Hello and Welcome...

Hello and welcome to the June edition of the LeicestHERday Newsletter.  With our Annual Conference nearly upon us, the LeicestHERday office is a hive of activity in preparation for the big event. This year will be our 8th conference, and we have come a long way from our first event in 2002, organised by a committed group of volunteers and attended by over 500 women and girls. In the years that have followed, LeicestHERday has continued to grow and expand, now offering a year round range of activities, projects and events and developing into a team of seven staff, sixteen trustees and over 200 volunteers. Throughout this expansion, we have continued our mission to make a difference for women and girls and the places we live, whether home, work or community.

 Our 2009 event, “Women: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” looks set to be bigger and better than ever before, and with an exciting mix of workshops, entertainment and stalls that guarantees something for everyone.

We hope you will be able to take some time out from the lovely sunshine to read about the many fantastic things we have lined up for LeicestHERday 2009 – don’t forget to visit www.leicestherday.org.uk to register your place…

See you on the 12th of June!

Lara & the team.

LeicestHERday 2009 - "Women: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow"

In 2001, the Rt. Hon Patricia Hewitt MP, then Minister for Women, brought together a dynamic group of women in Leicester to see what more could be done within her own constituency to make a difference for women. The idea was initially to organise a one day conference for women by women to celebrate International Women’s Day, around 8 March every year. The rest, as they say, is history…

So what does 2009 have in store? This year, our theme is “Women: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” and it is inspired by our desire to turn the camera onto the inspirational and diverse range of women who make up our society. We want you to join us as we celebrate the successful women of yesterday, find out the issues that they are facing in today and look at ways in which we can work together to overcome these barriers for the future. 

The day will achieve this by providing a platform for inspirational speakers including international success story Deidre Bounds, lively and informative workshops tackling modern day concerns such as health and wellbeing, the work life balance, childcare and more.  The conference is also complimented by a whole host of different stallholders that you can speak to offering a wide range of opportunities from applying for recruitment and training, to sampling complimentary therapies and crafts! 

As well as providing entertainment and lunch, the day will conclude with key motivational figures forming a discussion panel to reflect on the outcomes of the morning workshops and motivate change for an even brighter and better future for women in society. 

To find out more about the day and how different individuals are getting involved please keep reading…!

Quick Interview with Clare Farrow....

We grabbed a few moments with LeicestHERday's Conference Coordinator Clare Farrow to ask her a couple of quick questions about the event...

So what’s the LeicestHERday Conference all about then?
The conference is a unique opportunity to bring all sectors of the community together to unite in friendship and ignite change in living.  Not only is it a coming together to celebrate the remarkable achievements of women from the suffragettes of the past to the shining student examples for the future but it is a chance to challenge barriers we still face in current society today and actively do something about it.

Why should people come along?
The conference is only one of its kind to exist in Europe and continues to grow and improve year by year.  It gives people an opportunity to voice their opinions on a variety of different issues and most importantly be heard.  It is a platform for people to come together and share knowledge, expertise and advice as well as being part of a friendly, fun and exciting atmosphere.
 
What will there be to see and do?
We have a programme that is absolutely bursting with informative, fun and interactive entertainment.  You won’t want to miss Deirdre Bounds, our keynote speaker, inspiring women with her own colourful life story of turning into a multi million pound entrepreneurial success overnight.  Our lively workshops will offer something for everyone from providing tools to help you explore your family history to looking at the work life balance and whether the bar women set themselves to be a full time mother and successful bread winner is to high. The Alice Hawkins Heritage Project will celebrate and acknowledge the stories and achievements achieved by women today and link it with the ambitions of women in the past who strived for our equal position in a man’s world at the turn of the last century. Tomorrow’s future will be supported by students from City of Leicester College will make up our Youth Street exhibiting work from their projects and activities throughout the term including the Youth Chamber of Commerce they have formed.  Live dance and musical entertainment will take place on the main stage performed by the Adhar Project and the Kwaii Fashion Show in conjunction with the Eras Project will provide our lunchtime entertainment.  The afternoon will see our theme draw to a close as a panel of exceptional women from today’s society explore the issues and topics which were raised in the morning and propel change to overcome these issues for the future by learning from our past.

What kind of people go to the event?
We have people from all ages, backgrounds and ethnicities attend the event from women with the desire to set up in business, to young single mums looking for additional advice and support with childcare.  Many of our faithful attendees see the event as a fun day out and come back year after year to engage with our lively and informative programme.

Is there a cost involved?
The entrance fee is £10 for full paying adults and £5 concessions.  Concessions include OAPs, students or unwaged delegates.  Group bookings of 10 or more can be made and receive a reduced charge of £4 each. 

Can people bring their children?
Children are very welcome to come to the event and are charged at the reduced rate of £5.  However, we must advise that there are no crèche facilities available.
  
LeicestHERday is a women’s charity…does that mean no men allowed?!
We get asked this question a lot and we always reply that men are very welcome to come.  Don’t be put off by the title; what we have at the event will apply to men as well as women!

What does your role involve?
I am the Events Coordinator for the charity so I am overseeing the whole running of the event from making sure the programme keeps to time to meeting and greeting our keynote speakers and discussion panel members to liaising with attendees, volunteers and stall holders
.
What will you be doing on the day – will we see you at the event? 
I will be the one running around with bags under my eyes and steam coming from my head! I will be very much an active part of the day from behind the scenes but please feel free to approach me if you have any questions, comments or concerns! 

Tomorrow's Women: Stepping Up

Women making a difference in areas of life that you are passionate about! 

• Would you like to be a school governor?
• Would you like to be more involved in your local community groups?
• Would you like to be a trustee for a local charity or voluntary organisation?
• Would you like to be a non-executive director on a NHS board?
• Would you like to be a non-executive director for a ministerial advisory body? i.e. police, criminal justice board, education.
• Would you like to be a magistrate?
• Would you like to be a councillor?
  

If you have answered yes to any of the above questions then this workshop is for you!
 
In line with the conference theme and objectives, this interactive and participative workshop aims to provide an opportunity for you to consider how you can get involved with finding your voice in the community, at work or your life. Community and women business leaders will facilitate and be on hand to discuss potential opportunities and they will share their experience, routes to public life and offer suggestions about how to overcome barriers that women may encounter along the way. Practical and real support to help you understand the process and learn more about how you can make a real contribution through your skills and experiences by getting involved. Currently, women in public office represents less than 35% and this is much lower ethnic minority women. Therefore, women’s representation in these areas of the decision making process is vital to ensuring that policy making represents the communities they serve. We look forward to you joining us at the LeicestHERday Annual Conference on the 12th June.

50 Opportunities All under One Roof…

One of the key features at our annual conference is our wide range of participating stallholders which offer a huge amount of support and opportunities to all who attend.  This year’s conference will be complimented by 50 stall holders ranging from well known organisations such as the Royal Air Force, Curve and Just Fairtrading to local voluntary and community groups such as Bangladeshi Youth & Cultural Shomiti, Braunstone Community Association and Shama Women’s Centre.  There are stalls relevant to all age groups and backgrounds keen to accelerate change in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland and assist you in all aspects of life. 

We feel our conference is unique by offering such a broad spectrum of stall holders attracting attendees that make this the only annual event they attend to connect with the public. 

Stall holder Sujata Bhalla from Giving World Online explains why she is attending for another year: "The Leicestherday Annual Conference is an inspirational and dynamic event in Leicester's calendar.  It's an ideal opportunity for women across the region to network and share their experiences.  I am very pleased to be attending and exhibiting at the conference on behalf of Giving World Online (a not for profit organisation connecting businesses that have unwanted surplus to charities).  We will be promoting our free to use online service, www.givingworldonline.com, to women running their own businesses and those working in the voluntary sector.”

A full list of conference stall holders will be provided on entry to the event.  Don’t miss out this great opportunity to speak to these organisations which could make a significant impact on your life.

Entertainment A‘bound’!

This year, we will be joined by entrepreneur Deirdre Bounds, who will be speaking about her experiences creating her own ethical travel company i-to-i.com.

Deirdre began with no commercial experience, no family history of enterprise and no money, using her own experiences from living as a drop out, a stand up comedienne and a wayward backpacker to challenge traditional ideas in the travel industry and dare to be different. Since then, Deirdre has become a multi millionaire and seen her company grow into the world’s largest gap year company. 

In 2007 Deirdre was one of eight entrepreneurs chosen by Channel 4 to spend four weeks in Africa bringing enterprise ideas to a poverty stricken Ugandan village (Millionaire Mission). She has also appeared on the TV programme Wife Swap.

Social Care Service at the Heart of the Community

The Adhar Charity was set up in 1989 to provide social care support to Asian Adults experiencing mental health difficulties and to their carers/families. Adhar originates from the Hindi language and means Support.

Adhar’s Trustees, staff and volunteers are committed to ensuring that we provide holistic and culturally competent services to individuals and their families.  They provide support, mainly in group settings, to adults with mental health difficulties, adult carers and young carers. They also offer a one-to-one drop in service, a befriending scheme and talking therapy.

All Adhar’s services are offered in the main Asian languages and the activities they provide are educational, therapeutic, social, and leisure based. They provide culturally sensitive services that offer clients the opportunity to experience feelings of security in, and of belonging to, a caring and nurturing environment.

They say; “We believe that the way to empower and enable people is to respect the fact that each individual is unique and special”.

Show your support for this worthwhile organisation by coming along to the LeicestHERday Conference, where Adhar service users will be performing a fantastic Bollywood dance and a Hindi song.

LeicestHERday gets Fashion Forward...

Brian Booi is here to tell us all about an exciting fashion extravaganza being run by the ERAS Project...

"On 12th June 2009 the ERAS Project will be showcasing its work as a part of International Women’s Day Celebrations at the Walkers Stadium. The showcase is being supported by Kwai Fashion and various local community organisations.The sewing and textile project began in November 2008. This evolved from an interest shown by a number of individuals from a variety of communities.

During February a number of workshops were facilitated by Ruth Singer, through the WEA. These were designed to develop new skills (appliqué and other sewing techniques) and improve existing ones.

As a group we reached a consensus to showcase the end of the first phase of the project with a fashion show. An opportunity arose at LeicestHERday Conference and here we are today, ready to deliver our first range".

(P.S. - Don't forget to keep an eye out for LeicestHERday's Chair Maureen Milgram Forrest, who will be modelling a design from the collection on the day!)

And Finally....

You can register YOUR place at the LeicestHERday Annual Conference "Women: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" in the following ways...

BY POST: Go to www.leicestherday.org.uk and follow the link to our Annual Conference page. Fill in the booking form and return with registration fee by June 5th 2009 to LeicestHERday Trust, Charnwood Court, 5b New Walk, Leicester, LE1 6TE with
cheques payable to LeicestHERday Trust.

ONLINE: Go to www.leicestherday.org.uk and follow the link to our Annual Conference page. Then simply click on the PayPal button to make your payment.

Registration fee is £10, Concessions are £5, and this includes individual membership of the LeicestHERday Trust until January 2010.