Plumpton celebrates International Women's Day 2024

Today is International Women's Day with the theme of #InspireInclusion. The day aims to celebrate women's achievements and raise awareness about discrimination through showcasing the achievements and contributions of women in society.

2024 marks the 115-year anniversary of International Women's Day and while we've come a long way with the suffragettes fighting for the right to vote and labor rights. WW1 has a significant impact on women's participation in the workforce. With many men serving in the military, women took on roles traditionally held by men, contributing to the war effort.

The day has internationally been widely recognised that there is still progress to make. Women still face issues such as gender discrimination, gender pay gaps, and inequalities which is why we still need to continue to raise awareness.

Here's how we've been inspiring inclusion in a number of ways:

As part of our Spring Back Programme, we were visited by 2020Dreams who led a workshop on our termly theme of Healthy Relationships through supporting students' knowledge and understanding of equality, misogyny, and sexual harassment. Over 500 students attended this workshop back in January. Students commented 'I thought the workshop went really well and I liked that there was lots of debating' (Level 3 Animal Management student) and 'It was an amazing workshop, wish we had more time' (Level 2 Adventure Education student).

In Personal Development Lessons, our students have been learning about protected characteristics and how around the world, we still have a way to come with women's rights. Students were asked questions such as 'can women legally drive in Saudi Arabia?¹' 'Worldwide, do women have freedom of choice about their own bodies?²' 'Are women are equally protected by law?³' with the idea of getting them to think about their opinions and discussing different opinion with respect.

A bit of history: During WW2, Plumpton was used for short courses for over 200 entrants to the Women's Land Army, where they were trained for farm work in different parts of the country.

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1. Can women legally drive in Saudi Arabia? YES

• Women in Saudi Arabia won the right to drive in 2018, but still require permission from a male guardian to do other things, such as travel or seek employment opportunities.

2. Worldwide, do women have freedom of choice about their own bodies? NO

• Globally, only 56% of women are able to make their own decisions about their sexual and reproductive health and rights.
• 31 states (of the United States) have laws that allow forced sterilisations.
• Many doctors in USA will not sterilise a woman without spousal consent.

3. Are women are equally protected by law? NO

• Sexual consent cannot be withdrawn in North Carolina.
• In Malta, a man can receive a reduced sentence for kidnapping if he intends to marry the victim. If the man marries his victim after the abduction, he will be exempt from prosecution and punishment.