to order new Guiding for Good Winter Warm Up wristbands.
Sign up
Guiding for Good toolkit
Visit the Guiding for Good toolkit for useful links and other resources to help with your project.
Guiding for Good Winter Warm Up toolkit