Today the Lord Mayor, Alderman Fiona Woolf CBE and Miriam González Durántez, Partner at Dechert LLP and wife of the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, attended a unique careers fair featuring women doing a wide range of jobs at the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School for girls in Islington.
The aim was to show the huge range of jobs that women do around the City of London from a Cannon to a banker, from a chef to an architect. This is part of the national Inspiring Women campaign. The 106 women talking with girls included: the Head of HMRC, a choreographer, a Buckingham Palace Guide, a barrister, a yoga teacher, a theatre director, a structural engineer, a doctor, a professor and a poet.
The following women who took part said…..
“Today’s event is about demonstrating to girls that they can achieve anything – there are no barriers to talent. We want to empower young women to seize exciting opportunities and explore the wide range of career paths in the City. There is a clear business case for attracting more female talent, and for creating pathways for women to progress to the top jobs. Getting lucky and saying ‘yes’ was an important part of my own professional journey and, as only the second female Lord Mayor in 800 years, I am committed to supporting women to join the next generation of City leaders.”
Lord Mayor Fiona Woolf
“People all around the world look at the City of London with envy. This extraordinary magnet for talent provides a wide variety of job opportunities for girls, especially for those who aim to reach high. The more than one hundred volunteers who have come today to this event are a fantastic example of the vast range of jobs that girls can aspire to.”
Miriam González Durántez, Partner at Dechert LLP
“Events such as this are crucial in helping to broaden students’ horizons and to feed their dreams and aspirations.”
Jo Dibb, Headteacher at Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School
“It’s fantastic that women from such a range of careers are sharing their experience with the next generation. I’m delighted to be taking part and hope to see some of the girls on the benches at Parliament in a few years.”
Jo Swinson, Minister for Women and Equalities
Read Inspiring Women – Women who make London 11th July 2014
