July 25, 2019

Futures for Women welcomes a new Chair

Futures for Women welcomed a new Chair of Trustees in June 2019 when Rosie Parr took over the position from Joanna Murray.

Rosie, who runs her own law firm that specialises in advising charities, has been a Trustee for 9 years.   Commenting on her appointment Rosie said:

“This year marks the 160th anniversary of the foundation of our charity and I am very proud to become its Chair at this exciting time in our history when we have adopted a new strategy to support the education and training of women. Our grant to The Sharan Project in March, to fund its two-year programme in Birmingham to support women from South Asian communities into work, is our first step in partnering with other women’s organisations, and our grants will continue the mission of our founder Jessie Boucherett to help women into employment so that they can achieve economic independence. I look forward to developing our project programmes with my co-trustees during my tenure as Chair, to help disadvantaged women in our society to find the rewarding and fulfilling employment which is so vital to the security and well-being of them and their families”.

Joanna Murray has assumed the role of Vice-Chair after 4 years in the role of  Chair.

November 16, 2018

Futures for Women Trustees review expressions of interest in working with us

Following our strategic review, held in the first half of 2018, Futures for Women Trustees decided to cease the awarding of interest-free loans and seek to work with a partner organisation to support disadvantaged women into the workplace.  A request for expressions of interest from charities who wanted to work with us in this regard was advertised and several charities responded.  The Trustees are now reviewing the expressions of interest received and will be undertaking a short-listing and due diligence exercise over the next few months.  It is expected that we will announce our new charity partner in March 2019.

 

September 25, 2018

Are you a charity that helps women in to the workplace?

Futures for Women is looking to change direction in how it helps disadvantaged women in the UK attain their career ambitions and become financially independent.   Established in 1859, we have a long history of supporting women into employment. We are now seeking to part-fund a project led by a partner organisation and have up to £30,000 available over two years (2019/20 and 2020/21).  The project should help disadvantaged women gain paid employment and we are flexible as to how this support is offered, the location and the type of employment attained.

Expressions of interest in working with us are invited from UK registered charities, with details of the proposed project, including target beneficiaries, set out in no more than 500 words. In addition an outline budget should be provided.  Please send expressions of interest to our Secretary, Jane Hampson, on futuresforwomen@btinternet.com by 9 November 2018.

If you have any queries about our new direction please contact Jane Hampson by email.

June 22, 2017

Grantees awarded loans in June 2017

We have just held our June set of interviews and awarded loans to five inspirational women.

The first is undertaking an MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Oxford, as a foundation for her planned career as a criminal Barrister.

Our second grantee is a former professional actress who is now undertaking a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychodynamic Counselling.

We also awarded a loan to a student of Contemporary Crafts who will shortly be moving to Edinburgh College of Art to take up her place on an MA Glass degree.

Our fourth grantee is working as a Research Scientist in planetary physics but is due to return to university to study an MSc in Advanced Mechanical Engineering in order to pursue a career in the renewable energy industry.

Finally we met a musician studying a DPhil in Music at the University of Oxford where she is researching how contemporary opera is being shaped by digitization.

Yet again Trustees were delighted to be able to assist such dedicated and hard-working women attain their chosen career.

May 12, 2016

Radio drama about Jessie Boucherett is available on BBC iPlayer

A fantastic radio drama about our founder, Jessie Boucherett, that was first broadcast by BBC Radio Lincolnshire at the end of 2015, is now available on the BBC website

The play is called “The Forgotten Suffragette” and was produced by Proto-type, alongside the University of Lincoln, supported by Arts Council England.   As Jessie was born and lived in Lincolnshire the University was keen to highlight the important work of a daughter of the county and bring knowledge of her important work to a wider audience.  If you have a spare hour please listen to the drama – we are sure you will enjoy it and be fascinated to hear more about the work and life of a remarkable lady.

 

 

November 26, 2015

Radio Lincolnshire play highlights the work of Jessie Boucherett

A radio play that features the work of our founder, Jessie Boucherett, is being serialised on Radio Lincolnshire during the week commencing Monday 23 November, with the full play being aired on the Friday of that week.  Afterwards the recording will be available on BBC iPlayer.

“The Forgotten Suffragette” has been produced by Proto-type, supported by Arts Council England, who worked alongside University of Lincoln and the BBC in creating a radio drama concerned with women’s rights, with a specific focus on access to education, employment and the right to vote.   They were particularly interested in telling the story of Emelia Jessie Boucherett as the company is based in Jessie’s home county of Lincolnshire and they were keen to highlight the important work of a daughter of the county and bring knowledge of her important work to a wider audience.   The piece forms one strand of a broader body of artistic work concerning human rights, citizenship, state power and individual action that the company is currently engaged with.

 

 

 

 

August 12, 2014

FfW grantee is short-listed for a design award

After graduating from her MA in Womenswear from the Royal College of Art FfW grantee, Camilla, was selected as one of eight finalists of the H & M Design Awards and was flown to Stockholm for an exhibition and catwalk show.    At the show Camilla’s knitwear was judged by fashion and celebrity judges including actress Michelle Dockery from “Downton Abbey” and two fashion editors from “Vogue”.   Camilla’s collection takes inspiration from the dystopian vision of the future found in the 1988 movie They Live, resulting in graphic metallic knits matched with fuzzy knits inspired by white noise.
Camilla is now working as a Design Assistant for a knitwear supplier who supplies high street stores such as Monsoon, Top Shop and Dorothy Perkins.
camilla1 camilla2
July 3, 2014

Annual General Meeting for 2014

Our 2014 AGM was held on 11 June when over 30 Trustees and members met at ING Banking in London who, once again, provided complimentary meeting space and refreshments as part of their support for the work of FfW.

Following the formal meeting we welcomed  three speakers.    Firstly Dr Pam Hirsch, who is a Lecturer in English Literature; and Film History & Theory at the University of Cambridge and member of FfW, gave everyone an update on being interviewed for the BBC2 programme “Shopgirls – the true story behind the counter”.  Dr Hirsch was featured on the programme on 24 June 2014.    Members were informed how, in 1862, FfW founder Jessie Boucherett argued that there were far too many governesses and dressmakers and women should consider other areas of employment, such as saleswomen in shops.   However, there were many objections to the employment of women in retail, including the belief that they would not be able to stand for the required number of hours and that ladies disliked being waited on by ladies!  But Jessie Bourcherett believed that the main obstacle to the employment of women in shops was their ignorance of accounts, as in many schools girls were not offered the opportunity to study arithmetic.   There was also a lack of public conveniences for women which impacted on their ability to become independent from the home.  Jessie established the Society for the Promotion of Employment for Women (now Futures for Women) and was one of the pioneers of the women’s movement in the nineteenth century.

The second presentation was from Victoria Lenzoi Lee, an ex-grantee of FfW who is now employed as a Design Adviser by the Commission for Architecture and Built Environment at the Design Council.    Victoria told members how she helps to ensure that sustainable communities are created through good design practice via collaboration with key stakeholders.  Victoria’s role is particularly crucial in light of recent plans for growth, such as London’s 2020 vision.

Finally current grantee Sarah Rhodes, who is studying for a practice-based PhD, brought along some of her hand-made silver jewellery that is inspired by the African culture.  Members heard about how Sarah is working with communities in Africa to ensure that there is true collaboration between all parties involved in the process.

Everyone present agreed that the diverse presentations had all been fascinating and the three speakers were thanked for sparing the time to join the meeting.

July 3, 2014

Retirement of Gillis Burgess

At our 2014 AGM on 11 June the Trustees and members present said farewell to Gillis Burgess, who has been a Trustee of Futures for Women (and SPTW) for forty-one years and is also an ex-Chair of the Board.  Gillis has decided that now is the time to retire from active duty although she remains a member of the Society and will continue to be a supporter of our work.

After announcing Gillis’ decision to retire from the Board Chair Elspeth Richards gave a vote of thanks to Gillis for her fantastic devotion to the work of FfW.  Elspeth Richards said “I first met Gillis in the early nineties. She was chairing a meeting of Trustees. I was impressed by her clear thinking, plain speaking, excellent diction, and her air of authority. This was a charity I felt was well managed and I wanted to join it.

“Gillis became a Trustee in 1973, vice-chair in 1989 and chair in 1993. She was a real asset to SPTW as we were then. She brought considerable administrative experience from her work with the PCAC. Her knowledge of the antiquarian book trade proved invaluable when it came to reorganising our archives. Because of her work our charity was able to hold Trustee meetings at the offices. Anyone who has tried to hire a meeting room in London will know what a benefit that was to our funds.

 

“Our charity, founded in 1859, has a rich historical archive. When Mrs Golding, Secretary for 50 years died it was Gillis who organised the removal of the files and records from Mrs Golding’s home to the offices of PCAC thus preserving our archives. These documents are now held at Girton College, Cambridge, where they are often consulted by students and historians as they contain fascinating details of women in the workplace from Victorian times onwards. Gillis organised a bursary for a research student to examine the archives. That student, Dr Anne Bridger, is here today and she with Ellen Jordan, co-wrote our history ‘Timely Assistance.’ And what a benefit that has been for us and for many students.

“We thank you, Gillis, for forty-one years of commitment to Futures for Women as Trustee and Chair. We will miss your wise counsel in Board meetings your knowledge of our history and you sense of humour. Your attention to detail is meticulous you quickly spot our misspellings and grammatical errors. Your dedication to our charity has not only helped countless grantees, but in it you have furthered the cause of women”

Following the Chair’s vote of thanks to Gillis all members present shared a cup of tea and farewell cake.