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WES Archive material and two new exhibitions | |
WES archive materials are being used for two exhibitions celebrating International Women's Day (see our WES events pages for further details):
Trailblazers: Women in Science and Technology (8th March - 29 September 2013)
Discovery Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne
The core of the project is an exhibition of twenty-four portraits, drawn mainly from the National Portrait Gallery's collection, of women who have made their mark in science and technology during the past 250 years. From the pioneering naval architect Rachel Parsons (who was also the daughter of our own Charles Parsons) to the contemporary scientist and inventor Lydia Arnold, the stories of these women will be set against a backdrop of ....read more here
Women in Science, London Metropolitan Archives
(8th March)
Science and the history of science runs right through the London Metropolitan Archives. We have Robert Hooke's diary, Lyons records of massed produced ice cream and grand engineering plans for Tower Bridge. This event is a day of talks, presentations and documents which explores the lives and contributions of women to scientific progress.
We have two guest speakers. Rebekah Higgitt, Curator & historian of science at Royal Observatory Greenwich & National Maritime Museum and blogger for The H Word, the Guardian Science Blog. She will be talking about "Finding women in the history of science." Heather Couper is a broadcaster and writer on astronomy, space and science. She has written and produced numerous books, TV and radio programmes. Along with her work, she is Professor of Astronomy at Gresham College in perpetuity, was awarded the CBE for 'Services to Science', and the International Astronomical Union has named asteroid number 3922 "Heather". Her talk will be "The Sky's the Limit."
Staff at the LMA will be looking at female scientists represented in the archives and displaying some of the original documents from the collections.
£10. Booking Essential 020 7332 3851
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| Diamond Jubilee scholarships | | |
Your sparkling engineering career starts here ..........
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Achieve 3 'A's at A Level, 3 'A' grade Advanced Highers or 5 'A' grade Highers and join an IET accredited engineering or technology degree course in Autumn 2013 and you will be entitled to an IET scholarship of £1000 per year during your studies, up to a maximum of £3000 for Bachelors students and £4000 for MEng students. Yes, it's really that simple! Deadline for applications 27 June 2013.
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Women of Steel Campaign | | |
Mary Hickey, a communications officer at Sheffield Council, contacted the WES Office regarding a campaign appeal to raise £150,000 in order to build a statute to celebrate Sheffield's Women of Steel who worked in the steel factories during the two world wars.
She is currently trying to give this appeal as much coverage as possible in order to get people to donate, host fundraising events and generally boost the profile of this campaign. More information is on the Sheffield Council website, if you would like to get involved.
You can follow the campaign on Twitter @Swomenofsteel
And you can donate via the just giving website.
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National Apprenticeship Service launch new film | | |
Manufacturing & Engineering Apprenticeships provide focus for new film
The National Apprenticeship Service has launched a new film to encourage more young people to explore the wide range of Apprenticeship opportunities available in manufacturing and engineering . In the film, four former and current apprentices working in different roles across the sector, recount their experience and talk about how an Apprenticeship has benefitted them.
The four stars, who work for defence firm, MBDA Missile Systems, precision engineering manufacturer, Warren Services, yacht building and boat repairs business, Berthon Boat Company and multinational defence, security and aerospace company, BAE Systems, also talk about the breadth of skills they developed during their Apprenticeship and the importance of the sector to the economy.
Employers, led by Semta, the Sector Skills Council for the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering sectors, are being encouraged to promote the film across the sector and to young people. The film will also be used by the National Apprenticeship Service in resource packs for schools and at careers events up and down the country. To view and share the film, visit www.apprentice.tv.
Sam Parker, 24, who features in the film, is currently doing an Advanced Apprenticeship in Marine Electrics at the Berthon Boat Company in Lymington, Hampshire. He said: "My Apprenticeship has given me an amazing opportunity to achieve a well-respected qualification, as well as gain valuable experience in an innovative, high growth industry. Within manufacturing and engineering there are so many different types of jobs, for all sorts of people. I hope the film will highlight to other young people just how rewarding an Apprenticeship is and encourage them to investigate the options available."
The other stars of the film are:
· Bethan Sherbourne (22), who completed a Higher Apprenticeship in Business Administration at MBDA Missile Systems in Lostock, Bolton and is now a Senior Procurement Officer there. She was also recently named the Virgin Media Higher Apprentice of the Year at the National Apprenticeship Awards
· Darren Craigen (30), who completed a Higher Apprenticeship in Mechanical Engineering and now holds the role of CNC Milling Manager at Warren Services in Thetford, Norfolk
· Charlotte Tingley (23), who completed her Higher Apprenticeship in Electronic and Electrical Engineering and has since progressed to the role of Production Engineer at BAE Systems in Rochester, Kent. She was also awarded the Women's Engineering Society (WES) Prize at the 2012 IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards 2012
Sarah Sillars OBE, chief executive at Semta, the Sector Skills Council for the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering sectors said: "Apprenticeship starts in engineering and advanced manufacturing have increased by more than 85% in the past two years. However, engineering and manufacturing still has an image problem - we need more teachers and parents to understand apprenticeships will benefit their children and not somebody else's.
"The sector needs to recruit 82,000 people just to cover retirements up to 2016. Apprenticeships are key to tackling this issue - providing individuals with the advanced skills and experience to not only set them on a successful career path, but also help ensure growth in what is one of the UK's priority sectors."
David Way, chief executive of the National Apprenticeship Service, commented: "Britain has an excellent reputation for high quality manufacturing and engineering and is the birth place of some of the most innovative companies in the sector. Apprenticeships are vital to future proofing that reputation. Making things and making things work is what an Apprenticeship in this sector is all about and there are a wide range of Apprenticeships to choose from. The film aims to show just how diverse these opportunities are and encourage more young people to apply for an Apprenticeship."
The film is the third in a series of 'sector in the spotlight' films being created by the National Apprenticeship Service to promote Apprenticeships in key industry sectors.
Apprenticeships cover more than 250 skills and industries across 1,400 job roles, over an extensive range of skill levels. An Apprenticeship in manufacturing or engineering can cover a broad range of roles. This includes Vehicle, Rail and Aircraft Engineering & Maintenance, Electrical Engineering, Food & Drink Manufacture, Furniture Making, Boat Building, Gas Installation & Maintenance Engineering, Sustainable Resource Management and Sign Making. Manual and technical skills are generally important in this sector, and maths, IT and science are often relevant.
Government funding is available to help companies take on an apprentice. Through the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers (AGE) of 16-24 year olds, businesses who choose to grow their business through Apprenticeships can access funding of £1,500. The grant is open to organisations employing up to 1,000 people, who have never employed an apprentice before, or have not recruited one in the past 12 months.
For more information on Apprenticeships, visit the website |
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Plaque for Hertha Ayrton | |
PMC Construction are building an apartment block for Guinness Hermitage housing association, and they have agreed to name it after Hertha Ayrton, scientist and suffragette. They believe that a plaque would be appropriate to inform visitors and local people as to who Hertha Ayrton was and are seeking help in raising funds or sponsorship to help finance this (approximate cost £500).
If you are able to help or have any ideas or suggestions please contact Calum Kennedy
Hertha Ayrton (1854-1923)
Hertha Ayrton was born Phoebe Sarah Marks at No 6 Queen St, Portsea, and the daughter of a Polish immigrant watch maker. The family also lived in Butcher and Union streets in Portsea. At the age of eight her mother allowed young Phoebe to be taken to London to be educated by her aunt. This caused some hardship to the family because Phoebe helped her widowed mother with the sowing that she took in. Hertha's mother stayed in Portsea until old age. Hertha was one of the earliest woman students at Girton College, where she studied physics, but being a woman she was not eligible for a degree, merely a certificate. In 1899 the Institution of Electrical Engineers elected Ayrton their first woman member and in 1902 she was proposed for the Fellowship or the Royal Society, but Hertha's candidature was refused on the grounds that being a married woman she had no legal existence in British law. Although she was the first woman to be allowed to read her own paper to the Royal Society.
She became a distinguished British scientist, inventing draftsmen's devices, worked on arc lamps, improving searchlight technology and in 1915 invented a fan for dispersing poisonous gases in the trenches, 'The Ayrton Flapper'. At first the War Office dismissed her invention because of its simplicity, but finally issued some 100,000 to the troops in the trenches. Later she wrote to her friend Marie Curie saying 'That if I had invented a device that killed people rather than saved lives the Government would have welcomed it'.
She was an active suffragette, providing safe refuge for released prisoners. She later became the vice-president of the National Union of Women's Suffrages Societies.
Hertha Ayrton died of septicemia on the 26th of August 1923. |
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International Women's Day and The Oxfam Get Together | | |
WES is supporting International Women's Day and The Oxfam Get Together and would like to encourage you take part. Details are below. If you do take part let us know what you have been doing and we will share your event with the WES Community.
Get Together and support women worldwide:
Join Oxfam to celebrate International Women's Day on 8March 2013 and transform the lives of women living in poverty around the world.
Thousands of people all over the UK will be getting together with friends, colleagues and loved ones to do what they love doing - while raising money for Oxfam.
Will you join them? You could host a film night at home, a bake-off at work or an exercise class in your community. Whatever you love to do, do it for women worldwide.
What's it all for?
Domestic violence. Discrimination. Lack of education. These are just some of the reasons why millions of women around the world are living in poverty.
Women often have fewer resources, fewer rights, and fewer opportunities to make life-shaping decisions than men. And when emergencies strike, they're the worst affected.
We support women to claim their rights and make decisions that affect their lives. We empower and equip them with the resources they need to work their way out of poverty - transforming entire communities.
Start planning your Oxfam Get Together today:
What will you do?
- At home - host a clothes swap, dinner party or pamper night
- At work - challenge colleagues to a bake-off or arrange a team day out
- In your community - hold a pub quiz, art class or coffee morning
- Out and about - organise a meal with friends at your favourite restaurant
Register now for your free fundraising pack and we'll send you posters, balloons, coasters and bunting.
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And finally....
If you have any articles that you would like to have featured please contact the WES Office.
We'd love to hear your stories of ideas to inspire young people, schools outreach activities and projects you are working on that we can share across the WES community.
Don't forget to forward our e-newsletter to your friends and contacts, male or female and help to inspire more young women to consider engineering and technology as a career.
With good wishes
the e-News team.
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Are you a WES Member?
If not click here to find out why you should be!
It costs a pound a week and helps us to do our work to promote engineering and technology amongst women and girls. |
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Volunteer Required for WES Public Relations Work | | |
The lack of women in engineering has featured a lot in the news recently and WES would like to take advantage of this publicity to raise our profile and make an impact. If you can help to get our voice heard and inform people of our important work in this area then we would love to hear from you. Please contact the office to discuss
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Women's Engineering Society Scottish Circle, Programme of events, 2013 | |
WES exists to promote engineering to women but also to encourage those already in the profession, to this end we have series of events throughout the year in the West of Scotland.
Saturday 9th March - A tour of a Type45 Destroyer
BAE Systems have granted WES a block of tickets for the families day at their Scotstoun shipyard. There will be a chance to get on board HMS Duncan, the last of the type 45 destroyers. This visit is open to all ages, from the smallest to the oldest so please bring your kids. Kids need tickets so please tell me if you are bringing any. If there is interest we will go for lunch afterwards.
Saturday 23rd March - Geeks tour of Glasgow
Take a tour of the hidden gems of Glasgow's architecture showing its engineering past. The tour is about an hour and we'll have lunch in the counting house afterwards.
Contact Nina directly to book a space
Tuesday 30th April, 6pm - Tunnocks tea cake factory visit
We have been granted 12 spaces on an evening tour of Tunnock's factory in Uddingston, there will be refreshments as part of the tour. The minimum age for the tour is 12 and as numbers are so limited, if we are oversubscribed then priority will go to WES members.
Wednesday 5th June, 7pm - Pub evening
A get together just to chat and get to know other members, the date and time may change but we'll give details when we decide on the venue.
Saturday in August, summer afternoon get together in Darvel including tea, cake, croquet and a visit to the telephone museum. Kids and families are welcome, this is where we plan the next years activities.
4th October 2013 IESIS - date still to be confirmed
WES is a small society in Scotland so we use the IESIS dinner as our annual smart get together. We would love to fill 2 tables this year so go on put it in your diary to come.
If you are joining us for an event please drop an e-mail to the WES Scottish circle secretary, Anne
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Jaguar Land Rover launches new education programme to encourage young women to consider engineering careers | |
Jaguar Land Rover is offering female students interested in engineering, technology and manufacturing careers a unique insight into the world of work at the UK's largest luxury automotive manufacturer.
The 'Inspiring Tomorrow's Engineers: Young Women in the Know' course has been developed in partnership with Birmingham Metropolitan College to change outdated perceptions of engineering to encourage more young women to consider engineering and manufacturing careers.
The 28 female students, aged 16-18, will be participating in a week-long programme of events from Monday 18th February at Jaguar Land Rover's manufacturing, design and engineering sites in Gaydon, Whitley, Solihull and Castle Bromwich. They will meet female apprentices, graduates, engineers and managers to find out about their education and career histories and will spend a day on work experience at the Solihull plant. They will also find out about Jaguar Land Rover's apprentice and graduate schemes and participate in workshops on job applications, assessment centres and interview techniques.
Bob Joyce, Jaguar Land Rover Engineering Director, said: "Jaguar Land Rover has ambitious plans for growth and it is engineering talent that will develop the products and technologies that appeal to customers in the future. We believe that the success of our global business - and the UK economy - lies in engineering and innovation.
"We offer a wide range of education programmes with the aim of getting young people excited about engineering and crucially, to encourage them to make the right subject choices at GCSE-level and beyond. The 'Young Women In The Know' course has been developed to encourage female students to consider engineering careers and we hope some of the students on the course today will join Jaguar Land Rover as engineers in the future."
Danella Bagnall, Project Planning and Integration Director at Jaguar Land Rover, added: "I started my career as an apprentice 25 years ago which was a great way of continuing education, developing skills, and getting into industry. I am now a senior engineering manager which demonstrates the excellent career progression opportunities available to women in a modern engineering-led business like Jaguar Land Rover.
"It is a very exciting time to join our business. We are investing more than £2 billion a year in research and development and we need talented young people to deliver new technologies, new applications, new approaches and new ideas. I would thoroughly recommend a career in engineering to girls and hope this programme inspires lots more women to become engineers."
The 'Inspiring Tomorrow's Engineers: Young Women in the Know' course is part of the 'Inspiring Tomorrow's Engineers' education programme which Jaguar Land Rover runs across the UK to promote STEM subjects and engineering careers.
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Nominate your female colleagues for Women in the Built Environment Award | | |
Entries are now open for this year's First Women in the Built Environment Award http://www.coins-global.com/cp_root/h/News/Seeking_First_Women_Award_Nominations/1504/?lang and sponsor COINS is hoping to encourage more entries from a wide range of disciplines within the sector.
Bev James, Marketing Director, COINS (provider of business systems and services to the construction, engineering, house building and service
sectors) said, 'Nominations are open to women in all areas of construction.
We are hugely supportive of these awards and will be working hard to encourage our customers, colleagues and industry contacts to nominate those pioneering women whose achievements have set the benchmark in the business world for others to follow."
Judges will be looking for women who have achieved career or life breakthroughs, ways in which women have broken new ground or realised their success by doing things differently from the established norms of their organisation or industry sector. Similarly, they may have helped to remove barriers or opened up opportunities for others, or set out new pathways for the future.
Last year's winner of the Women in the Built Environment Award was Diane Johnson, past President of the Electrical Contracting Association. She said, "I thoroughly recommend that people nominate their female colleagues for this award. It is important to recognise women for what they achieve and really helps promote the vital contribution they make to the industry."
Closing date for entries is April 5th 2013 and nomination forms can be completed online at http://fwa.realbusiness.co.uk. The winners will be announced at a gala dinner at the London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square on Wednesday 12th June which will be hosted by sports personality and presenter Clare Balding.
The First Women Awards, championed by the CBI, recognises and celebrates outstanding businesswomen across the UK. The Women in the Built Environment category specifically acknowledges the inspirational work carried out by women in a historically predominantly male environment.
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BBC Learning request for help | | |
Sam Kershaw is member of the development team at BBC Learning contacted the WES Office with the request below.
They are currently working on a big history project and are really interested in looking at women's role in engineering both in history and the present day. Do you have any biogs on women who were engineers during WW11 who might be willing to talk / be interviewed by the BBC. They are looking at the possibility of Woman's Hour angle on Radio 4 and considering suitable contributors.
If you know someone or have any information please contact Sam |
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Barriers to women in sport and science top of the agenda as National Assembly marks International Women's Day | | |
The National Assembly for Wales's Presiding Officer, Rosemary Butler AM, will welcome leading women from the fields of science and sport to the Assembly, on 7 & 8 March, to mark International Women's Day.
Two sessions will look at the barriers facing women who want to become scientists and engineers, or pursue careers in professional sport, or to simply get involved in sporting activities.
It forms part of the Presiding Officer's "Women in Public Life" campaign, aimed at addressing the issue of barriers to women in all walks of life.
On 7 March, at 10am, Baroness Susan Greenfield will make a keynote address to an audience at the historic Pierhead. This event is open to the public and spaces are available by ringing 0845 010 5500 or by emailing
While on the following morning, 8 March (International Women's Day) at 8am, Professor Laura McAllister, Chair of Sports Wales, will lead a discussion, with an invited audience, about similar issues in sport.
"It is an honour to welcome such leading figures from the worlds of science and sport to the Assembly," said the Presiding Officer.
"These women are leaders in their field and provide an inspiration to all women that you can achieve.
"But they are exceptions, rather than the rule. When you look at our sporting icons and our leading scientists, that vast majority are men.
"These women are role models so I hope the impact of these events will be twofold, first to provide inspiration to women in Wales, and secondly to place the issue at the top of the media and political agenda."
Women make up only 12.3 per cent of those working in all Science Engineering and Technology (SET) jobs. This is despite the fact that women account for 45.1 per cent of the whole workforce, with 12.7 million women at work in the UK. (Source: Open University 2010)
To achieve parity nearly four times as many women would need to take up work in a SET occupation.
Furthermore, only 29.8 per cent (185,000) of all female STEM graduates of working age in the UK are employed in SET occupations compared to half (782,000) of all male STEM graduates of working age.
"We shall look at banana skins, bottlenecks and elephant traps," said Baroness Greenfield ahead of her keynote speech
"The banana skins are when we slip up on various myths: first that all our abilities, and shortcomings, are 'all down to genes'; secondly that the 'real' leaders in science need to be white, middle-aged men, and third that women in science should in any case be viewed as less competent.
"Then there are the various bottlenecks that need combatting, with a re-thinking of career structure, child-friendly policies and 'Returner' schemes for those who have time off for child-care.
"Meanwhile, the elephant traps include a lack of confidence, a failure to make the most of any gender-based dispositions and to be unaware of the risk of conflating professional issues with personal ones.
"The biggest trap however is to ignore the importance of finding the right mentor, namely 'Someone who believes in you, more than you believe in yourself'."
While in Sport there is a similar picture. Research by Sport Wales reveals that more men (62%) take part in sport than women (51%); participation in pure sports clubs is male dominated (22% of male population and 11% female); and that a drop-off in participation in sport by school pupils is more acutely felt by girls (in Year 10, 52% of boys participate in organised activity at least once a week compared to 44% of girls).
Professor Laura McAllister, Chair of Sport Wales, said:
"We have seen some very positive steps forward for women in sport recently, with the London 2012 Games often branded as the 'girls' Games'; our elite female athletes have been more visible than ever before, but we're acutely aware that there is still a long way to go.
"As an organisation, Sport Wales is committed to addressing the issues surrounding women in sport, from participation through to role models and women decision-makers working at the highest level of sport. Events like this one to mark International Women's Day provide a fantastic platform for us to talk with Wales' leading women, and to discuss, debate and raise the profile of some of these critical issues."
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WES would like to thank its supporters and sponsors, particulary the IET, Transport for London, National Grid, Arup and Jaguar Land Rover.
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