In a matter of months, our lives have undergone a significant change - at a global level due to COVID-19. Each of us is experiencing a different situation that is unique to our individual circumstances. During these uncertain times, looking after our mental health and wellbeing is absolutely crucial. At the end of April, Women in Transport members benefited from an excellent online session with Lesley Heath and Karen Powell from A Matter of Choice, designed to provide us with positive strategies and techniques to support our mental health and wellbeing as we navigate through uncharted waters.
Read moreFinancial Wellbeing: Protecting you and your family
The pandemic has definitely changed the world around us and we hope you have not been too affected. We are aware financial worries have increased substantially over the past few weeks and so Morrinson Wealth Wellbeing will be sharing articles with hints and tips or quick calls to action that people can make to alleviate financial pressures.
Read moreJoin the DfT's Transport Heroes Campaign
The Transport Heroes campaign aims to raise awareness of the great work the transport sector is doing at the frontline to help keep Britain moving during these extraordinary times. The DfT want to feature people from the transport sector however this manifests itself. There are many jobs that are not so visible but are critical to keep the country moving.
Read moreTop Tips for supporting and managing your team working from home
In the current situation we are all adjusting to new ways of working and, in particular, working from home. Iain Smith, Women in Transport Board Member and Principal Consultant and Founder of Network for Skills, gives his top tips for managing your team remotely
Read moreTop Tips for working from home
With the move to homeworking now being a reality for many of us, we have put together some guidance which we hope will help you get the most from working in this way.
We recognise we have a mix of experiences when it comes to home working - for some this is the first time of working in this way, others may have been working in this way for a long time and for some this is not a way of working that they enjoy. Whatever your situation, we hope these tips will help you to stay focused, productive and positive.
Read moreCommunication & collaboration – the reason behind a new online platform - talk-mobility
The idea for an online collaborative platform for the highways and ITS industry is a concept of Women in Transport member, Helen Blood. Late 2019 she approached the Institute of Highways Engineers (IHE), thanks to an introduction by a long-standing client and IHE member, looking for support to realise her idea. As a key organisation supporting the highways industry, then IHE Chairman Richard Hayes immediately saw the potential for such a platform and discussions commenced.
Read moreWorking together to keep gender on the agenda – now more than ever
Women in Transport is delighted to be joining 20 organisations in an initiative led by WISE Campaign calling for gender balance to stay on the agenda. We will be pooling our resources in a joint effort to ensure we continue to engage, nurture, grow and understand the important contribution of women in science, technology and engineering in the UK, now and for the future.
Read moreGet involved in the Leading With Courage and Confidence Journal research project
Women in Transport members Lesley Heath and Karen Powell co-founded the "A Matter of Choice" consultancy. They are seeking participants for a journal led research project on changing leadership through the COVID-19 pandemic. Their mission is to capture people’s stories about business and leadership through the coming weeks so the lessons learnt are not lost. The project will provide a valuable archive for future generations and they believe it may provide some insight and impetus to help change command and control leadership structures.
Read moreAre you 1 of the million?
We are asking you to join a new campaign led by our friends at WISE - The 1 of the Million Campaign. The online campaign will put a face to the 1 million women working in core STEM roles in the UK. It will promote gender balance in STEM and showcase role models who may inspire more girls and women to pursue, return to, or retrain in STEM. We would love to raise the visibility of the essential role of women working in transport and to showcase the fantastic role models in our sector.
Read moreMeeting the transport heroes who go above and beyond
Taking a peak behind the scenes and getting an insight into the more unusual jobs in the transport sector is a feature of our events programme. One of our recent revelations was a visit to the British Transport Police (BTP) Specialist Operations Department in North London, where we discovered the amazing contribution women make to keeping our railways safe and secure.
It was a such an interesting and enlightening experience, meeting women doing incredible jobs such as firearms officers, dog handlers, members of the Working at Heights Team and the Specialist Response Unit.
Read moreDelivering essential services – celebrating the unsung heroes
In this guest blog, Women in Transport member, Shelley Benson, Communications Director at Eurovia UK shares her personal thoughts on the essential role of frontline transport workers as we navigate the challenges of the Coronvirus pandemic.
Read moreWomen in Transport's Neil Pepper MBE finalist for Best Male Mentor WICE Awards 2020
Neil Pepper MBE is a volunteer board member for Women in Transport, a Night Construction Manager in Renewals and Enhancements at London Underground and a passionate STEM ambassador. We are delighted to announce that one of our members, Milda Pladaite, nominated Neil as Best Male Mentor for the WICE Awards 2020 and that he is a finalist.
Read moreSupporting our members
At Women in Transport, we want you to know that we are here to support you and committed as ever to our mission of advancing women in transport. Christine and I have been working together behind the scenes, with the board and our volunteers, on replanning our events, communications and strategy.
Read moreCOVID-19 and Hackney Community Transport update
HCT Group is the world’s leading transport social enterprise, safely providing over 30 million passenger trips on buses every year and making a real difference in communities. Their team is on the frontline of transport operations helping keep communities moving safely. Here we share an important COVID-19 and Hackney Community Transport update from Claire Smith, Head of Community Transport and Stakeholder Engagement.
Read moreRECONSTRUCT – building a community to harness the social value of major projects
Women in Transport is part of the Advisory Group for the Gender Balance Action Research Project led by Emily Miles entitled "Beyond Gender Balance: An exploration of gender in UK Major Projects using Action Research”. Emily’s ambition is to create a lasting legacy of collaboration to support diversity and inclusion in major projects.
Emily’s three year PhD research project examines the impact of gender balance initiatives and inquires into broader themes of social inequality using action research. As part of the project, Emily has established RECONSTRUCT; bringing together a community of research-practitioners to collaborate with the aim of transforming issues of gender equality, leadership and culture.
Emily states:
"The RECONSTRUCT project invites us all to question our default way of doing things, and to redesign a system where everyone can thrive."
Research plays a crucial role in helping us to better understand and shape our environment. RECONSTRUCT offers organisations and researchers the space to discuss research findings in relevant and meaningful ways – and to participate as partners in implementing the findings.
RECONSTRUCT has three strands:
• Community
• Research
• Creativity
The aim is to grow a network of amazing people who are passionate about making change. The website for the RECONSTRUCT includes a ‘Bank of Good Ideas’; a place to bring together interesting and brilliant strategies that are already out there and to see how they might work in major projects.
Community events will include a series of webinars and you can read the audience contributions from their last panel event “Building Equality: are megaprojects creative a better world?” here.
How you can get involved:
Ask your organisation to champion the initiative. This means agreeing to the ethos of the project, embracing any research findings, and supporting staff to work with RECONSTRUCT on the Community of Practice.
Spread the word and encourage your networks to sign up to attend events or join the Community of Practice.
Share your EDI stories on the Bank of Good Ideas (either proudly or anonymously).
Commission research topics that you would like to see, or connect other researchers who would like to participate in the Research into Action seminar series.
Find out more and get involved: https://www.re-construct.net/get-involved.html
Annual membership of Women in Transport is £60 per year providing access to monthly events including unique site visits, professional development and networking opportunities. We also welcome guest blogs from our members - a great way to share the incredible diversity of opportunity in transport, raise your profile and stay connected.
Follow us @transportwm on Twitter, on Linkedin at Women in Transport and at @transportwmn on Instagram for events, news and updates.
West Midlands Women's Alliance launches in Birmingham
Photography courtesy of Morgan Sindall Infrastructure
Over 100 people attended the launch of the West Midlands Women's Alliance (WMWA) on 6 March, which was timed to celebrate International Women's Day and its 2020 theme: #eachforequal
The event, hosted by WSP at its headquarters in the centre of Birmingham, certainly achieved its objectives by providing lots of inspiration and encouragement to women in the transport, construction and civil engineering sectors.
Read moreBoard Member Insight - Iain Smith
Like many people, Women in Transport board member, Iain Smith, got into transport by chance just to fill a gap and he absolutely loved it. He worked for London Underground/Transport for London for 24 years in numerous roles from front line operation to senior management. These days Iain works as an independent consultant and, although he is not exclusively in transport he still considers it his 'home'. In this Board Insight, Iain talks about his career, his role at Women in Transport and gives some sound advice to those seeking a career in transport.
Read moreWomen in Transport board member, Jo Field named among 100 of the most influential women in Westminster
We’re proud to announce that Jo Field has today been named as one of 100 high profile women from the world of Westminster. Women in Westminster: The 100 list celebrates the achievements and the valuable role women play in public life. It is the first annual celebration of its kind, following on from International Women’s Day. The list is produced by House Magazine, supported by Lloyds Banking Group.
Read moreCross-party group confirms research on under-representation of women in transport
The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Women in Transport is to research best practice in the recruitment and retention of women in the transport sector. The study was confirmed during the group’s inaugural meeting, where parliamentarians from across the political spectrum confirmed their continued support to tackle the under-representation of women in the transport workforce.
Read moreTfL launches campaign to support women into cycling
Transport for London (TfL) is marking International Women’s Day by launching a campaign to encourage more women to take up cycling. The Cycle Your City campaign will run throughout 2020 with a series of workshops and events and a programme of activity will be announced in May.
Read more