MEMBER NEWS
My Way Project helps women gain confidence
A new social enterprise in Nottingham has helped women on low incomes navigate the impacts of Covid-19 during a programme of virtual workshops. The My Way Project aims to help women across the East Midlands raise
their confidence while developing their workplace and entrepreneurial skills. It was born out of a pilot programme at the Nottingham University
Business School’s Ingenuity Lab in October last year as a way of helping researchers translate their knowledge and insights into valuable impacts in the community.
‘We offer these women time each week to join a welcoming group and help them work towards where they’d like to be’
Dr Isobel O’Neil, a lecturer in entrepreneurship and innovation at the business school who co-founded the My Way Project, said: “While delivering a programme in a national lockdown has its challenges, we knew there was demand out there. “Women can often find themselves isolated at home, with some having lost their jobs and often juggling work and caring responsibilities.
Sam Dike “We offer these women time
each week to join a welcoming group and help them work towards where they’d like to be – in work or by launching a business.” From 18 January to 4 March, the
project held a series of workshops via the Find My Way programme, which was secured via funding from The National Lottery Community Fund distributed by the Smallwood Trust. It aimed to build the confidence
of participants and to plan their next steps whether in work or self-employment. Following the Nottingham University Business School pilot programme,
Dr Isobel O’Neil
then called My Business My Way, in late 2019, Sam Dike went on to launch her Nottingham-based business Raw Nature Products – which makes herbal teas and syrups for natural immunity-boosting supplements – in March 2020. She had been feeling anxious about moving forward in her career but
the scheme helped grow her confidence in order to start a business. Sam said: “After each session, I came to notice that we are all just people
on our own journeys and there is no need to have anxiety about meeting expectations. Now that I have set up Raw Nature Products, I feel like everything is just falling into place.” To mark International Women’s Day, the My Way Project team will deliver a
workshop at Boots’ head office in Nottingham, in which it will help employees to self-reflect on their professional, and personal, successes and aspirations.
Smith Partnership helps tackle sexual harassment
A Derby solicitors’ firm has pledged action to help female workers after a national report revealed 42% have experienced sexual harassment online during lockdown. A survey by the charity Rights of
Women, conducted between 22 November and 15 December, reported a 23% increase of such abuse compared to March 2020. Now Alex Bullmore (pictured), an
employment solicitor at Smith Partnership, has said the company is geared up to help women prosecute and to help companies deal with these issues effectively. She said: “Colleagues have made
us aware of examples which range from men exposing themselves during meetings on Zoom to unwanted sexual approaches on LinkedIn.
6 business networkMarch 2021
“It is horrendous but also surprising because it is not as if the men are anonymous.” Under the Equality Act, sexual
harassment occurs when a person engages in unwanted conduct of a sexual nature. This conduct has the purpose of violating the other person’s dignity or creates a hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them. In the Rights Of Women report,
women highlighted how working from home had enabled harassers to further invade privacy and had affected their ability to report incidents. The fact it’s on Zoom and in front of others in a jokey manner makes it difficult to address,” said one woman whose experience was featured in the report. Alex added: “Businesses can take steps to prevent sexual harassment
in the workplace and it is important that they do. “Measures that employers can
consider taking include conducting investigations into the extent of the potential problem in the business and identifying any areas of risk. “They should also have a culture
of zero tolerance towards any harassment and an environment where all employees are encouraged to report any inappropriate behaviour. “They should make sure policies
are up to date, accessible and clearly set out the zero-tolerance approach, and how employees can report inappropriate conduct. “Finally, they should ensure managers are trained appropriately, and that they deal with any complaints quickly, appropriately
and effectively – and provide anti- harassment training for all employees. “Of course, Smith Partnership’s
employment team can offer support to employees who feel as though they have been subjected to sexual harassment at work, as well as being able to support businesses with policies and training.”
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