Soroptimist International North West England and the Isle of Man

… make it matter! Northwest Soroptimists are delighted to announce that the next Regional Conference is taking place at Brockholes Nature Reserve Conference Centre on Saturday 13 May 2023. This is a new venue for our first conference in the post-Covid era. Brockholes Nature Reserve is located off M6 Junction 31 and is very conveniently situated for delegates from throughout the Northwest and beyond. The aim of the Conference stimulate discussion broaden knowledge and horizons provide networking opportunities The Conference speakers come from a variety of backgrounds, representing national or international organisations and/or undertaking work overseas. It is hoped they…

SIGBI Belfast Conference 27 to 29 October 2022 Soroptimists from across the region (and indeed, from across the world) gathered in Belfast last month for the 88th annual Federation Conference - theme "Climate for Change". A chance to listen to inspiring speakers - Rebecca Cecil-Wright (EnviroFest International), Leigh Ellwood-Brown (Soroptimist International South East Asia Pacific), Elizabeth Gowing (The Ideas Partnership), Gemma Milne (author of ‘Smoke & Mirrors: How Hype Obscures the Future and How to See Past It’), Tara Shine (Change by Degrees), Robyn Knox (British Red Cross) - and hear first hand some of the work which has been...

How do Northwest Soroptimists help to raise awareness of Modern Day Slavery? By taking part in the PLASP Roadshow Soroptimists from Preston, Blackpool, Garstang, Pendleside and Blackburn went to Blackpool on Saturday October 22nd to support the Pan Lancashire Anti Slavery Patnership (PLASP) with their Raising Awareness Roadshow. It was held to mark Anti Slavery Day on 18th October. Volunteers were giving out leaflets in front of a large screen which attracted a lot of interest from passers by. Our members marched up and down the sea front wielding placards and also handing out leaflets. It was busy in Blackpool...

The Fair Trade Way 'Chocolate Has A Name' is raising funds to set up chocolate making workshops for children of cocoa farmers in Ghana. This will help keep girls in school, reduce the chance of child marriage and give them skills to enable them to develop a career using cocoa produced by their family. Soroptimists from Lancaster, Grange over Sands and Windermere hosted Joanna Pollard on her 91 mile Fair Trade Way walk from Garstang to Keswick. She had a good send off by Garstang member Ruth Bruce and some members of SI Grange walked with her on the two...

Guess what Karen’s been up to! Former Regional Membership Officer (and member of Preston Soroptimists) Karen is always fizzing with bright ideas. And one of her latest ones had members dancing in the aisles…!  

Burns Night 22 January 2022 Grange Soroptimists organised a Burns Night with a difference this year, on Zoom. Soroptimists from the Northwest Region and beyond were invited, and the club also welcomed two members of Soroptimist International Braunschweig in Germany, including their President Brigitte. Ewen Cameron piped in the haggis and then recited the Address to the Haggis from memory, which was most impressive. Rebecca Bilkau educated and entertained us with the Immortal Memory, rounding off with husband Michael singing “A Man’s a Man for a’ that” – in German! Richard Grout proposed the Toast to the Lassies and Gill…