WISH South West: Advice to Your Younger Self

WISH South West celebrated International Women’s Day 2026 with a powerful and eye-opening workshop led by Bristol Women’s Voice’s Dahlia Von Carolath.

Dahlia invited us to think of one woman who inspires us and reflect on which of her qualities stand out most. Most of those who kindly shared their answers with the wider group described courageous women in their families, doing ‘everyday things’, caring for their families in often challenging settings.

This prompted the question: “What do leaders look like?” Through this, Dahlia encouraged each of us to inwardly reflect and challenge our own misogyny and gender biases. This exercise highlighted that not all leaders look the same, wear the same suits or walk in the same rooms. Leadership is a skill that can show up in various settings, in various shapes and forms.

The next exercise invited us to reflect on our qualities and write down those that we identify as being good at. Dahlia then prompted us to write all our aspirations and ambitious dreams, and encouraged us to step into the mindset of claiming these for ourselves. Giving ourselves permission to dare, to chase ambitions and follow our dreams is a powerful action we can all take, which, unfortunately, has been socially conditioned by gender to dictate what we can and cannot do.

Deepening our understanding and raising awareness allows us to consciously adjust behaviours so that we create a more equal and equitable society for all. The exercise ended with packing our letters to be sent to our future selves as a reminder and an encouragement that we have permission to claim those dreams and aspirations.

The workshop was followed by an insightful talk from Lee Chambers of Male Allies UK, sharing his personal story of dealing with a life changing auto-immune illness that saw him step away from a corporate leadership position to become a stay-at-home father. Whilst recovering and learning to walk again, this journey saw him experience first-hand the prejudices that primary caregivers faced. Engaging women, he listened to their lived experiences of inequality and unfairness, and ever since, he has been trying to tackle these issues through his research, advocacy, and campaigns for male allyship.

Our region’s chair, Vikki Kirkwood, says, "I'm passionate about what women can do to support each other. If we are stepping through doors, hold them open for other women, better still, find out what they need to help them step through."

This event wouldn’t have been possible without our wonderful members, the inspiring speakers, our amazing event sponsor Tristone Nash and venue host Clarke Willmott Solicitors and lastly, our kind, hard-working board members. We would like to thank each and every one of you for helping us create an inspiring evening.

The region is passionate about creating space for women in the social housing sector to come together, grow their networks, expand their skills and support one another through various in-person events, opportunities for mentoring and networking. Coincidentally with this year’s Chinese zodiac sign, The Year of the Fire Horse, meant to bring powerful momentum, energy, and bold actions, the South West board is also busy moving ambitiously ahead and organising more in-person events coming up soon, which will be offering exciting opportunities to connect with women working in the social housing sector.

Lastly, as we move through this season’s energetic momentum, we are also welcoming two new board members to the team, Joanne Lumb and Oana Baltariu, who will support us in growing our reach in the region. Joanne is the Supported Housing Development Lead at Golden Lane Housing, and Oana is an Architectural Apprentice at One50studio.

If you'd like to attend one of our upcoming regional events, please visit our regional page, or visit the WISH membership page to take advantage of our membership benefits.