On Wednesday 28th January, Smart Works launched their International Women’s Day programme at Elland Road. Supporters, volunteers and staff gathered to hear about events, the work of Smart Works and their plans.
Most people’s perception of Smart Works is an organisation that provides unemployed women with smart clothes. But it is so much more than this. Clothes by themselves do not lead to successful interviews.
Having stylish clothing contributes to confidence, but you also need to be able to respond convincingly to interview questions. Smart Works coaches clients for interviews, enabling them to recognise their strengths and respond to questions confidently.
The Leeds charity launched in 2019 and last year alone assisted around 1300 women. An astounding 84% of these women went on to get a job within 6 months of engaging with Smart Works. The organisation has been growing year on year and has now outgrown its organisational premises.
Chair Tracy Fletcher explained how individuals or businesses can support this expansion by taking part in the Buy a Brick initiative, where for £500 you can sponsor a brick for the new premises. Plans include four coaching rooms, four dressing rooms and a communal space that will be used for workshops and socialising.
Over time, Smart Works Leeds will transform into Smart Works Yorkshire, with Bradford already having a project in place.
This is an organisation that is all about celebrating and enabling women. Not surprising then that they are embracing International Women’s Day and planning a host of activities in the lead up to and following 8 March. Events include Her Path, Her Power, a breakfast panel event at First Direct Arena on 2 March and a John Lewis fashion event on 18 March.
International Women’s Day itself will see a fund raising abseil at the Cow and Calf rocks in Ilkley. Taking part in the abseil challenge will be a team of four high-profile Yorkshire women: journalist, broadcaster and presenter Christine Talbot; model, podcaster and body confidence campaigner Rachel Peru; model and pro-age activist Annie Stirk and model and fashion events organiser Bernadette Gledhill – collectively known as Primed For Life – a collective promoting the visibility and wellbeing of women of all ages.
The highlight of the evening was listening to Fran Murphy talk about her journey with Smart Works. She had been told about their services when at a low ebb. Having just escaped a difficult domestic situation, she described herself as being emotionally floored and felt that she was unemployable.
Her interview coaching enabled her to see her lived experience as a positive she could take to the interview. Rather than worrying about gaps in her CV, she was able to talk about what she had learnt from the difficulties she had faced. The clothes, including boots and handbag, made her feel amazing and she loved being complimented by other women when she tried on her interview attire. Women are kitted out head to foot and the clothes are theirs to keep.
Fran went on to ace her first interview and got a job. Immediately, she rang Smart Works to thank them. The help doesn’t stop there; a capsule wardrobe is offered to ensure you have clothes to wear to work. Since then, Fran has volunteered for Smart Works and when a member of staff retired, she applied for their post and is now the West Yorkshire Outreach Lead.
Smart Works welcomes donations of clothes, funds or time. They are keen to ensure that they have clothes to suit all women. They are often seeking larger sizes, modest wear and plain black trousers. Not everyone wants to wear a two-piece suit to an interview. They also require workwear to ensure that women can take up the posts they their clients are offered.
https://leeds.smartworks.org.uk
Words and photography by Debbie Rolls.
