Summer is in full swing, and the weather is not the only thing that has been heating up. July has been go, go, go for Represent Women. We have hosted stalls at two child poverty events, attended the relaunch of the Community Foundations Women and Girls fund, asked Steph McGovern two questions about her involvement with the women’s sector, contributed to the North East Anti-Racism Coalition’s Policing Roundtable and held the last expert panel for the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority’s Women’s Safety on Public Transport study, as well as visiting five of our amazing tier 1 members.
It’s safe to say we have not let the heat slow us down one bit, and we once again have a lot to share with you in this monthly update.
Firstly, we attended the ‘Anything is Possible: Tackling Child Poverty Together Across Tees Valley’ event.
This event, planned and hosted by the North East Child Poverty Commission alongside Close-Knit Families and a small group of community partners, was action packed and had an amazing agenda. It was great to see colleagues from across the voluntary sector and to understand the challenge ahead and look at solutions, roles and responsibilities. It was also good to catch up with a colleague from Tees Valley Combined Authority and to discuss some ideas for engagement with the Women’s sector.
We also attended the ‘Creating Real Opportunity – Child Poverty Summit 2026’ which was convened by Mayor Kim McGuinness and the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority. This was an opportunity to mark one year since the Child Poverty Action Plan was launched. The summit focused on how we can support families right now, break down barriers to opportunity, and tackle the longer‑term structural challenges that prevent children and young people from thriving.
We had a stall at both events and used this opportunity to amplify the voices of women’s organisations who do so much to alleviate child poverty, even when their work isn’t labelled as such. It was also great to catch up with Ceri from the National Lottery Community Fund, and for her as a funder to see Represent Women’s work in action.
For a full breakdown on the vital role of women and girls organisations in tackling child poverty, see our blog post here: Tackling Child Poverty Across the North East and the Vital Role of the Women and Girls Sector in Doing So | Represent Women
Another great event we attended this month was the Community Foundation’s Relaunch of the Women and Girls’ Fund, a fund that has been supporting women and girls organisations for over 25 years.
The North East Women and Girls Fund, originally called The Women’s Fund, was launched by Dame Margaret Barbour in 1999 with an initial donation of £250,000 from the Barbour Trust. Dame Margaret had a vision; she wanted the Fund to be a collective endeavour enabling local people to support women in our region.
Alongside forging a range of new connections, Erin, who attended on behalf of Represent Women, discussed with the panel how we can better support women’s organisations and encourage stronger partnerships between women business founders and charity CEOs.
We were also pleased to see that some of the data we collected in partnership with Community Foundation, around philanthropic giving to strengthen the work of the Women and Girls fund, was included in the report shared at the event.
To find out more, read our full blog post detailing the event here: Community Foundation North East relaunch their Women and Girls Fund | Represent Women
We were also invited to contribute to the North East Anti-Racism Coalition’s Policing Roundtable held this month. It was great to see the VCSE sector being represented and included in this discussion. We were particularly keen to highlight the link between race, gender and policing, recognising that women often have distinct experiences of engaging with the police, including when reporting incidents or seeking support and that it is often the women’s organisations who support them that hold that trusted relationship.
This month also marked the last of the expert panels we have been convening on behalf of the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority to help guide and advise their Women’s Safety on Public Transport study. A huge thank you to Women’s Health in South Tyneside (WHiST), Rape and Sexual Abuse Counselling Centre (RSACC), Women’s Workshop, Young Women’s Project, and Just for Women in Stanley. Your expertise and the voices of the women you support have been invaluable in informing the study, contributing vital insight and lived experience to the evidence gathered. Thank you!
Erin also attended the North East MSA’s Social Value Strategy session, hosted by VONNE, as well as a feedback session on Northumbria OPCC Women’s Safety Charter. There was lots to talk about in both sessions and many ideas shared on both topics.
Some other exciting meetings Erin attended this month include a productive meeting with freelancer Laura McIntyre who will be supporting our research project looking into the value of the women and girls sector. A massive thank you to all of the organisations who have completed the survey! Without your input, this wouldn’t be possible. Erin has started to analyse the data, and we will be planning some future events to gain input from decision-makers.
We also spent a lot of time visiting some of our tier 1 member organisations this month as Livv travelled across the North to five different organisations throughout July.
We visited Apna Ghar, Millin Charity, Al- Falaq Counselling, Community of African Women and Just for Women Centre. Getting to meet with our members and see first-hand the service you provide and the impact you make is always invaluable to us at Represent Women. We are always so grateful when you take the time to show us around your centres, invite us to your events and let us join in on your sessions, we always come away from these meetings with a stronger sense of purpose to keep advocating for the sector as best we can.
Lastly, Grace attended a training session with Media Trust, which was all about staying visible and not losing momentum even when faced with challenges.
The training which was a panel discussion made up of Rosie Milsom (Fundraising Consultant and Coach), Amanda Jones (founder of Skilling Time) and Collette Sheaff (Head of Marketing and Fundraising at Street Vet) discussed how things may be difficult for the charity sector right now but we shouldn’t lose hope.
A powerful message we have been thinking about since the training ended.
Rosie summed up these feelings of hope and empowerment when she closed the session saying: “The charity sector always bounces back; there is nothing like a charity person for resilience and persistence.
“Your good is good enough!”
We left the session ready to keep doing what we do best, advocating for the women and girls sector and we wanted to pass that feeling on to all of you reading this blog.