June 2026
Golden hedgerow flowers – You may not see them, but they’re there…
Soroptimists too are not always visible in their community…
Since the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing China and the adoption of the Platform for Action, the UN Commission on the Status of Women (now UN Women) has sought to improve every aspect of life for women
During 1995-2000, there were many ‘historic firsts’ for girls and women
Dame Stella Rimington, first woman to lead the UK’s Security Service MI5
Women allowed to serve on Royal Navy Submarines
Many more girls entered primary education
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Since 1976 SI Woking has supported a wide range of projects and charities, at home and abroad. They include:
SOS Children’s Village, Mamelodi (South Africa) – Mary’s Meals Backpack Project
See Solar- Cook Solar – Purple Community Fund (Sri Lanka/Africa) – Smalls for All
Meru Women’s Garden Project
Railway Station Survey 2026
SI Woking took part in this survey by the our Soroptimist International federation (SIGBI), so we are glad to see the published results. But those results show that safty for women needs to be better.
Read SIGBI’s Railway Station Safety Survey Report here: https://sigbi.org/railwaysurvey/
FIFA World Cup
The football championship is exciting and a great experience for everyone…or is it?
“The Unspoken Stat”: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZsxDgdNORV/?igsh=ZjFiODliZTJqNWxk
https://www.healthysurrey.org.uk/domestic-abuse/white-ribbon/domestic-abuse-crosses-the-line
Cervical Cancer Awareness Week – 16-21 June 2026
Read the Soroptimists International national federation article – https://sigbi.org/2026/cervical-screening-awareness-week/
Recognition for Women Past and Present
This month, our Communication Officer met members of SI Sunderland in the National Glass Centre – an opportunity to exchange experiences and thoughts about the future. But also to look back at the past. Sunderland Soroptimists, after a long campaign, have raised a statue to the wonderful women who worked in the shipyards during World War II when the men were away fighting.
Molly the Welder stands proudly on the quayside as a tribute to them.
Many Sunderland women past and present are celebrated in a current Sunderland Museum exhibition: ‘ Rebel Women of Sunderland’. Florence Collard is there, another woman who worked in the shipyards, carrying out vital work. Abbie Robinson is an example of present-day women breaking barriers: she is the first blind woman to represent Britain in competitive paraclimbing.
International recognition: Professor Sarah A. Teichmann of the University of Cambridge is the 2026 L’Oréal–UNESCO For Women in Science International Laureate for Europe. She is Chair of Stem Cell Medicine at Cambridge University.