Women in Health and Safety

Women in Health and Safety is a thriving network of people who support gender equality and want to see women flourish in our profession. We connect in-person and online. Our get-togethers are free to attend and open to all, and we actively encourage both men and women to join us.

3,000+ people have attended one of our events.
2015 was when the first event took place.
Events take place all over the country.
Mace, HSE Recruitment, HSW Consultants, Shirley Parsons, Acre, Hays, Safety & Health Expo, Redcat, the HSE and NEBOSH have all hosted events.
Safety & Health Expo hosts our biggest annual celebration.
Women in Health and Safety is part of SHP and run by an independent Chair and committee.

Upcoming events

Date, tbc. Women’s Health at Work, London. Hosted by Mace.

Join the Women in Health and Safety LinkedIn group for further information and the latest updates.

Past events

Events have taken place all over the country, in cities including Norwich, London, Birmingham, Leicester, Liverpool, Leeds, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Take a look at highlights videos and photos of some of our events below.

For more past events highlights see the posts below:

- - - Driving for work – What’s the risk? A joint ScORSA, RoSPA AEF, Women in Safety and Health event.
    - Women in Health & Safety Christmas Quiz, London. Sponsored by Barbour EHS – 2019
    - The fascinating history of London Dock, hosted by St George – 2019
    - Health and safety incident management and sentencing guidelines, hosted by Kennedys – 2019
    - Sex, Sticks, Shooters and Stress: How gender influences physical, chemical and psychosocial safety – 2019
    - The challenges facing design construction and operation of modern railway – 2019
    - Flagship Women in Health and Safety events at Safety & Health Expo in the ExCel, London – 2019
    - A mock interview ‘5 minutes in the hot seat’, hosted by Russell Cooke – 2019
    - The significance of health & safety being embedded into the fabric of the organisation, hosted by Canary Wharf Group – 2019
    - HS2 Birmingham breakfast and networking event – 2019
    - Changing young minds to construction, hosted by St George and The Berkley Group plc – 2019
    - 4th annual London Women in Health and Safety Christmas party, hosted by Acre and SHP – 2018
    - The inaugural Birmingham Christmas party, supported by HSE Recruitment and Gateway HSW Consultants – 2018
    - Inclusion at work lunch event, by Mace and supported by Pinsent Masons – 2018
    - IRATA rope access day, by Churchill Services – 2018
    - Wellbeing in construction, in collaboration with the Women in Construction network – 2018
    - Presenting with confidence and impact workshop, by TEDx Director, Maryam Pasha at Safety & Health Expo – 2018
    - Speed mentoring, at Safety & Health Expo – 2018
    - Pregnant Then Screwed: how 54,000 women are forced out of work each year – 2018
    - Mace’s Judith Grant inspires Women in Health and Safety network to make wellbeing second nature – 2017
    - Speed-mentoring and improving self-confidence – Women in Health and Safety Christmas party 2017
    - “Dig your heels in” – key advice from Women in Health and Safety, Leeds – 2016
    - Anything but boring – Women in Health and Safety at Crossrail – 2016
    - Upskilling into senior leadership – Women in Health and Safety at NEBOSH – 2016
    - Causing a revolution – Women in Health and Safety Christmas party – 2015
    - Karen McDonnell hosts first Women in Health and Safety regional event – 2015
    - First UK Women in Health and Safety Forum takes place – 2015

The Women in Health and Safety committee

SHP works with a committee to determine the best direction for Women in Health and Safety. We meet quarterly to assess feedback from past events. We also discuss plans for future events and come up with ideas to keep the network running effectively.

Another role of the the committee is to raise awareness of the network. For instance taking part in relevant SHP interviews, offering site visits at their workplaces and speaking at Women in Health and Safety events.

A Chairperson heads up the committee and a new Chairperson is selected each June. At the present time Judith Grant, Associate Director of Health & Wellbeing at Mace is Chair. See below the current committee members.

Handover from the old to the new committee at Safety Health Expo 2018. Introducing Judith Grant as the new Chair.

- - Aoife Devaney, Health and Safety Assistant, St George Developments
  - Angelina Sooren, HSQE Director at Ground Control
  - Anne Gardner-Aston, Group Health, Safety & Wellbeing Director, Places for People
  - Barbara Marino, Director, ORSA projects
  - Carly Gilbert, Safety Manager, Media Safety Management
  - Charlotte Geoghegan, Head of Content, SHP and Safety & Health Expo
  - Charlotte Taylor, Senior Health & Safety Advisory, Morgan Sindall
  - Clare Richardson, H&S Consultant, Gateway HSW Consultants
  - Darren Selman,Head Of Safety, Environment, Quality and Wellbeing, Arriva Rail
  - Emma Hughes, Collaboration Learning and Improvement Champion, A-one+ Integated Highway Services
  - Fiona Anniss, Associate Director – Health & Safety, Capita Real Estate
  - Heather Beach, Managing Director, The Healthy Work Company
  - Judith Grant, Associate Director – Health & Wellbeing, Mace
  - Katherine Randell, Head of Health & Safety, Canary Wharf Group
  - Karen McDonnell, Occupational Health & Safety Policy Adviser, RoSPA
  - Kizzy Augustin, Partner, Russell Cooke LLP
  - Lesley Heath, Safety Director, West Midlands Trains
  - Rhaynukaa Soni, RLS Consultants
  - Shelley Stiles, Director, 2020 SHE Solutions Ltd

How to get involved

Join the Women in Health and Safety committee

Women in Health and Safety is seeking men and women to join the committee. WIHS is a thriving network of people who support gender equality and want to see women flourish in our profession – would you like to make a difference? Click here to apply to join the Women in Health and Safety committee.

Join the Women in Health and Safety network on LinkedIn to be part of discussions or register your interest for future events.

Hosting an event

There are two different types of event you can run: mini-meets and forums. Both are a great way to promote your personal or corporate brand whilst supporting women in the profession.

Mini-meets are small, informal get-togethers. They don’t require much planning or organisation at all. Simply get a group together and talk about your experiences with issues affecting women in health and safety.

Ideas for your mini-meet:

- - Go out for dinner;
  - Meet up in a pub;
  - Have a breakfast meeting;
  - Get together at a conference.

Mini-meets don’t have a ‘host’, as such, and attendees should cover the cost of their own refreshments, if they’re having them.

If you’d like SHP to encourage others to join your mini-meet just tell us when & where you’re meeting two weeks beforehand. You could also write a post in the Women in Health & Safety LinkedIn group if you want more people to know about it.

After your mini-meet send SHP:

- - A photo of your get-together
  - A list of people who attended
  - A summary of what you did and discussed

Then we’ll publish an article about your Women in Health & Safety mini-meet on SHP. It’s as easy as that!

Forums are generally larger events, although there is no minimum number of delegates required. Forums must be open for all professionals within our community to attend. The benefit of hosting a forum is that SHP will help you fill it from their database of people – however that does mean some preparation time is required.

If you would like to host a forum you’ll need to complete the short application form, which you’ll find below, and send it to [email protected]

If your application is successful, as host, you are required to:

- - Inform SHP of your full plans for the event, as per the timeline below.
  - Provide (and cover the costs of) a suitable venue. Alternatively you can request to use our venue at 240 Blackfriars. You can use the space free of charge, but will need to cover the cost of refreshments.
  - Provide (and cover the costs of) drinks and nibbles for everyone attending.
  - Write a press release/promotional copy announcing the event which SHP can use in marketing.
  - Promote the event. This could be through an email to your database or posts on social media.
  - Direct all delegates to register through the Women in Health & Safety registration portal, which is managed by SHP
  - Write up a summary of the event within one week of it taking place. Send this to SHP along with photos so they can publish it.
  - Allow colleagues from anywhere in the community to attend – this might include your competitors if you are a business!

As host you can:

- - Provide one or two educational speakers. We tend to find this works best when they presenting for 30-90 mins in total. Please let SHP know if you’d like a copy of the The Speaker Handbook which is filled with useful tips.
  - Do a mentoring/mentee speed dating event
  - Provide an element of fun (e.g. a chocolate making demonstration or wine tasting).

When you host a forum, SHP is required to:

- - - Provide you with all necessary logos and branding material.
    - Create and manage the registration portal where visitors sign-up.
    - Let you know how many people have registered to attend 2 weeks before, 1 week before and 1 day before the forum takes place.
    - Provide you with the full delegate list of names 1 day before the forum takes place (N.B. Due to GDPR, SHP can only provide you with the details of those who have opted in.)
    - Promote the event on the SHP website, newsletter and on social media, both before and after the forum takes place.

Terms & conditions

- - - SHP owns the Women in Health & Safety brand and logo.
    - SHP reserves the right not to email their database at certain times of the year.

Timeline and checklist for host

Time	What happens
8 weeks out	Let SHP know that you’re interested in hosting an event by completing the application form below.
6 weeks out	Deadline for confirming your date and venue. This information must be sent to SHP so they can plan in promotion activity.
4 weeks out	Deadline for confirming your networking activity and schedule (including speakers, if you’re having them). This information must be sent to SHP.
4 weeks out	Deadline for providing SHP with your press release/promotional copy for the SHP website and newsletter. NB SHP’s editor will ensure all copy meets house style before it’s published.
2-4 weeks out	Promote your event.
2-4 weeks out	SHP will promote the event in at least one email newsletter.
2 weeks out	SHP will let you know how many people have registered
1-2 weeks out	SHP will promote the event in at least one email newsletter.
1 week out	SHP will let you know how many people have registered.
1 day before	SHP will let you know who is attending (subject to GDPR conditions).
1 week after	Provide SHP with a write-up of the event, including photos. This will be sent to an editor who will ensure the copy meets house style.
1-2 weeks after	SHP will publish your write-up on the website.

For more information about running an event contact [email protected].

Ready to apply to host a Women in Health and Safety event?

Simply send the following information to [email protected]. You will receive a response within a week.

- - Your name, job title and organisation
  - Your contact details
  - When would you like to host an event? If you don’t have a specific date in mind, that’s fine
  - Where would you like to host an event? Please tell us the city and venue, if you know. If you don’t know yet, that’s fine
  - If you’re planning on having speakers, who do you have in mind? Don’t worry if you can’t confirm individuals yet, we just want to know the sort of people you could put forward.
  - Are you planning on including any additional activities? For example speed-networking, mentoring match-ups or wine-tasting?

Women in Health and Safety