As we celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8th, the world is coming together to embrace the theme of ‘Embracing Equity’. This year’s campaign builds on the success of last year’s ‘Breaking the Bias’ initiative and encourages everyone to understand and appreciate the difference between equity and equality, paving the way for a more equitable society.
Equality means each individual or group of people is given the same resources or opportunities.
Equity recognises that each person has different circumstances, and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.
This year’s IWD 2023 #EmbraceEquity campaign aims to spark a global conversation about the difference between equity and equality and why “equal opportunities are no longer enough” and how equality can actually lead to exclusion rather than inclusion.
Over 50% of our current apprentices are female and we aim to ensure equity for all leaners joining our apprenticeship programmes.
Today we wanted to highlight the stories of some incredible female apprentices who are breaking down barriers and making waves in their industries.
Hayley Clark from the BBC
Hayley joined the Senior Journalist apprenticeship in September after three attempts at gaining a place on the prestigious programme. Since working for the BBC, Hayley has worked on some hard-hitting journalism including a national abortion case story in the High Court, and a story on personal evacuation plans for disabled people, following the Grenfell Inquiry. Read more about Hayley’s experience as a BBC Journalist.
Fatima Diallo from Ofcom
Fatima is working as a Policy Officer for Ofcom and is well on her way to a long-term career in policy. Fatima decided that a higher apprenticeship was the right way for her to go after leaving school and has never looked back since joining the Policy Officer apprenticeship. Read more about Fatima’s advice to school leavers looking to start their career.
Amy Kirkby from Syneos Health.
Amy was the first apprentice to complete our Clinical Trials Specialist apprenticeship. Working at Syneos Health, Amy worked in conducting clinical trials while studying for her degree. Coming into the apprenticeship straight from A Levels, Amy is now well on her way to an outstanding career. Read more about Amy’s experience as a Clinical Trial Specialist here.
Sonia Hedegaard from Kent Community Health NHS Foundation
Sonia completed the Senior Leader (MBA) programme this year and is working towards her end-point assessment which is on the topic of Emotional Intelligence, a topic and trait that Sonia feels is vital for any senior leader to understand. Working in the Kent Health Visiting Service as a Health Visiting Programme manager, Sonia is part of the senior team leading on the development of a modernised Health Visiting service. Read more about Sonia’s experience as a MBA Senior Leader.
Jessie Stow from Astex Pharmaceutical
Jessie Stow recently completed her MSc in Drug Discovery and Development as part of her Level 7 Research Scientist apprenticeship; but this isn’t Jessie’s first apprenticeship. Jessie has worked her way up to a master’s level degree from a Level 5 apprenticeship. Throughout this time Jessie has achieved some incredible goals in career, including being named Apprentice of the Year in 2019. Read more about Jessie’s journey.
This is just a few of our female apprentices who are making a big impact on their organisations and society as a whole. If you’re looking to become an apprentice, check out our Vacancies page, and if you are an employer looking to higher an apprentice, check out our Employing an Apprentice page.