International Women’s Day at the University of Chester: Give to Gain

Join us in person to celebrate International Women’s Day at the University of Chester! It’s all about empowerment, connection, and sharing stories. Whether you want to learn, network, or just have a great time, this event is for you. Come along, get inspired, and discover how giving back can help you gain so much more. Don’t miss out!

This event centres on the 2026 International Women’s Day theme “Give to Gain”, which encourages generosity, collaboration, and shared progress. As IWD explains, Give to Gain highlights the power of reciprocity: when individuals, organisations, and communities give, whether through knowledge, resources, visibility, advocacy, education, mentoring, or time, the opportunities and support available to women multiply. Giving is not a subtraction; it is intentional growth. When women thrive, we all rise.

The afternoon will be opened by Professor Emma Rees, Director of the University of Chester’s Institute of Gender Studies and co-organiser of this fantastic event. Emma has been key in ensuring the University of Chester's IWD celebrations have been a true celebration of women for over ten years. Emma is committed to inclusive, intersectional feminist teaching, writing, and leadership and will discuss why International Women’s Day is so important and why this year’s theme is so important – to her personally, to IGS, the University and society as a whole.

Emma will be followed by an address from our own Vice Chancellor, Professor Eunice Simmons. Women Vice Chancellors make up a third of UK University leaders and we are proud that our own VC champions gender equality across the University and the regional committees and boards that she is part of.

Celebrating the themes of visibility, advocacy, mentoring and community, we are delighted to welcome the Lord Mayor of Chester. As an inspirational role model for many women across the city, the Lord Mayor will share her story of becoming mayor, including the challenges faced, the support received, and the key life lessons learned along the way. Her Mayoral charities will also be spotlighted as part of our celebration of women’s leadership and impact.

Marking both the theme of education and the 65th anniversary of women students being admitted to the University (then Chester College), we are also pleased to welcome Pat Ransome, a University alumna. As one of the early women students in what was then a largely male-dominated environment, Pat will share her experiences and reflections on this significant moment in our institution’s history, and how she has stayed connect and given back to the University since she left in 1972.

This year’s IWD theme encourages us to give visibility, give knowledge, give workshops, give growth, and give role models and we have shaped our event to do exactly that. Thanks to the commitment of several University colleagues and students, participants will have the chance to take part in engaging workshops and learn new skills.

The University’s Alumni Team will also be in attendance, showcasing early photographs of women students, sharing extracts from the collegians, and answering questions from delegates.

LIS colleagues will attend to highlight resources in our library collections to support women’s growth and knowledge and promote women’s voices

We will also have an information stand from Tomorrow's Women.

The event is open to all staff, students, and visitors of all genders, and promises to be an inspiring, enjoyable, and energising day for everyone involved

Our workshops will include:

Spanish conversation – Sam Sinclair (staff)

Repair workshop – Rebecca Collins (staff)

Hand embroidery – Courtney Melville (staff)

How to turn lived experience into impact – Keren Isaiah (Student)

How to make Hungarian Stuffed Peppers – Klaudia O’Gorman (staff)

Women as Change-Makers: Turning Insight into Action – Student Race Advocates

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Riverside Innovation Centre, 1 Castle Drive, Chester, United Kingdom

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

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