Under the Code Name: Red Panda, 60 young women from three Blackpool Schools took part in the first virtual Cyber Girls First event to learn about careers in the tech and cyber world.
Women make up fewer than one in six of the digital workforce in Lancashire, so inspiring young women and widening the recruitment talent pool there is a priority for employers. The event was supported by the Lancashire Digital Skills Partnership and was a great success thanks to the huge effort that went into converting their usual face-to-face events into a virtual experience.
Tech careers in Lancashire were highlighted by Mary Speakman, Co-Founder of Code Galaxy, and Tripta Kershaw and Helen Parkinson from Körber Supply Chain. They joined fantastic role models such as Lahini Sivaganeshan from Oracle, Abby Taylor and Farah Iqbal from Colt Technology Services, Christine Lester from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Cyber Girls First’s very own spy, the Red Panda from GCHQ!
Speaking about the event, Abby Taylor, a cyber security graduate at Colt Technology Services, said: “I thoroughly enjoyed the virtual event and was so glad to be involved by sharing my experience. Reflecting on my own time growing up in Blackpool, I think such insight from women in the industry would have been invaluable to me. The girls left the event feeling inspired and I’m honoured to have given them a glimpse of what they can do and where they can go in the future.”
