SHE has successfully guided her pack for 20 years.

And as far as the past and present members of the 3rd Bitterne Brownies are concerned, Sue Groves is "the best Brown Owl ever".

The girls and her fellow pack organisers held a special surprise party this week at the Scout hall in Bramdean Road, Harefield, to celebrate two decades of having Sue at the helm.

Sue has taken hundreds of girls aged seven to ten under her wing over the years.

They have benefited from her dedication to the group and, more importantly, making sure they all have fun.

"She's extremely well thought of, and she really goes the extra mile for the pack," said Sally Ebbs, who has volunteered alongside Sue for the past nine years.

"She's done so much for the Brownies, and she's just amazing. The pack has so much fun, and it's all down to her.

"She's known as the best Brown Owl ever, and she certainly is as far as I'm concerned."

District Commissioner Cheryl Noble was among the guests at the party, and presented Sue with her special award to mark the achievement.

"She said she wanted Gordon Ramsay, Cliff Richard or Jenson Button to present it, but we couldn't quite arrange that," said Sally.

"But we arranged activities in their place, so we had cake decorating to Gordon's standard in the kitchen, a Scalextric track, and a Cliff Richard pass-the-parcel.

"The party went really, really well. She had no idea about it, but really enjoyed it."