Ninety-nine years after women won the vote, the spirit of the Pankhursts lives on in Manchester, as CEO of the Pankhurst Centre, Gail Heath has been confirmed to open Girls Out Loud’s Shining Stars Ball on 29th September 2017.
The inaugural ball will raise money to fund social enterprise Girls Out Loud’s work with teenage girls – principally its flagship 12-month ‘Big Sister’ mentoring programme, which partners girls in years 8 and 9 with professional, female role models from their local area.
Since the organisation was founded by Jane Kenyon in 2010, it has worked with more than 5,000 girls across 35 schools, empowering them to believe in themselves and succeed.
Gail Heath said:
“I’m delighted to be supporting the Shining Stars Ball – the work that Girls Out Loud does in the North West and beyond is vital and I’m proud to be a part of their fundraising efforts.
I think it’s something that the Pankhurst women would definitely have got behind!”
Also attending will be Jo Whitfield, CEO of headline sponsor Co-Op Food and the UK’s most senior woman in grocery, along with representatives from McVities, NBrown, Card Factory, OneManchester, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Accenture, and more.
Girls Out Loud was recently announced as an official partner on sanitary product brand, Always’ most recent #LikeAGirl campaign.
Jane will be one of three members of the #LikeAGirl squad, alongside Alesha Dixon, of Britain’s Got Talent and Mis-teeq fame, and YouTube star Hannah Witton.
Together, the squad will share their own stories of perseverance through failure via a series of podcasts and events, designed to mentor young women and inspire them to keep going.
Events include the Always #LikeAGirl Academy day, which will take place in March 2018, in line with International Women’s Day, and in partnership with Tesco; bringing together young women from across the UK to participate in a fun and educational day dedicated to building confidence.
Jane Kenyon said:
“It’s a really exciting time for Girls Out Loud, with loads of brilliant stuff going on!
We’re particularly excited for our first ever fundraising ball, especially now that Gail’s on board. As someone who has done so much for women and girls, it really is an honour to have her opening the Shining Stars Ball for 2017.”
For more information about the Shining Stars Ball, please visit www.girlsoutloud.org.uk/events