Lead by Amanda Gaston as Chair and Bethany Haller as Vice Chair the Women’s Network has been a catalyst for inclusion, empowerment, and cultural transformation across our organisation.
Key Achievements:
1. Championing Women’s Health and Wellbeing • Delivered Pregnancy and Maternity Workshops for staff and managers, raising awareness and confidence in supporting colleagues. • Launched a Speaker Series, starting with topics on pregnancy, maternity leave, and breastfeeding. • Advocated successfully for and celebrated the opening of a new breastfeeding room for staff, creating a supportive environment for new parents. • Established a dedicated Women\\\’s Health intranet hub, centralising access to resources, guidance, and peer support. • Engaged with the BSOL Women’s Health Hub planning to influence service design with staff and patient voices.
2. Embedding Inclusive Leadership and Learning • Held a Preceptorship Workshop supporting newly qualified staff with guidance on navigating gendered challenges in the workplace. • Partnered with the Fertility in the Workplace Ambassador Programme, signalling our commitment to driving change in the workplace. • Joined forces with other Women’s Network Chairs across BSOL ICS, promoting shared learning and collective impact across the system.
3. Promoting Belonging and Cultural Change • Led our International Women’s Day celebrations, using literature, discussion, and community-building to highlight intersectionality. • Supported the Health and Wellbeing Week through a dedicated Network stall, providing visibility and engagement opportunities for staff. • Initiated walkarounds across departments, bringing the Network to the frontline and gathering feedback to shape future activity. • Contributed to the Gender Pay Gap Action Plan Review, ensuring a lived experience perspective in strategic planning.
4. Creating System Impact and Visibility • Actively participated in the BSOL Women’s Conference and the Women in Surgery event, contributing to broader efforts to tackle inequity in underrepresented fields. • Shared success stories and shone a spotlight on working in roles dominated by males colleagues, with our ‘Women in’ series. The Women’s Network is more than a staff forum – it is a movement for equity, compassion, and transformation. Every initiative has been staff-led, evidence-informed, and strategically aligned to organisational and system priorities. We have not only influenced policy and created safe, inclusive spaces, but also inspired connection, resilience, and pride among our workforce.
We believe our work exemplifies what an inclusive network can achieve when empowered and supported – and we’re just getting started. In the coming year we are planning to embed our Fertility in the workplace support package, expand our speakers series, focus on Womens Health promotion and continue to engage with workforce on what will make a difference to them.