Guides invent 72 new ‘empowering' badges that reflect their lives
No more are girls awarded badges for hosting and cleaning; now they can earn badges for interior design, environmental conservation and thrifting, which are among 72 new activities unveiled as part of the organisation's drive to remain relevant to the lives of girls growing up in the 2020s and help them to feel 'empowered'.
The new additions are all 'interest badges', which aim to develop hobbies rather than attain specific skills, and may be completed individually at home.
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BBC News
7 minutes ago
- BBC News
Guinness to speed up verification of record Rayleigh artichoke
Judges from Guinness World Records (GWR) have fast-tracked the process to get an artichoke measured after concerns the towering plant might not last the Garnett, 49, says his 3.22 metre-tall (10.56 ft) sensation has turned the heads of many who pass his home in Rayleigh, Essex, but he had initially joined a three-month queue for an official adjudicator editor-in-chief at GWR, Craig Glenday, pressed the button to "fast track" his application live on BBC Essex, reducing the waiting time to two weeks."He'll get an email now that will say 'here's what you need to provide to us'. He needs a qualified person to say that it's actually an artichoke," Mr Glenday said. Mr Glenday said he knew the vegetable-growing community well."I understand all the little tricks they can play and it's very competitive and people sabotaging their vegetables."It's a really interesting, slightly cut-throat world and so we have to be very careful." 'A thousand a week' He said the process was essential because of scandals like "Dug" in New Zealand, which was touted to be the world's largest potato, until DNA testing found it to be a gourd."There's a few scandals with that topic (like) people filling crevices with mud to make the plants heavier."He added that it was common for a claim like Mr Garnett's to get lost in the "huge tsunami" of applications every year."We get about a thousand a week coming through the system," he if verified, he said this particular plant was "definitely" a record, with the current record being 2.5 metres (8.2 ft). Artichokes are part of the thistle family, and according to the Royal Horticultural Society, can typically grow to between 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft). Nathan Garnett said his neighbours were very impressed."A few people have seen me measuring it, they've raised eyebrows and you get the odd glance. The postman loves it, he's commented on it," he said."We also have had people who are less of a fan. We had a councillor last year who called it a monstrosity."He didn't know who he was talking to, he happened to be talking to my mother-in-law."(They) didn't win my vote in the election." Mr Garnett said he planted the artichoke in Billericay more than five years ago, but "it didn't do much"."Last year it took off and it got to maybe eight, nine feet and then this year's just gone another level."I've been looking into it a little bit it might be to do with the fact we've had two mild winters."I don't even water it... it's a self-sustaining artichoke, it needs very little TLC."I put a bit of horse manure on it, that's it."(Although) I've had to tie it up a little bit in the past, because it leans." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
7 minutes ago
- BBC News
'Dickensian conditions' in rat-infested flats in Sandbach
People living in a residential block in Cheshire which has an infestation of rats have said they are living in "Dickensian" of Valley Court in Sandbach said there were rats throughout the building and also raised concerns about fire doors which do not close and security Fernay, who lives with his 10-year-old son in the building, said he wanted those who own the building to "realise that we're not just numbers in flats, these are families".Housing association Torus, which owns the building, apologised and said a "comprehensive approach" would be taken to resolve the issues. Mr Fernay and his son moved into the flats in March and said they were "really happy" but soon faced issues with rats."It started after we've been here about four weeks, and first heard it behind the oven and the extractor fan," he said, adding he thought it was a bird initially."I banged the oven and a head of a rat popped out from behind the oven," he said in recent days he also found a dead rat on the floor of his living room.A pest control officer was sent out who said the issue in his apartment was from a large hole underneath his sink, but filling it would involve ripping out the a meeting with the housing association on Wednesday, Mr Fernay said the work had added he was also told by a pest controller that the complex's rat problems had been caused by a collapsed drain."Surely these are urgent cases? What is more urgent than a rat infestation when there's children around it?" he added he had hired a carpet cleaner and was "constantly bleaching everywhere"."You shouldn't be having to be living like this. It's 2025 and it's Dickensian," he said. Dale Hunter lives on the top floor of the said although he hadn't had rats in his apartment, he had heard them underneath the floor and had other issues with the moved in in May 2024 but found out that due to an issue with his meter, he was paying for a neighbour's bill as well as his, and is still waiting for an accurate his biggest concern is fire safety in the building, as a number of the fire doors do not close."If you look at the door outside my apartment, it stays open. The floor isn't straight, so when you push it a bit too far, it catches," he said."I'm extremely embarrassed of where I live, unfortunately I'm not in a financial situation to put myself into private." Cath Murray-Howard, the chief operating officer at Torus, said: "We are really sorry for the distress this has caused our tenants and the unpleasant conditions they have had to live in; it is clear we have fallen far short of our expected standards in this said the company had tried numerous tactics to rid Valley Court of the problems, and a "comprehensive approach" would now be taken."A full clean-up will also be carried out and once finished, we will monitor the works going forward so the issues do not return," she said."Tenants have been incredibly patient and we thank them for this and we will be keeping them updated..."Once again, we apologise and want to assure them we are committed to fixing these problems as quickly as possible." Read more Cheshire stories from the BBC and follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
7 minutes ago
- BBC News
Machine blasts chewing gum off Farnborough town centre streets
Chewing gum is being blasted from the streets of a town centre thanks to a £17,300 clean-up in Farnborough comes after Rushmoor Borough Council became one of 52 areas across the country to receive money from the Chewing Gum Task Guinness, council cabinet member, said: "Chewing gum is unsightly and nobody wants it stuck on the end of their shoes and then traipsed in through their house."She said the clean-up makes people think twice about dropping their gum on the floor. "People think more afterwards about what they're doing and and you find that for quite a long time people don't put their chewing gum on the floor and do actually use the bins."She added: "Hopefully Farnborough will look amazing."Cleaning teams used a machine to clean away detritus from the pavements to see the then use heat and low pressure which melts the gum so it drains away along with other dirt. Cleanliness Town centres and markets manager Diane Highet said: "We want a town centre that people are proud to visit."We want people to be able to sit and not have to worry about what they're sitting in."According to a recent council survey 98% of people were concerned about the cleanliness of town centres. Some shoppers who spoke to the BBC backed the clean-up, while one thought it was a waste of money. Paul Hamilton welcomed the move. "I've trodden in it, I think we all have, it's horrible," he Chapman, from Farnborough, added: "It's a very good idea. It's disgusting on the streets."The Chewing Gum Task Force was established by the government and is administered by Keep Britain Tidy. It brings together major gum producers to clean-up litter on the streets.
