Successful Women's Conference

Fifty dedicated female BECTU members gathered at Friend's House near Euston for an inspiring two-day conference last weekend.

The event covered a range of topics from negotiating with employers, to personal safety, public speaking and business skills for freelances.

Women had travelled the length and breadth of the country to come together and see how they could benefit from exchanging ideas and work experiences. From the start the atmosphere was buzzing and event organiser and Equality Officer Kate Elliott was pleased to see so many new faces. "This event gets bigger every year and it's really beginning to grow in stature. The reason it's important is because this is an opportunity for women to come and express their opinions among friends and discuss issues that matter to them," she said.

This year's guest speakers included Lindsey German, author of Material Girls: women, men and work, who gave an eloquent address about the changing role of women since the Second World War. "Women are not only expected to have it all, but to do it all as well," she said. With women contributing more to the world's GDP than China or India and 13million women now working in this country, isn't it time to acknowledge the impact of women and tackle the issue of equal pay in the workplace, she asked?

Delegates shared stories and concerns about long working hours and how to plan for a family while keeping their freelance careers going, while others noted that BBC cuts could disproportionately affect freelance women because they are more likely to be on short, project-based contracts.

The five workshop sessions were well attended and feedback was extremely positive. The negotiating skills group showed how women tend to lack confidence when negotiating with employers, but role play exercises soon demonstrated how preparation is key to a successful outcome and everyone came away with a useful toolkit to use in future negotiations  whether it be over contract, pay offer or dealing with your children!

On the Saturday night, 20 delegates took to the streets alongside 2,000 women in a mass Reclaim the Night rally. Marching from Trafalgar Square to University College's Union, the message was to end violence against women and allow women to walk the streets safely. Parts of central London were brought to a standstill by women of all ages holding banners, waving placards and singing songs. The BECTU banner stood out in the crowd and provided some welcome shelter from the biting wind.

The conference wound up on Sunday after a seminars on public speaking and advanced negotiating skills and an inspired talk by Jo Livesey and Vanessa Eaves from the Brewery Arts Centre in Kendall, Cumbria, on the success and challenges of setting up a women's committee in their workplace.

All in all, a great conference and next year promises to be even bigger.