LeicestHERday Conference 2003

• Date: 05/03/03
• Location:

Event Report

According to the women (and men) who attended LeicestHERday 2003, the event celebrating International Women's Day was a huge success. 500 attended the daytime programme at the Ramgarhia Centre and an additional 150 young persons came to the Twilight Party that followed.

The theme of the event, WOMEN CHAMPIONS OF CHANGE was carried throughout the programme of speakers, discussions, workshops and other events. The Challenges that were featured include Access and Discrimination, Education, Employment, Transport and Crime and Disorder. Those who attended wrote on post it notes sharing their comments and ideas on the challenges. The Committee will be working on these challenges in the months ahead.

The event was completely accessible to all abilities and included signing for the hearing impaired, Braille programmes and literature for the sight impaired, hearing loops, catering for special dietary needs, complete mobility access and crèche facilities.

Gillian Youngs, the University of Leicester's Mass Communications expert was the keynote speaker. Rita Patel of the Belgrave Baheno spoke on networking followed by a Network Bingo challenge for the participants led by Liz Castle of Springboard. The Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt moderated a panel on the issues of the day taking questions from the floor. The panel included Dr Angela Lennox of St Matthews/Prince Philip House, Tott Brill, Leicester City Council's Commercial Director of Culture, Cllr Mrs Anne Pullen, Chairman, Leicestershire County Council, Kauser Dossani, Leicester Violence Forum, Jean Adcock, Chair of mosaic, Dorothy Greenhill, Chair of Braunstone Community Association and Risha Bulsara of Youth Voice.

Cllr Ross Willmott, Leader of Leicester City Council and Chair of the Leicester Regeneration Partnership gave the welcome speech.

Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt, MP Leicester West and Minister for Women, closed the daytime programme summing up the achievements made and the work for the future.

The positive ‘buzz' from the people attending was obvious as they toured the displays and attended the workshops and discussion groups.

The supporting partners for the event were led by the East Midlands Development Agency, emda and Business Link Leicestershire, both of whom were in high praise of the programme and the organisation. Corporate partners included Advantica, British Telecom, Midlands Co-operative Society and Ford UK. Both Leicester City Council and Leicestershire County Council were among the sponsors who contributed to the event.

The evening event was hosted by youthVOICE and featured a full range of workshops and entertainment.

 

Video Conference

Thirty women representing the 650 who had been at the previous day's event in Leicester, attended the video conferencing event hosted by DeMontfort University.

A panel of seven from Leicester shared ideas and issues with four women delegates to the United Nations week long Conference on the Status of Women being held in New York.

Leicester's panel included Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt, Gillian Youngs, Jean Adcock, Tina McEwan (Business Link Leicestershire), Dr Angela Lennox, Risha Bulsara and Chair Maureen Milgram Forrest.

The women who spoke from New York were chaired by Margaret Prosser, Chair of Women's National Commission, Liz Chennels, Head of UK Delegation to CSW,
Indira Patel, WNC Commissioner and UK Asian Women's Conference
and Miss Nice, UNADAW Division for the Advancement of Women.

 

Quotes from our Partners and Participants :

"East Midlands Development Agency's director of sustainable communities Alison Simpson said: "As an agency committed to developing economic opportunities for everyone across the region, we're delighted to be supporting this inspiring initiative which aims to improve both learning and employment prospects for women here in the East Midlands."

Alison Simpson

 

“Wherever women live - on a Leicester council estate, in the suburbs or a Leicestershire village - and whatever community we come from, we share the same concerns. LeicestHERday brings women together to share our experiences, get the changes we want in our city and our county - and enjoy ourselves. Come along and have your say!”

Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt, MP
Leicester West and Minister for Women

 

“It is marvellous that women have achieved so much and that they now have a special occasion dedicated to recognising them. The events, which have been organised for LeicestHERday, will provide an opportunity for women to celebrate their achievements, to access many initiatives and talk to others.”

Cllr Mrs Anna Pullen, Chairman
Leicestershire County Council

Commenting on behalf of Midlands Co-op, Alison Cooper, PR Officer , said:

"Once again we will be bringing a fairtrade message to LeicestHERday as the event falls within Fairtrade Fortnight which is organised by the Fairtrade Foundation to raise the profile of Fairtrade Mark products. Fairtrade Mark products ensure a fairer deal for third world growers and producers by guaranteeing fair prices. It has been an excellent 12 months for the Co-op which has made huge in-roads into making Fairtrade mainstream by adding more products to our own brand range. The most significant step that we took was to convert all Co-op Brand block chocolate to Fairtrade, reinforcing our position as Britain's leading Fairtrade retailer. We hope that visitors to this year's event will find our stand interesting and informative and enjoy sampling a few fairtrade products."

 

“Advantica is pleased to support this year's LeicestHERday. Successful women make important contributions to a successful Advantica, and to other companies and the communities in which they work and serve. Celebrating these successes, and providing a forum to educate and inspire other women to further their careers makes LeicestHERday an important annual occasion. Supporting LeicestHERday is one way Advantica strives to make a positive and meaningful contribution to community activities and to behave in a socially responsible manner. In addition, the Company provides support in a wide range of other activities: National Grid Foundation Young Offenders Programme, contributions to local charities and voluntary organisations, mentoring local school children and support of major projects such as Leicester Education Action Zone's “Beating the Odds” appeal.”

Kathleen Scurrah, Scientist/Engineer
Advantica Technologies

 

" As one of the largest employers in Leicester, Walkers believe that we should play an active role in supporting the community. We are already involved in developing school partnerships and other selected initiatives. This conference provides us with a superb opportunity to better understand the needs of our local community as well as recognising the growing role that women play in all aspects of community life"

Geraldine Goddard, HR Manager
Leicester Manufactury, Walkers Snack Foods

 

'To be successful in today's marketplace we need to sell cars to as many people as possible.  That means we must understand the needs of all communities in which we operate.  We are a global, diverse family with a proud heritage.  We are strongly committed to a diverse workforce that reflects the community in which we operate, and this commitment runs through all that we do.  We want to be best in class.  Our employees, customers, dealers, suppliers, and community partners, all play their part'.

'Our doors are open to the brightest and the most talented.  We welcome that unique blend of experience, skills and outlook that individuals bring to Ford, and we value the distinct contribution that is the result'

David W Thursfield, Executive Vice President
Internal Operations and Global Purchasing
Chairman and CEO Ford Europe