Three female leaders from very different walks of life will join colleagues at Leeds Building Society to raise awareness of gender diversity to mark International Women’s Day.
Leeds Building Society will host a panel discussion to help colleagues explore ways to support gender diversity and discuss what makes a good leader, including the stereotypes of leadership.
Jenny Ryatt, director of mortgage services at Leeds Building Society will be joined by Tracy Fletcher, a trustee of Smart Works Leeds – a charity that supports women in Yorkshire into employment, and Nia Jones, captain of Leeds Rhinos Netball Team.
Jenny Ryatt, said: “The path to women’s equality has been long and challenging and we still have work to do.
“Only a matter of decades ago, a woman who wanted to take out a mortgage in her own sole name needed a male guarantor to satisfy the lender.
“And for joint mortgages, a woman’s salary wasn’t even considered against the lending.”
She continued: “Thankfully, a lot has changed and women now account for half of all our borrowers, and last year 54% of mortgage accounts opened by a single person were by women, an increase from 46% just six years ago.
“This is great to see and represents a huge step in the right direction for gender equality in homeownership.
“It is important that we all take steps to ensure that we continue to make progress on the path to gender equality. I believe that equity and parity are the foundations of a successful organisation.
“Throughout my career, coaching and mentoring others has been one of my priorities, and I believe in reaching out to help others and enabling them to smash through glass ceilings.”
Leeds Building Society’s refreshed inclusion and diversity strategy ‘Being You: Transforming Us’ aims to ensure every colleague feels valued and included for who they are and the unique perspectives they bring.
Recognising that not all its colleagues identify with the binary view of gender (male/female) and in the last year Leeds Building Society have promoted the use of gender inclusive pronouns.
2022 saw the launch of a new HR platform, which has enabled Leeds Building Society to expand the data set collected from colleagues, including giving colleagues the opportunity to share their gender identity.
This will help the Society better understand its diverse colleague representation at all levels in the Society.
At Leeds Building Society, women make up 61% of the total workforce. And 35% of the leadership team are female, up 3% since 2021.
