International Women's Day 2023

International Women’s Day 2023

Who inspires you? Can you name some great women of our time?

Looking back to our past there are many great examples of women who made the difference in their fields or for humanity – whether it was helping end apartheid or transformed literature – but what about contemporary ones?
On International Women Day this year we decided to celebrate the outstanding members we have : from our Chief Scout’s Unsung Heroes to our Ambassadors and Adventurers.

From raising awareness to hosting awards, meet our 14 incredible young members, our female Chief Scout’s Unsung Heroes.

1.     Zaynab Ali made outstanding contribution as host for Basecamp 22, a conference for over 600 Scout volunteers in Manchester in May 2022. She hosted both the daytime programme and the evening awards. Her positivity, confidence, good humour and clear presentation skills contributed a huge amount to the success of the event.

2.     Isabelle Fountain has been in Scouting since 2009, as a Beaver, Cub and Scout, progressing on to Explorers, continuing as a Young Leader and now a CSSA . She has the condition Autoimmune Hypothyroidism, needing daily medication and monthly blood tests, but hasn’t ever let the resulting fatigue and dietary issues stop her. When her Mum contracted Covid 19, which developed into Long Covid,  with no family members living close by, Izzy took care of her Mum whilst continuing with A level studies during the Lockdowns. She achieved good A level results in July 2021, accepted a university place but deferred to continue to care for her Mum, showing courage, kindness and true Scout values.

3.     Nicole Finlay has suffered from an extreme case of FND for the past few years and she's been raising awareness of this little known condition. Due to her FND she was previously a target of online bullying with other young people sharing videos of her seizures. Instead of letting this bring her down she turned it into a story of resilience. This has helped others come forward and they now have a support network in place. She's also been an ambassador, speaking at medical events and summits on what it means to be a teenager with the condition. In her free time she also helps run a local running club and often organises and marshals events. https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2023/january/meet-nicole-the-fnd-inspirer/

4.     Lexie Brown steps up every time. She offers suggestions and solutions and will help with anything that needs to be done. Lexie’s always smiling, encouraging to Beavers and Cubs and is consistent in everything she does. She’s a credit to her family, her group and the Scout movement. 

5.     Isabelle Bennett loved Scouts ever since she joined Beavers aged 6. In October 2021, aged 11, she was diagnosed with Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. While having treatment for her illness, Isabelle took a few months out of Scouts. Even though she couldn’t go to her usual sessions, she was keen to stay involved. Her Scout leader gave her a box of activities so she could keep up with her badges in hospital. On the days she felt well enough, Isabelle even carried on practising ballet by her hospital bed https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2022/december/isabelle-s-inspiring-never-give-up-spirit/ 

6.     Emily Saville contracted COVID in September 2021 which escalated to excruciating pain in various areas as well as losing the use of one leg. She lost her independence and her mental health deteriorated. By Mid-October Emily was taken to hospital by ambulance with breathing difficulties, but was discharged with the thought that she would recover in time. However, she couldn’t use her left side, was very fatigued and had significant pain. Emily has learnt to walk again whilst raising awareness of long COVID in children, and raising £10,000 towards NHS charities.

7.     Liliane Cunliffe walked 100 miles raising over £1,100 for the Epilepsy Society. She then held a ‘purple day’ at her school raising awareness of epilepsy, raising another £250. Last Christmas, she shared her story, designed a Christmas card and fronted the Epilepsy Society’s Christmas campaign raising £40k for charity. She never stops smiling. https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2022/december/lilianes-amazing-fundraising/

8.   Millie Freshwater had little brother, Kip, that passed away following a 4 year battle with leukaemia. Kip was 5 and spent most of his short life in and out of hospitals. Throughout his illness Millie was by his side whenever she could be, putting on a brave face when needed and giving Kip as much love as she possibly could, always putting him first. She was his best friend, big sister and role model. Since Kip’s passing Millie has worked with her parents to raise over £45,000 in Kip’s memory to support children in the UK and low-income countries with improved access to medics, medicine and life-saving care. 

9.     Ella Dillon works incredibly hard to balance Beavers with being a young Carer. At Beavers, Ella likes to play games, taking part fun activities, getting lots of badges, making new friends, and going on trips, hikes and camps. She always helps the younger children in her Colony, too. Ella’s help doesn’t stop there: at home, she helps mum with her walking and get her things that she can’t pick up. She helps make toast when she’s having a bad day, gets her mum a drink, loads the dishwasher and helps sort out the washer. She also helps mum with personal care when she struggles to bend or straightens her mum’s knee when it hurts her to move it. https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2022/december/ella-balances-beavers-with-being-a-fantastic-young-carer/ 

10.  Phoebe Clark camped with her family as part of the Great British Camp Out to, but she ended up turning into 100 nights. Through a JustGiving campaign she raised £1155 for Refuge. 

11.  Amy Bavin was an initial first aider working as an apprentice administration assistant at a school, when a 12 year old boy fell unwell. She began performing CPR on the boy until the emergency services arrived. The boy survived as a result of her calmness and prompt actions.

12.  Laura Davies helped an elderly lady and her husband when she had a fall. She called an ambulance and reassured her deaf husband. When the lady became unresponsive, she called 999 again who talked her through what to do. The lady had a bleed on the brain and a stroke and unfortunately died. Laura as a young leader at her local scout group wanted to explain the importance of how to get help when needed.

13.  Amy Keogh suffers from teenage arthritis and had a stroke in 2016 (aged 19) yet continued scouting in some of Birmingham’s most deprived areas. Despite suffering from PTSD and post-stroke complication, she engages with a wide range of things, including SEN inclusion, Mental Health, Hedgehog Pilot, District Group Scout Leader, and a team leader within the NHS 111 and 999 Services.

As Scouts we promise to do our best, and these young women embody our promise. As we believe in leading by example, please meet our role models: Scouts Adventurers and Ambassadors.
Scouts Adventurers ( https://www.scouts.org.uk/about-us/our-people/scout-adventurers/) are always out in front, pushing frontiers and testing their limits. From swimming the length of Britain, conquering Everest and reaching the ends of the earth, these are the best and the bravest of us. They love the outdoors and want to get as many young people out there too.

Karen Darke MBE, Paralympian, overcome injury, learned new sports from scratch and picked up gold along the way. A Paralympic hand cyclist and adventurer, Karen has crossed the Greenland ice cap on skis and inspired thousands.

Laura Jones, runner, she run seven marathons on seven continents with very little running experience. Yes, she did and Laura didn’t stop to wonder, she just did it, raising funds for charities along the way, including the Scouts.

Phoebe Smith, extreme sleeper, has grabbed some shut-eye at Everest Base Camp, on the Great Barrier Reef and in the Arctic Circle. When not writing books she travels across the globe, camping out in some of the world’s wildest places. Where’s the strangest place you’ve ever slept?

Sal Montgomery, lifesaver: she is one of the UK’s leading kayakers. She’s led expeditions across the world and made national headlines when she rescued Steve Backshall while on a river in Bhutan. Growing up in Nottingham, Sal got her first experience of canoeing while on Scouts camp and never looked back. 
‘Scouts creates super valuable opportunities that you wouldn’t have had otherwise, opening your eyes to so many cool things you can do.’

If those women’s achievement impressed you, keep reading: our Scouts Ambassadors are made from the same – awesome – cloth: (https://www.scouts.org.uk/about-us/our-people/scout-ambassadors/)

They're all different kinds of people but have one thing in common: to share far and wide how Scouts is helping young people gain skills for life.

Anita Rani, the presenter. It’s impossible to keep up with Anita. From leading the way with the anti-plastics revolution, to trekking through India or championed rare vinyl, she has as many interests and fans. 
‘The Scouts help young people develop those all-important life skills. It inspires so many.’

Megan Hine, the survivalist. It takes a special kind of person to fend off a pack of lions or out-run armed guerrillas in the jungle. These are all things Meg has achieved in her incredible career. Truly at home in the outdoors. 
‘The Scouts help young people get the best possible start in life.’

Helen Glover, the rower. Two Olympic gold medals and three world championships tells you a lot about Helen. When it comes to putting in the hours and never giving up, she’s top of the list.  ‘The Scouts led to a love of the outdoors and really grew my confidence. The skills you gain through Scouting are incredible.’

Ellie Simmonds, the swimmer. Winning two Paralympic gold medals in Beijing at the age of 13 was just the start for Ellie. Golds at London 2012 and Rio 2016 followed and she’s still at the top of her game. ‘Young people need positive role models. They need places to try new things and not be afraid to fail. Scouting is one of those places.’

Julia Bradbury, the hiker. She’s inspired thousands to get up off the sofa and enjoy the great British countryside. A walker, presenter she’s also passionate about making the countryside accessible to all.  'The Scouts are brilliant. They give young people those opportunities to experience adventure.’

Saray Khumalo, the climber. Quite simply, Saray is a phenomenon. Born in Zambia, she's carved an international reputation as both a mountaineer and champion for young people’s education. As well as conquering Everest in May 2019, she's explored across the world and was the first Black African woman to stand at the South Pole.  ‘Through my climbing, I've been raising funds and building libraries for under privileged schools.'
Watch Saray's Paddle to the Amazon challenge video