Stitches and stories: our RBL badges to remember
Our Remembrance badges, which we create each year in partnership with the Royal British Legion, are a fantastic way to honour and raise money for the armed forces community and Girlguiding.
Let’s revisit some of our past badges, and take a first glimpse at our 2025 badge.
Girlguiding members have a long history of supporting people and their local communities during the First and Second World Wars. Did you know Guides secretly worked with MI5 to collect 42,000 cotton reels for the Royal Air Force during the Second World War? And there were also former Guides who joined The Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) in the Second World War. We continue to play a key role in Remembrance today by taking part in nationwide events and activities.
The Royal British Legion (RBL) is the UK’s largest charity dedicated to supporting the needs of the armed forces community and their families. Our shared history with RBL makes our partnership a natural and heartfelt one. Since 2019, we’ve proudly collaborated each year to design official woven and metal badges that mark Remembrance with meaning and style. It’s a small symbol with a powerful message: remembering how we supported people through difficult times and during the First and Second World Wars.
These beautifully crafted badges offer a meaningful way for girls and for you, as their leaders, to mark Remembrance and honour the bravery of our former members who supported people through difficult times. Since 2019, your incredible support has helped raise an incredible £376,000 for the Royal British Legion and Poppyscotland, funding vital services for the armed forces community.
Buying badges, changing lives
We donate 50% of the profits from the badges to RBL and Poppyscotland. This money helps the charity offer practical, emotional and financial support to serving members of the armed forces, veterans and their families, often during some of the most challenging periods of their lives.
From physical and mental health recovery, such as running multi-sport activity recovery programmes at the Battle Back Centre, to assistance with housing and finances, RBL is there to offer support whenever it is needed. And everyone who’s bought a badge over the years has helped make this possible.
‘I’m immensely proud of our partnership with Girlguiding and delighted that together we’ve raised over £376,000 to support veterans and their families in need. This is a remarkable achievement, and we’re sincerely grateful to all those who have contributed to its success,’ says Ben France, head of corporate partnerships at RBL.
‘Not only have we been able to transform the lives of veterans struggling to make ends meet, recover from injury and return to civilian life, but we’ve also been able to bring Remembrance to life for thousands of young people – ensuring we never forget the service and sacrifice of the armed forces community.’
‘I can't begin to tell you how thankful I am for the support I have had, and the confidence that people are really there for me. From my heart, I thank you.’
- An ex-serviceman explains the powerful impact of RBL’s support on his life.
The evolution of our badges
Our first Remembrance badge, back in 2019, was relatively simple: just a poppy on a blue background. But the longer you looked, the more detail you noticed.
‘We made the leaf on the poppy point towards 11 o’clock, referencing the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, when the armistice ending the First World War was signed,’ says David Jones, design lead at Girlguiding.
And sometimes simple works. With 189,276 sold, our first badge remains our most popular Remembrance badge to date. Unless our 2025 badge can beat it?
Telling stories in a small space
In 2020 we started telling stories with our Remembrance badges. But how do you tell a story in a 6.5cm circle?
‘You have to hone all that design into a very tight-knit space,’ says David. ‘But that’s what successful design is all about, and I’m proud of what we’ve achieved with all the badges.’
Our 2020 badge told the story of the ‘golondrinas’ (Spanish for ‘swallows’). This was the name given to Guides who arrived as refugees from Europe during the Second World War. The name was coined in the hope that these girls, like the birds who visit in the summer before travelling back to Europe, would also be able to fly home to freedom. The badges featured swallows against the white cliffs of Dover, where the girls often arrived and left on boats.
Honouring our members who joined the war effort
During both the First and Second World War, Girl Guides (the name we used to go by) played a pivotal role in keeping the country running.
Our 2022, 2023, and 2024 badges paid tribute to the many inspiring ways our members have made a difference. From small acts of kindness, to extraordinary efforts, each badge honoured the diverse and meaningful contributions of girls and women across guiding. Each badge reminding us all of the power of community, courage, and compassion.
Our 2022 badge focused on recognising the Girlguiding members who, in just 1 week in 1941, collected 42,000 cotton reels for the Royal Air Force. And they didn’t even know why they were doing it at the time! Many years after the war ended, we discovered the intelligence department at MI9 used the reels to send secret messages to soldiers on the front lines.
We moved back to the First World War in 2023, with a badge honouring the 90 Guides, aged just 14-16, who worked as secret messengers for MI5. Earning 30p a week, they posted documents, delivered classified messages around London, and collected paperwork to be burned. ‘The background on the 2023 badge is actually Morse code,’ says David. ‘We put a “GG” in there for Girlguiding, and also “RBL”, as a nice touch for girls to pick out.’
And in 2024, our badge honoured the over 250,000 women, including many former Girlguiding members who joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service, the first all-women’s branch of the British Army during the Second World War.
We particularly wanted to recognise the women of colour from countries that were then part of the British Empire who came to help with the war effort, reflecting their bravery and sacrifice.
Digging for victory in 2025
This year our badge commemorates Girlguiding members’ vital role in the UK's ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign, which encouraged people to grow their own food during the Second World War to combat food shortages.
The badge’s design is inspired by the classic Dig for Victory wartime posters. David explains: ‘I took inspiration from a 1940s graphic artist called Abram Games, who designed iconic Dig for Victory wall posters. The badge mirrors his very geometric forms. However, in his posters the men were the heroes. I put a girl in that role, which was a nice swap. I wanted to do a female-led version.’
‘Dig for Victory continues to inspire and have relevance today,’ adds David. ‘Growing your own food has many benefits, like access to fresh and sustainable fruit and veg, while also providing an opportunity for physical activity and a connection with nature.’
Dig for Victory: activities and badges
Looking to get girls in your unit thinking about Dig for Victory, growing and cooking food or connecting with nature?
Check out the following interest badges:
Help us unearth more history
We hope to cover more stories from our history in the future – and we need your help. We’re delving into our national archive and looking for real life stories from the members who helped us be pioneering. Is that you or someone you know? Get in touch using our online form.
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