This year, International Women’s Day 2022 is all about Breaking The Bias, whether that be in education, the workplace or just in day-to-day life. In this article, we've highlighted some of the brilliant organisations that are working in the North East to empower women and help close the gender gap.
50:50 Future
Did you know that by bridging the gender gap in the UK by 2025, as much as £150bn would be added to the British economy? Welcome to the diversity & inclusion training consultancy, 50:50 Future. The consultancy's main aim is to be a catalyst for inclusion by demystifying diversity and providing solutions to help organisations to grow in the right direction.
50:50 Future works closely with organisations to improve their diversity and inclusion agendas, in line with their organisational values and vision. Learn more about 50:50 on its website: https://5050future.co.uk/
WOMG (Women Making Games)
Women Making Games is an inclusive community that supports other women in building long-lasting careers in the gaming industry. In 2020, the UK Games Industry Census highlighted that just 28% of employees in gaming are female. It’s not difficult to see why organisations like WOMG are so important when women are massively underrepresented in the gaming workforce. Some of the women that are a part of WOMG already work in the videogame sector, but there are plenty more that are aspiring to be part of this field.
WOMG hosts regular in-person and virtual events. This community is completely free to join, and you can check it out here. https://www.womenmakinggames.com/
The Girls' Network
Since 2013, The Girls’ Network has been inspiring and empowering girls from the least advantaged communities. The network works together with secondary schools & colleges all over the country to pair volunteer mentors with students aged 14-19 years, to help remove the multiple barriers facing girls in their classrooms. The Girls' Network is all about challenging stereotypes, raising self-confidence and building professional role models for young women.
Mentoring has proven to be an amazing way of improving girls' happiness, self-belief and opening up future pathways. Check out more on the website: https://www.thegirlsnetwork.org.uk/
TechUPWomen
TechUpWomen is a six-month training course for those looking to go into data science, software development, project management or business analysis. During this time, participants will learn a number of different skills and leave the course workplace-ready. TechUP also offers Skills Bootcamps which are designed to boost career prospects in the tech sector for those over the age of 19 who are looking to retrain into the tech sector.
The TechUP programmes work closely with the tech industry to ensure training is tailored to address skill gaps and industry needs. If you are interested in learning more, you can visit: https://techupwomen.org/
Smart Works Newcastle
For four years, Smart Works Newcastle has been working with women to give them confidence, self-belief and practical tools that they can use to succeed at interviews. Job interviews are stressful and it can be easy to become trapped in a cycle of self-doubt. To combat this, the charity has been gifting clothing to women and has been supporting interview preparation so that the women feel ready on the interview day. It’s not just about looking the part. It's about feeling it too.
For International Women’s Day 2022, the charity is raising money through a bike ride! Read up on all the amazing things that Smart Works Newcastle does here: https://newcastle.smartworks.org.uk/
International Women’s Day 2022 at SSC
These are just a few examples of some of the amazing organisations that are helping women in the North East! There are plenty more and, here at Sunderland Software City, we also have a number of exciting things going on within our own departments to celebrate International Women's Day.
Here are a couple of them:
Our Skills team are working hard with local schools to raise awareness of inspiring women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). They have arranged a panel with a number of different speakers who will be sharing their experiences of what it's like being a woman in STEM. Alongside the panel, our Skills programme specialist, Natalie, and our Schools Outreach Coordinator, Jess, are working with a local school to host an assembly themed around inspirational women in STEM throughout history. The ideas surrounding both of these activities is to highlight the importance of women within these subjects and to inspire the future workforce.
Our Enterprise team are hosting a virtual IWD event on the 8th of March, to discuss the barriers that are faced by women in their working lives. This interactive session will feature a number of inspiring speakers who will share their insights and participate in a Q&A.
If you would like to join us for this event, you can find all of the details here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/women-in-work-international-womens-day-2022-tickets-269769557007
Get involved
Are you doing anything for International Women's Day? We'd love to learn about any events or initiatives that help women enter, or progress, in the world of work! Tell us about them by tagging us in on social media (you can find us on Twitter, Facebook & Linkedin), or drop us an email at natasha.bowers@sunderlandsoftwarecity.com.
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