Students, staff, alumni and industry guests connect at 'inspiring' event
Over 70 guests took the opportunity to celebrate 'Women in the Built Environment' at the latest event in our long-running series of annual networking events for female ADBE students.
By Jon Duckworth | Published on 30 January 2025
Launched in 2013, the Women in the Built Environment event series has now been bringing together female built environment professionals and students for 13 years. The events are a chance to celebrate the successes and achievements of women in the field, while recognising the ongoing challenge of improving gender balance and supporting future generations entering the sector.
At the latest event, held on 20 January in Newton Building, over 70 students and delegates (including NTU staff, alumni, industry guests and representatives from professional bodies) gathered for an evening of talks and networking opportunities.
Among the speakers were Holly Mills, a Senior Lecturer in Architecture and Athena Swan Champion for the School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, opening the event, and Laura Rugadza, Social Mobility Project Officer, who presented on the NTU Women's Development Programme.
They were joined by representatives from Women in Planning (an independent network for women in the planning industry) and speakers from Women in Construction (Naomi Brown of S Brown Paving Ltd, Jessica Hird from Stat Planning, Carrie Booth of BSP Consulting). There was also a talk by Annie Lattimore, an Architectural Technology student who is currently on placement with ARC Partnership and who last year won the East Midlands Women in Property award.
As usual, the event proved to a be a big hit with those who attended.
"It was inspiring to see other women in the same field as me talking about their jobs experience and how NTU helped them to achieve their goals," said one student.
"Learning about everybody's different experiences and different jobs opened my eyes more to real life. I also loved how powerful I felt seeing so many successful women!" said another.
The event, organised by the ADBE and the NTU Employability team with support from the Alumni team and students, is already looking ahead to next year's Women in the Built Environment. If any attendees would like to provide feedback or share ideas they are advised to contact Nicola Varley.