On 8th March Henley College celebrated International Women’s day with a uplifting event full of inspirational speeches. 

The event took part in the Cuthbert suite of Henley College’s Deanfield site and was highly successful in numbers of students and staff taking part and the empowering speeches. On the tables there were a variety of cards outlining the achievements of inspirational women and stickers with encouraging phrases. Not to mention the free chocolates!

The event focused on the importance of ‘championing gender equality and fostering inclusivity in all aspects of life.’, and had a theme of ‘Inspire Inclusion’. 

The two speakers were the Mayor of Henley and school governor Kellie Hinton, and senior vice president of Global Alliances, channels at Zoovu, and host and founder of the ‘In Her Shoes’ podcast, Lamees Butt (another young reporter has shared Lamee’s story)

Kellie’s speech was full to the brim of shocking statistics around councils and the lack of young people, especially young women in the profession, and politics in general.  

She also shared her remarkable story which perfectly demonstrates the importance of helping your community by getting involved in councils and hard work. 

Kellie is an independent councillor who is currently sitting her second term as the mayor of Henley. She is one of the youngest mayors in the country and was voted best young mayor in 2017. Due to her growing up in Henley she was passionate about the community and aspired to make it even better. Her passion for Henley started at a young age as she lived at YMCA and enjoyed gardening while there. 

Fitting the theme of the day Kellie encouraged attendees to get involved in politics and spread the word. Anyone over the age of 18 can run for mayor in Henley so it’s never too early to start. For example, getting involved in community groups or even joining a political party can get you started on a path that may even lead to becoming Mayor one day!