WOW, what a party! School was out for some 5,000 Brownies who descended on the New Forest for a special celebration at the weekend.

Children from all over the south- west, including the Channel Islands, had the time of their lives as they celebrated the 90th anniversary of the foundation of their movement. They gathered at Foxlease, the national Girl Guide headquarters.

It was back in 1914 that Lord Baden-Powell's sister Agnes formed a special group for girls aged seven to ten. These children were too young to join the Girl Guides but wanted to experience the fun and challenge of guiding.

Initially the youngsters were known as Rosebuds but soon changed their name to Brownies. Almost a century on, nearly one in three eight-year-old girls are in the Brownies.

About 2,500 relished the fun and games in the New Forest on Saturday and another 2,500 arrived the following day. The girls enjoyed a host of activities, including crazy paving, mini olympics, bouncy castles, parachute games, sumo wrestling and, to cap the day's entertainment, there was a disco.

Brownies Leader Lucy Jones said: "This is the biggest event Foxlease has experienced with just Brownies attending.

"I get a great deal of enjoyment seeing the girls having a such good time and witnessing them develop their confidence and skills through exciting experiences.''