Women’s Resource Centre’s mission is to stand up for a diverse and thriving women’s sector. One way we do this is by delivering a rich variety of training courses. In 2018, we piloted what was to become one of our most successful and popular training courses to date: the Women’s Leadership for Social Change training (also called Feminist Leadership). We have now completed a hugely successful pilot programme and hosted multiple one-off sessions with various agencies.

The running theme in the feedback we have received is that this training has increased the self-confidence and self-worth amongst the women who attend. Perhaps this is the most important outcome. I think the aspect of the training that was so profound, and perhaps unanticipated by us, was that we provided the opportunity to self-reflect. This self-reflection made a lot of women realise that they already have a lot of leadership skills and that they are leaders in their own right, not despite of what they have been through, but with their experiences as an asset.

Empowerment is key in the training we do. We use the definition by Women and Girls Network who says that for them, being empowered is to be ‘resourced internally and externally’. This definition really speaks to us, as it implies being provided with both inner strengths, such as confidence and self-worth, as well as practical skills, tools and knowledge. And this is very much what we try to do at WRC – both as an organisation and through this programme.

The training integrates theory with practice and real life examples. It covers topics including:

• Feminism, intersectionality and leadership
• Unconscious Bias
• Burnout: Signs, Impact and Prevention
• Emotional Intelligence
• Project Management: tools and techniques
• Power and Empowerment
• Feminist Values, Principles and Politics
• Pitching and presentation
• Conflict Management

Women’s Resource Centre is a strong advocate of the need for women-only services. The power of the sisterhood is profound and we aim to facilitate a safe space of support and solidarity. This training is about doing things differently and to challenge traditional and stereotypical masculine notions of leadership. This does not mean that we are necessarily affirming the opposite. Rather, it’s about transforming and deconstructing our understanding of gender whilst exposing and challenging masculine ideals and biases. Essentially, it’s about creating, living and acting upon a leadership style that is transformative, inclusive, adaptable, transparent and powerful – i.e. feminist.

We are currently delivering this training as both full programmes and standalone 1 or 2 day versions. Please contact Evelina for more information.

Words from our alumni:

“Very valuable training - offers range and depth of new ideas, skills and resources which aren't easily identified. Very much enjoyed the way it as delivered and the 'stories' that accompanied each resource - very inspirational.”

“I would like to share some of the activities and learning with my team. I am confident I will refer back to these resources in the future when making my own bids to lead projects.”

“[The training increased my] confidence and deepened my knowledge of leadership and feminist practice. I now feel I have a feminist toolkit to use in practical situations.”

“Fantastic training, very personable! Fantastic expertise and shared knowledge. Great reflection space - felt safe. Thank you!”

“The first day was so amazing - motivating and inspiring to be brought together as women in women’s sector. Second day, I feel like I have more practical tools to test out and the theory to understand why I need to do this”

---

Author

Evelina Svensson, Development Manager at WRC. Project manager and trainer of the Women’s Leadership for Social Change programme.

---

Would you be interested in writing a blog for us? We would love to hear from you! Please fill out this form and we'll be in touch!