Women in Politics Webinar - 1 June 2022

The event featured women who represent their communities, including the current Leader of West Berkshire Council. 
They discussed their journeys, why they made those choices, and what they would suggest to women thinking about taking this step.
You can view the Webinar here, please enter the passcode - c5q%=wd0 when requested to view the video.

We know how important it is to find out as much information as possible, we would recommend that you visit the Local Government Association website. They run a selection of Webinars and events which you can join and ask questions. 

According to the 2011 Census, women and girls made up 51% of the population of England and Wales, and men and boys made up 49%. However, in the 2019 local government elections, women made up just 35% of councillors across England, with women outnumbered three-to-one on 12% of councils, including West Berkshire. 

Based on engagement within the district, we know that there is a desire for change, and women want to be more involved in their communities and make a positive change now and for future generations.

Following conversations within the Council, both with councillors and officers (officers are staff who work for the council permanently), we need to support and encourage women to get into politics by cutting through the smoke and mirrors that can surround all forms of Government. 

At our events, we hope that we will be able to answer as many of your questions as possible.

However, we know that many of these should be simple and easy to find out, so we've listed some of the questions we feel everyone should have the answers to on our Frequently Asked Questions on Being a Councillor page!

Last year Lynne Doherty, the Leader of the Council, shared a post on 'Encouraging women into local politics' which you can read, here.