Data shows that despite women making up 80% of the health and care workforce in South Yorkshire, women slowly disappeared in the more senior bands.
There are many barriers to women progressing in their careers; some can be attributed to a disadvantage, disability or impairment, some to facing discriminatory behaviour or prejudice and some to a lack of self-belief.
For women to progress in their careers in healthcare, they need to adopt a range of enablers including coaching and mentoring, self-belief, training programmes etc. but also making the most of peer networks. As such, the South Yorkshire Women’s Network was established in 2022.
The South Yorkshire Women’s Network initially ran annual networking events to bring women working in health and care across South Yorkshire together. In 2024 the network became Women Inspired – South Yorkshire, and the coordination of the network lies with the SY ICB and ICS’s EDI & Belonging Lead.
This new iteration of the women’s network aims to bring it’s members together more often, in person and online. Women Inspired – South Yorkshire aims to be a respectful and welcoming space. It’s role is to provide space for members to facilitate professional development, connect and inspire, and to better tackle the inequalities women face in the workplace.
Our first event brought over 100 women together from across health and care in South Yorkshire and was hosted by Kathryn Singh, CEO at RDaSH. Speakers included;
Ali Bishop, the EDI Lead for South Yorkshire ICS talked about the importance of peer networks
Sheeba Jefferson, Deputy Nurse Director at Sheffield Teaching Hospital shared her personal journey
Jo McDonough, Director of Strategy at RDaSH talked about barriers to progression such as mental health and physical conditions
We also saw Kathryn Singh be presented with an award for a lifetime of commitment to Equality Diversity and Inclusion.
Feedback from attendees of the session has been extremely positive:
“Huge thanks for organising such a fantastic event and for having me in the company of such an amazing and inspirational group of leaders!”
“Great event – so inspiring and interesting. Thank you so much.”
“Thanks for a fabulous event. I was very inspired and made some great connections. Made to feel very welcome.”
“Congratulations on a fabulous event today. It was so inspiring listening to those leadership journeys, which were different in many ways but had key themes running through all three.”
To see the amazing impact of our first event, see our short film.
The first network meeting in March 2023 was hosted by Kirsten Major, CEO of Sheffield Teaching Hospital, and speakers included:
- Mandy Espey, Health Inequalities Lead Doncaster, talked about her journey and shared some top tips.
- Rukeya Miah, Deputy Associate Director of Nursing at Bradford Teaching Hospitals shared her passion for inclusivity.
- Dr Maria Read, a Sheffield GP with over 50 years of Primary Care experience.
The network meeting in July 2023 was hosted by Sharon Mays, Chair of Sheffield Health and Social Care Trust, and speakers included;
- Sheila Lloyd, Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Nurse RDaSH
- Catriona Collins, Head of People Resourcing, Sheffield Children’s Hospital
We also spent time having table discussions on ‘Inclusive Recruitment for Women and People from Minority Backgrounds’ and many solutions were explored and put forward.
This event brought together inspiring women and their allies from across our organisations to share their stories and provide some insight and advice for career progression.
To coincide with the theme for International Women’s Day 2024 the theme was ‘Inspire Inclusion’ and looked at the value women's inclusion, and the sense of belonging, relevance, and empowerment that comes when women feel included at work.
This event was hosted by Jo McDonough, Director of Strategic Development, RDaSH. Speakers included;
Akeela Din Mohammed DL, Deputy Lieutenant of South Yorkshire, Co-chair of Inclusion and Fairness Forum and Director of Health
Kathy Lavery, Chair of RDaSH
Christine Joy, Chief People Officer, SY ICB
On the 8th March, as part of International Women's day Doncaster Primary care hub arranged the first Women's network event aimed at colleagues in primary care and Voluntary sector.
This was the an opportunity to network with colleagues across primary care and the voluntary sector in South Yorkshire. We heard inspirational stories from local women’s leaders about their journey, barriers they have overcome and lessons they have learnt. The event was also an opportunity to learn about the menopause champion and advocate training courses we have on offer and the importance of menopause awareness for all staff in the workplace.
Click Here to see all of the activities and events which took place on International Women’s Day 2024 across the ICS.