Empowering Young Women
To Carve Their Own Paths

Girl Tech Leeds is just around the corner, what are you most looking forward to? 

It’s been a busy few months putting the finishing touches on this year’s Girl Tech Leeds event to make sure we have a brilliant selection of diverse businesses and specialisms in digital and tech represented at the event. It’s such a unique opportunity for young people to get a flavour of the huge variety of different careers available in the sector. I’m really looking forward to seeing it all come together on the day and welcoming so many enthusiastic young women from across Leeds and role models from across the industry.  

Why do you think events like Girl Tech are so important to engage young people with the digital and tech sector? 

We know there is a need for more diversity within the digital and tech space, and to address this we need to start widening the talent pool. This must start as early as possible, before college or university, to ensure young people develop the essential skills needed.  

Girl Tech is designed to reach young people at a critical time in their education, before they choose their GCSE options, when they are aged 12-14. This might seem like a young age to be thinking about their future careers, but this gives young people exposure to more careers and industries and provides useful information about career pathways before they take the next steps in their education. Events like Girl Tech can provide some clarity and help them choose the right subjects to study towards a particular career or can reassure them that there are opportunities out there no matter what they decide.   

It’s all about showing young people a variety of careers that they might not be aware of and allowing them to hear first-hand from women in the industry who they can identify with, whether they look or sound alike, or come from the same place, or have a similar background. Girl Tech helps to empower young people so that they can make informed decisions about what they want to be when they grow up.   

How does Girl Tech support diversity, equity and inclusion within the digital and tech space? 

According to Tech Talent Charter’s Diversity in Tech report, only 9% of tech employees are reported to be from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. This compares to 39% of the population. We carefully select schools to invite to Girl Tech so that the event has the greatest impact. The young women who attend might not have family connections in the industry or large networks to draw on when it comes to getting inspiration for their careers. But meeting and interacting with role models they can identify with in some way shows them what is possible and what they could also go on to achieve in their future careers. This helps to build a pipeline of future talent for the digital & tech industry that is more diverse in terms of gender, race, socioeconomic background and experience and thinking too.  

Why do you do what you do?  

I’m so passionate about empowering young women, helping them be open to different opportunities, and setting them up to thrive in their futures. I am proof that you can be successful despite the area that you grow up in. By seeking out your own opportunities, you can carve out your own success. I want to ensure that all young people get the opportunity to live their best lives.    

Annamaria will be hosting Girl Tech Leeds on 17 May. If you’d like to learn more about Girl Tech, please visit aheadpartnership.org.uk/girl-tech or speak to Suzie Bell about how you can get involved through sponsorship: enquiries@aheadpartnership.org.uk