Celebrating the legacy of LBU’s women on International Women’s Day 2024

International Women's Day is not merely a celebration; it is a collective recognition of the resilience, brilliance, and transformative power inherent in every woman's story. We take pride in the diverse narratives of our alumnae. Today, we are highlighting some of the exceptional women who have graced the corridors of Leeds Beckett University.

Grace Owen

Grace Owen was a lecturer at the City of Leeds Training College from 1913 to 1916. In 1917, she took on the post of Head of Nursery Department at Mather Training College in Manchester, later becoming the President of Early Education (Nursery Schools Association) in the 1940s. Owen’s peers considered her to be a leading authority on infant education and propagated learning through direct experience rather than by rote. She was active in the cause of women's suffrage. She also worked towards raising the profile of women tutors and women in general.

Kathryn Ladley

Kathryn Ladley was the first woman to complete the Quantity Surveying course from Leeds Polytechnic in 1974. She began working for Leeds City Council soon after. Kathryn is still working as Associate Director - Commercial, running the Companies Quantity Surveying and Building Surveying teams. She won the Lifetime Achievement in Construction category at the 2017 European Women in Construction and Engineering Awards. Her work extends to the charity sector where she ran Miscarriage Association for almost seven years after suffering a miscarriage herself. During those years she qualified as an antenatal teacher for the National Childbirth Trust.

Jodie Hill

Jodie Hill graduated with a Law degree from Leeds Beckett University in 2009. She is now the managing director of Thrive Law, a specialist employment law firm in Leeds focusing on mental health in the workplace. Jodie decided to set up her own business in 2018 to support business owners and employees across the region to thrive in the workplace. She specialises in employment law, HR and mental health and uses her expertise to help businesses achieve a transparent and jargon-free approach. Jodie is also a part-time lecturer at the Leeds Law School.

Sharon Watson MBE

Sharon Watson gained an MA in Performance Works from Leeds Beckett University in 2009. She became one of the first female Principal Dancers to be invited to join the all-male award-winning Phoenix Dance Company and toured with them from 1989 to 1997. In 2016, Sharon received the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts’ Companionship Award from Sir Paul McCartney, the Sue Ryder ‘Yorkshire Women of Achievement in Business Award’ and became the ‘Yorkshire Woman of the Year’. Sharon was the artistic director of Phoenix Dance Theatre before taking up her current role as the Principal of the Northern School of Contemporary Dance. She is committed to improving diversity within the arts by supporting the creative voices of women and black and ethnic minority artists.

Laura Etemah

Laura Etemah studied an undergraduate degree in Geology at Delta State University in her home country of Nigeria before completing her MA Music Production at Leeds Beckett in 2016. Before coming to Leeds, she worked as Music Director for the National Youth Service Corps in Lagos and undertook some music community development projects. Since graduating, Laura has returned to Nigeria where she has established the Lee Ellie Music School, a private music teaching business where she helps busy adults, youths and children find their talent for music.

Nahid Rasool

Nahid Rasool has been Chief Executive of the Shantona Women’s Centre for the past 18 years. She completed a Masters in Business Administration at Leeds Beckett in 2008 and went on to receive an honorary degree in 2017. The Shantona Women’s Centre was established in 1998 to offer help and support to women from the Bangladeshi community and employed just two full time staff, including Nahid. Since then, Nahid has been responsible for growing it into a diverse, multi-cultural organisation with a women-only workforce. It offers women and young children of black and minority ethnicity an open, transparent service that builds upon their skills and helps bridge the gap between societies.

EDNA LUMB

Edna Lumb was a student at the former Leeds College of Art from 1948 to 1953, which later became part of the university’s Leeds School of Arts. She specialised in depicting industrial technology in oils and prints. As a student, she won a travel scholarship of £50 and used the money to visit art collections in Paris and Avignon. The experience profoundly impacted her and she made a provision in her will for an annual travel prize to be awarded to students of art at Leeds Beckett University. This travel grant was last awarded in 2014. Edna herself travelled extensively across the UK, Europe, and West Africa to draw inspiration for her art.

Jane Dowson

Councillor Jane Dowson graduated from Leeds Beckett with a BA (Hons) Service Sector Management degree in 2003. Born and bred in Leeds, Jane joined the university as a mature student and since graduating she has been a local Councillor, representing the Chapel Allerton ward in Leeds. In 2017 she was appointed as the 124th Lord Mayor of Leeds.

Janet Reveley

Janet Reveley started her studies at the Carnegie School of Sport in 1977. She is the CEO of Fit Training International, which offers training courses in the north of England. After staying in touch with her classmates over the years through reunions, Janet was motivated to do something to support students studying at the Carnegie School of Sport today. This came out of a desire to support the next generation to have the same opportunities as them, irrespective of their background. She helped set up the Carnegie Class of 78-82 Scholarship with her classmates, continuing their legacy and long-standing relationship with Carnegie.

Emily Scarratt MBE

Emily Scarratt is an English rugby union player who completed her BSc (Hons) Sport and Exercise degree from Leeds Beckett University in 2011. Her international rugby career began in 2008 when she was 18. She scored twelve tries in her first twelve appearances for England and finished top points scorer at the 2014 Rugby World Cup as England claimed a first global crown in 20 years. In 2016, she captained Team GB in the Rugby Sevens at the Olympics in Rio, finishing in 4th place. She also represented England in the 2018 Commonwealth Games and the Rugby World Cup Sevens in the same year. For her contributions, she received an Honorary Doctorate from Leeds Beckett in 2015.

Dee Caffari MBE

Dee Caffari graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University with a Human Movement Studies degree in 1994 and also completed a PGCE in Physical Education in 1995, which led to a career teaching in local schools. She eventually trained to become a water sport instructor and started sailing, a sport that does not have too many women even now. She received an Honorary Doctorate from Leeds Metropolitan University in 2006. The university supported her in becoming the first woman to sail solo, non-stop, around the world. She has circumnavigated the globe six times. She continues taking on new challenges through her sailing expeditions, currently engaged in The Famous Project with an all-women crew.

Rose English

Rose English graduated with a Fine Art degree in 1973 from what was then Leeds Polytechnic. Emerging from the conceptual art, dance, and feminist scenes of 1970’s Britain, she is now one of the most influential performance artists. Her work combines elements of theatre, circus, opera, and poetry to explore themes of gender politics, the identity of the performer, and the metaphysics of presence. Her career spanning over five decades continues to be relevant and she is often recognised for her exceptional and unique work. Her awards include the Time Out Performance Award, the Wingate Scholarship and the Paul Hamlyn Award for Artists.

MARY FULLAH

Mary Fullah completed an MSc in Public Health in 2013 from Leeds Beckett when she was already well established in her career in Sierra Leone. She was soon posted to the country’s Western Area District Health Management Team as a Senior Public Health Sister. She has since been the Principal Public Health Sister in the Ministry of Health and Sanitation and Deputy Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer. In 2019 she was promoted to Chief Nursing and Midwifery officer in the Ministry of Health and Sanitation. In her role, Mary oversees all nursing and midwifery services in the whole country, including coordination, policy formulation, strategic development and implementation, and intersectional collaboration across services.