8 March 2024

For International Women’s Day, the Women’s Staff Network held an event to reflect on the theme #InspireInclusion.

Nearly 80 percent of CNWL’s workforce are women, and colleagues talked about ways to inspire inclusion at work, raising awareness of the experiences for women working in health and care.

Rebecca Dunkerley, Co-Chair from our Women’s Staff Network said:

“For women at work, inclusion means more than having a seat at the table. It means having a voice that is heard, valued and respected.”

The event was a chance to celebrate our achievements in women’s health pathways across the Trust, including menopause and endometriosis through to our future priorities such as fertility, baby loss and menstruation.

Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, J’nelle James, highlighted the gender pay gap, speaking about the differences we need to make so that women are rewarded alongside male counterparts in the organisation.  

Our Chief Nurse, Maria O'Brien also joined to share a message this International Women's Day:

“Part of my role is to encourage our female staff to have confidence. I mentor, coach and support women in the organisation who want to take that next step.

“It’s about inspiring others, encouraging and nurturing people to step up and feel confident in their career progression and to advance the voice of women in all of the things that we do across the organisation.”

Chief Finance Officer, Tom Shearer, talked about the lessons learnt during his career that helped him to become a better ally:

“You can’t be a good ally if you don’t recognise the need to change. We need to be constantly challenging ourselves.”

What does inspire inclusion mean to me?

Intersectionality is a big part of inclusion, and in this video below we asked Co-Chairs from CNWL’s staff networks to talk about what the theme means to them.

Brent CAMHS spread a message to #InspireInclusion for International Women’s Day, hosting a celebration event at their local clinic. 

A big thanks to IvansCakes for the delicious cake! See the pictures below.

Want to share a message for International Women’s Day?

Snap a picture or video, share your #InspireInclusion example and post to social media.

Remember to tag @CNWLNHS and include #CNWLWomen or send this across to the Women’s Network at: cnw-tr.cnwlwomen@nhs.net and we will share this for you!