We’re delighted to announce that we’re hosting a gala dinner to celebrate a remarkable decade of championing women in business.

Over the past 10 years, our Women’s Leadership Programme has helped more than 120 women thrive in senior roles. The programme has also created a huge collaborative network of female professionals across the east of England.

The Women's Leadership Programme gala dinner will take place on Thursday, 14 November at the University Arms Hotel, Cambridge, in partnership with Birketts LLP and Foresight.

The evening will bring together alumni of the programme, their sponsors and business leaders from across the region who are committed to champion diversity in the workplace. We’ll hear stories and successes from the alumni and from organisations that have purposely moved inclusivity forward. We’ll also shine a light on the ways sponsorships from senior leaders have helped organisations across the eastern region advance and advocate for their female talent.

Our inspiring speaker is Minnie Moll, Chief Executive of Design Council, the UK government’s strategic advisor on design. She’s also a transformational coach who focuses on supporting women in business.

Reflecting on the programme Christina Youell, founder and facilitator of the programme, said:

‘It’s hard to believe that it’s 10 years since we launched the Women’s Leadership Programme. There have been so many wonderful delegates and guest speakers who’ve taken part. I’m excited to have this opportunity to catch up with them and celebrate their achievements. This will be a great evening and networking opportunity – I’m particularly excited to hear from Minnie Moll, our fabulous guest speaker, and catch up with the women from each programme. The room will be buzzing with amazing women leaders. It’s going to be a fantastic night.’

Lynn Walters, founding Director of Pure, says:

‘As we look back on the past decade, we’ll celebrate previous attendees’ success stories and champion their achievements. With the support of our valued sponsors: Birketts LLP and Foresight Group, we will learn from organisations that have been thought leaders within their respective industries, making huge strides in equality, diversity and inclusion.’

Celebrate, Continuity, Community

We’re inviting previous participants in the programme, as well as their sponsors and peers, to come together for this inspiring event in November. The theme is ‘Celebrate, Continuity, Community’.

Celebrate

From leading innovative projects to breaking through glass ceilings, our alumni have made incredible contributions to their fields. We’ll talk about how they’re also driving positive change across our region,and encouraging future generations of female leaders.

Community

At the heart of the Women’s Leadership Programme is a dynamic and inclusive community of women. Brought together by the programme, they share a common vision of leadership excellence, and support each other with mentoring and advice.

This event is a great opportunity to reconnect in person – and to add new members to this growing network of empowered leaders.

Continuity

This programme is one of the ways we’re committing to advancing inclusivity and gender equality in leadership. This event is the perfect chance for us to look to the future together, and chart the course for the next 10 years.

We’ll discuss new ways to give women even more opportunities to thrive, and create and maintain meaningful and supportive connections with their peers. We’ll also look at how to make sure every woman who attends gets the tools and resources she needs to reach her full potential.

More about Minnie – our keynote speaker

We’re delighted to welcome Minnie to the dinner. She joined Design Council as Chief Executive in March 2021. She’s since introduced and led the Design for Planet mission, which aims to help address the climate crisis using sustainable systems that restore and renew resources.

In her earlier career, Minnie spent several years in innovation, design, advertising and brand consultancy. She was Managing Partner of HHCL, voted ‘Agency of the Decade’ in 2000, and then Global Marketing Director of ?What If!, which won Great Place to Work Institute’s ‘Best Place to Work in the UK’ for two years running. With her home in Suffolk, Minnie has always been a purpose-driven business leader, and has proved you can ‘do well and do good’. She won Vistage UK’s Business Leader of the Year in 2020 and, while she was Joint Chief Executive of the East of England Co-op in 2016, they won Alzheimer’s Society ‘Large Business of the Year’. That year she was also appointed as HRH Prince Charles’ Ambassador for Responsible Business in the East of England.

Minnie’s also passionate about place making, an approach to planning, designing and managing public spaces that emphasises creating vibrant, meaningful and community-centred environments. She’s been a board member of two business improvement districts and a town deals board.

Find out more about the evening and book your ticket here.