On Wednesday 16th October we held our bi-annual Senior Leaders Forum, an exclusive event for FairPlay Employer Subscribers. Hosted by Companies House – a Silver FairPlay Employer – the event kicked off with a wonderful buffet lunch and networking.

We presented our recent research, Triple Glazed Ceiling, written by our in house researcher Dr Hade Turkman. The presentation covered the findings of the report and, most importantly, the recommendations to businesses on how they can engage and employ more BAME Women.

We were privileged to receive Maria Constanza Mesa, Director of Women Connect First, who gave an enthralling talk on her journey as a woman of colour refugee who came to Wales and, by overcoming many barriers, has found herself in a prestigious position of leadership at Women Connect First.

Having given our guests a lot of food for thought the last part of the meeting, an engaging conversation around the topic, was facilitated by our Chief Executive Cerys Furlong Discussions ranged from what can be done to ensure the active inclusion of BAME women in our organisations as well as recognising the important value that diversity can bring. The conversation took an interesting turn, focusing on how post-recruitment, BAME Women could be made to feel included, touching on the need for networks, active involvement in working practices and consideration of decolonising our institutions.

Thank you to all those who came, and made the event such a success. We received positive feedback and have some excellent suggestions about future topics to take forward.