GIRL GUIDE MOVEMENT

Greymouth Evening Star, 23 August 1930, Page 4

GIRL GUIDE MOVEMENT

NEW HEADQUARTERS.

’ A very happy and important function in connection with the Girl Guido movement was the foundation-stone-laying ceremony of the new Imperial Headquarters in Palace Street, Westminster, on May 23. Princess Mary, Countess of Harewood, dressed in her uniform as President of the Association, performed the ceremony in the presence of Lord Baden-Powell, Lady Baden-Powell, Miss BadenPowell, Lady Clinton, Viscountess Chaplin, Viscountess Cave, Mrs. Houison Craufurd, Mrs. Chichton-Mil-Jer, Lady Lilian Digby, Dame Katherine Purse, Mrs. Gordon Fisher, Briga-dier-General E. C. Godfrey-Faussett, Lord Hampton, Mrs. W. R. Wilson (Auckland), Countess Jellicoe, the Duchess of Kenmare, Mrs. Macartney, Lady Luke, the Duchess of Norfolk, Ladv Delia Peel, Lady Perrott, the T — TLTI.r.

Dowager Lady Suffield, Mrs. Philip Snowden, Dame Meriel Talbot, the Dowager Lady Swaythling, the Hon. Mrs. Stuart Wortley. Rangers ard Guides of the headquarters Staff formed a picturesque guard of honour for Princess Diary, who was received by Lord BadenPowell, Lady Baden.-Powell (Chief Guide), and leading figures in the Movement. Lord Baden-Powell, welcoming Her Royal Highness, said that the news that the President herself had performed the stone-laying would be received with enthusiastic appreciation wherever, ■ throughout the world, Guiding was known. He made a number of presentations to H/or Royal Highness, among them, Miss Montgomery, the general secretary, whom Princess Mary invested with the decoration of Silver Fish, in recogni<r>r hm> enwipoa tn the Movement.

tion of her services 10 me ivioveinunu. The ceremony then began. A casket had been made to contain -the follow ing articles: A copy of the programme for the day; a copy of the Times of the day; specimens of curreht coins of the day; the current association report; and a trefoil badge brooch. This was placed in the specially pre pared cavity by the Chief Guide, and Dame Helen Gwynne-Vaughan asked Princess Mary to receive a trowel from the architect, with which she spread the mortar. The stone was lowered carefully and the casket wall-

ed into the building, and Her Royal Highness, after tapping it into position with a. gavel, declared the stone “to be well and truly laid.” When completed the new building will be six stories high, and will accommodate the administrative departments, in ad dition to providing space for the display of Guide and camp equipment. The growth of the Movement throughout the Empire made necessary an adequate headquarters, at a cost of £74,500. This sum is being raised in the Association by means of small subscriptions. Since 1925, when the last extension of premises took place, the growth of the Movement is shown by the increase in numbers through the Empire! from -441,270 in that year to 575,530 at the end of 1928. To keep pace with the work the staff has steadily grown from 51 in 1925 to 130 in 1929. An average day’s post is 500 letters. In a very busy week as many as 2,700 parcels have been packed; in the year 1928, 88,573 parcels were despatched. When the new headquarters is built there will be more space in which to receive over seas visitors, and a room where meetings may be held. Princess Mary, years ago, expressed the wish that the committee might be better housed. In supporting this appeal she satisfied herself by a prolonged visit, in which nothing from the topmost gar-

ret to the darkest and dampest basement had been concealed, that it was essential for the good of the staff and for the Movement as a whole that the headquarters of so important an organisation should be -well housed. The' site of this building was acquired by the Guides in 1928 and building operations commenced last year with the first section, which lies behind the main frontage in Buckingham Palace Road and extends for the whole length of Palace Place with the return frontage to Palace Street. The completion of the first section has been somewhat delayed oh account of the fact that the bed of an old river was discovered in the course of the excavations, and this necessitated the construction of a reinformed cellular raft over the site. The building is six storeys in height and is planned to accommodate when completed, not only the administrative departments, but also the showrooms for' the display of Guide and camp equipment, stock rooms, and packing and despatch rooms for this important branch of Headquarters activities. 'lTie latter sections are contained .in the basement, and goods from the packing room are conveyed by an electric hoist to a loading dock in the floor above for delivering into Palace Place. On the ground floor are the showrooms which, on the completion of the building, will have their principal entrance in Buckingham Palace Road, but in the meantime will be approached from the staff entrance in Palace Street. The first floor 1 contains the Council Chamber and Committee Rooms, the General Secretary's, Office, and offices for the overseas,, training and equipment departments. Here also are the reception and wait

ing rooms. The finance and general offices are accommodated on the second floor. On the third floor are the tailoring rooms, the offices for the publications and editorial departments, together with rest rooms for the staff. On the fourth or top floor there is an extensive library, a spacious dining room served by a kitchen 'with electric cooking apparatus, and housekeeper’s quarters. The building throughout is of fireproof construction and advantage has been taken of the latest developments in labour-saving appliances. A vacuum cleaning plant is placed in the basement. wit; 1 , hydrants in suitable positions on each floor; and in addition to the electric hoist, there will be two electric passenger lifts. The heating of the building is by oil-fired boilers unde v thermostatic control. Messrs. Sydney Tatchell and Geoffrey C. Wilson, FF.R.1.8.A., arc the architects, and Messrs. Henry Knight and Son, of Bruce Grove, Tottenham, are the General Contractors.