Soroptimist International Great Britain & Ireland (SIGBI), a registered women’s charity with United Nations consultancy status, is marking its 90th year by relaunching a national railway safety project.
It was initially launched in 1996 as “The Future of the Railways,” the initiative aimed to improve personal safety on public transport, particularly for women.
The charity celebrated its milestone at its 90th conference in Edinburgh from November 1-3, attended by over 500 women.
The three-day event featured distinct themes for each day: educate, empower, and enable. During the conference, SIGBI announced plans to revisit and expand the railway safety project.
The original campaign was sparked by an attack on a Soroptimist member on a London-area train and involved extensive grassroots research across over 500 British railway stations.
SIGBI’s renewed effort will reassess railway safety and extend its scope to include airports and bus stations, providing a comprehensive view of women’s safety in public transportation.
The charity aims to evaluate the progress made since 1996 and determine whether government approaches to passenger safety have evolved.
This relaunch demonstrates SIGBI’s ongoing commitment to women’s safety and its dedication to effecting positive change in public transportation security across the United Kingdom.
Speaking with Scottish Business News on the lead up to the event, Ruth Healey, President of SIGBI, said:
“We have decided to go back to that project and see if any progress has been made over the last 25 years and decide if we are any further in women feeling safe in transport and traveling.
“Another thing were looking at is the British Transport reporting app and if it is making a difference. After this weekend were going to go out and do a survey over the next six months and pull together another report on what has improved and what areas still needs work.”
“We want to see if people are aware of the app and if it is making a difference.”
When asked about any focus on Scottish issues or projects during the conference, Ruth said: “One of our big campaigns is the 16 days of activism which happens in November and December and its UN campaign called orange in the world and its about highlighting issues of violence against women.
“In the UK we’ve taken this orange theme and many of our clubs take on what we call orange in the world, we might meet up in a cafe all wearing orange on the 25th of the month.
“Members of public come up to us and it opens the conversation up about violence against women. The idea started in Edinburgh 18 months ago.”
“We have 35 display boards which are displaying projects from all our regions and national associations around the UK and the rest of the world.
“Every one of them has got a board where they’re displaying the types of projects they’re doing. The idea is to show the breach and depth of work that we’re doing.”
Maria Macnamara, Founder and CEO of Smalls for All, said: “Giving pants and bras may seem like a small thing, but it can make a life-changing difference.
“Each month many teenage girls miss school, and women miss work, because of a lack of access to underwear means they’re forced to stay at home during their period.
“Demand remains huge in Africa, but, in recent years, has also increased significantly in the UK.
“We’re so grateful to have been part of the SIGBI conference to share our message and express our thanks to the Soroptimists for the wonderful donations they’ve made, both at this conference and over the years.”
Ruth concluded: “It’s been incredible getting so many Soroptimists in one room to reflect on what we’ve achieved, as well as to look ahead to the next phase of some of our key projects.
“It’s only by working together that we can empower women and girls to achieve their full potential and eliminate barriers and discriminations that hinder women’s progress.”
To mark the charity’s nine decades, Soroptimists are also completing a ‘90 for 90 years’ challenge – including everything from supporting foodbanks, to knitting for premature baby units, to donating items to domestic abuse charities, and more.
“What I want women to go away from this conference is the feeling of pride. We don’t shout about ourselves and the amount of work, in this federation only, we helped 85,000 women and girls, and we raised over half a million pounds.
“That’s just with a small group of people the amount of works that being done, even if its something small it all adds up.
“What we tried to show here this weekend, is we’re really doing some amazing stuff and making a difference.”
