I have worked for the university for 8 years, mostly in ILS and my current role is Change Manager within the Programme Management Office (PMO). I am mum of two boys and one rescue dog. During lockdown I learned to love running 5k and I am looking forward to getting back on the ski slopes soon.
As Chair I am the coordinator and spokesperson for the Women’s Network, the network is very much a community and as the founding chair my role was to nurture that internally and communicate our members interests outwardly to the wider university. I represent the network on university committees, including the EDI committee and recruitment panels for senior posts to ensure that the network’s members are represented at a senior level.
Our work as a network
Recently we have had a focus on Gender Based Violence, which has its roots in gender inequality, the abuse of power and harmful norms. Sadly, the murders of Sarah Everard and Sabina Nessa have brought this issue home to many of us in the network and we are continuing our work with a series of events to mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence. We are hoping to move from talking about this issue to bringing real action and change to the university and the communities we live and work in, so watch this space.
In addition to the Gender Based Violence work, we focus on supporting women at the university with mentoring, networking and events. We have covered Equal Pay Day and the impact of Covid, celebrated the women at our university for International Women’s Day and are hosting an ad-hoc series on Tackling Racism in partnership with the Diversity Interest Group. We are supported by the university’s membership of the Women’s Higher Education Network (WHEN) who also provide mentoring and networking opportunities as well as a wide range of events.
Join our network
The Women’s Network is a positive and supportive network of women at the university. As well as our university-wide activity we offer a wide range of member-only support, including mentoring, mental health check-ins and celebrations of our members success. We hold networking opportunities including book clubs and coffee breaks to provide less formal ways for members to meet colleagues from across the university. Members can join in to some, all or none of these activities, and we actively encourage members to get involved in the creation and running of these events so the network reflects the interests and needs of our members.
What our members say:
Absolutely loved meeting colleagues across the University and I feel more part of a community now than in all my 12 years working for the university.
I have gained a sense of belonging as well as an awareness and understanding of other women's news, such as accomplishments, issues, events, experiences, resilience and sharing of general tips.
We are also recruiting committee members
We are looking for new committee members to join myself, Caroline Troy, Membership and Communications Officer, and Irene Barranco Garcia, Secretary, as the network has expanded significantly since the group was first set up.
We are looking for a Co-Chair and Events Officer to support the network as we move forward. The Events Officer will support the wide range of events we run both internally for members and externally to the wider university and the public. The Co-Chair will represent the Network across the university and the wider HE sector. If you are interested please contact us for an informal chat, and if you know an individual who would be great in one of these roles, please encourage them to put themselves forward.
Being a member of the Women’s Network Committee is a wonderful experience. I have worked with colleagues from across the university who I would never have met otherwise, and I feel honoured to be able to represent this amazing group of women and promote their achievements to the wider university.
Events
You can find out about all our events on the Women’s Network page.
We are hosting activities to mark the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, which runs between 25 November, the International Day Against Violence Against Women, and 10 December, International Human Rights Day, it will build on the conversations we had during our Gender Based Violence series and the focus will be to encourage and enable action to stop violence against women.
The women’s network makes the networking fun and relevant, informative and comfortable. I've made several really good connections within the university, but mostly I've met some great women who I know I could turn to for advice, or even just to meet for a coffee. From day one I felt welcomed and part of something supportive.
