Empowering girls through mentorships and opportunities
The Girls’ Network was set up in 2013 by Charly and Becca, secondary school teachers in North West London when they witnessed the multiple barriers facing girls in their classrooms:
- The pressure to conform to ideals
- Limited confidence and self-belief
- A lack of professional role models who are women in their networks
They believed that the girls needed greater access to opportunities, but also the confidence to seize those opportunities and the skills to thrive in them. The Girls’ Network mentoring was soon in high demand, and now operates across London, Merseyside, Portsmouth, Southampton, Sussex, Tees Valley, Tyne & Wear and the West Midlands, working with around 1000 girls each year.
Most recently they have been working with twenty girls at Shoreham Academy on a project joint funded between Uni Connect and the school. The Girls’ Network delivered a mentoring programme matching female learners with female mentors. Alongside the mentoring sessions mentees had additional activities including:
- Trip to Dot Digital – the mentees were welcomed to Dot Digital’s London Bridge office to learn about working life in a large company and hear from women panelists. The mentees also had a chance to practice their marketing skills by designing their own email campaigns
- Attend a workshop – 'building you self-care shield'. Mentees discussed stresses they face and talked through tools for managing stress, strengths they have and viewing failure as an opportunity for growth
- Attend a celebration event. In addition to celebrating their successes across the programme, mentees received certificates and copies of ‘You can change the world!’ by Margaret Rooke
Each mentee that completes the programme has lifelong access to The Girls’ Network Ambassador Community. This is a network of past mentees that offers ongoing support, opportunities, workshops and community events.
The programme was a great success with 100% of mentees saying their mentor was inspiring and 96% saying The Girls’ Network has had a positive influence on them. The mentees were asked to share their experience of the programme in their own words, here’s what some of them said:
“My mentor was very friendly and thoughtful. She always listens to what I had to say and seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say.”
“I had online interviews organised by her and I thought it was really kind that she had put in the time to sort that out for me.”
“They have such a great personality and they are always there to talk to when needed. They are so supportive and come up with new ways to look at things.”
The Girls’ Network work with schools in a number of different ways. With Uni Connect funding, they are offering a workshop series to Thomas Bennett Community College.
To find out more about The Girls’ Network you can visit their website or contact Isabel Garvey, the Sussex Network Manger isabel@thegirlsnetwork.org.uk or contact Debra Vice-Holt d.vice-holt@sussexlearningnetwork.org.uk