Foxie's Future to submit bid to buy Foxlease Activity Centre

Foxie's Future has been campaigning since a decision by Girlguiding UK last May to sell off the much-loved 65-acre site in the New Forest, which has been providing a place for adventures for rainbows, brownies, guides, rangers and others since being gifted to Girlguiding in 1922.

Now they've announced that, thanks to incredible fundraising and support, they'll be among the bidders looking to buy Foxlease, which they would retain as an activity centre for young people. 

A spokesperson for Foxie's Future said: "Thanks to everyone's wonderful fundraising and support we will be submitting a bid to purchase the Foxlease activity centre site. This unfortunately doesn't guarantee that our bid will be accepted as we suspect that there will be other bidders, but it does mean that we are in the running to be considered.

"We can't share more about the nature of the bid at this time but, if accepted, it will mean that the site remains as an activity centre for young people and as a space for the local community."

The group encouraged supporters to continue their fundraising efforts.

Guides past and present, families and supporters had been donating to the group's crowdfunder, as well as organising bake sales, taking part in virtual escape rooms and quizzes. 

Foxie's Future announced in February that they had reached their first £1 million of secured funding.

The deadline for bids on Foxlease, which has a guide sale price of £2.5 million, is noon on Thursday March 21. 

Foxlease is one of five Girlguiding UK locations to be sold off. 

Trustees made the recommendation to close Foxlease, as well as Blackland Farm in East Sussex, Glenbrook in Derbyshire, Waddow Hall in Lancashire and Ynysgain in Gwynedd, and put them on the market in a bid to secure the financial future of the organisation.

A petition was immediately launched demanding a rethink. It attracted tens of thousands of signatures.