An Introduction from the Black Women in Care (BWIC) Community
Hello Readers,
Trust you are keeping well and having a joyful autumn season!
My name is Adebimpe, a business associate from the Black Women in Care (BWIC) Community.
About us
BWIC is a Community Interest organization founded in 2020, born out of the founder’s 15-year experience in the Health and Social Care sector. BWIC Founder Olayinka Thomas started her Career as a Care Assistant. She rose to become a Registered Manager after many years of experience, now a Social Care Consultant and a renowned Trainer.
Having seen and experienced first-hand cases of discrimination and workplace equality but rising through them with a skill set, Olayinka founded the BWIC Community Platform to support Black women and other minority ethnic groups that work in Health & Social Care sector. Alongside other seasoned care industry experts, Olayinka believes that the well-being of the BWIC community group has utmost priority on Personal and Professional development. Similarly, it was profoundly prompted by the George Floyd protests for the Black Lives Matter movement that started in the US in March 2020.
At BWIC, we support women working within the health and social care sector-Nurses, Care Assistants, Social care Managers, to mention a few, we support and encourage our members to rise into senior and managerial roles and promote inclusivity, and well-being within the workplace through various need-based, well-tailored projects.
Background
The health and social care sector, in general, depends heavily on migrant workers, and with the current changes to immigration policy, a further rise is imminent. Recent findings show that 12% of the UK population are of Black/African/Caribbean/Black British backgrounds and account for over 50% of the Black and other Minority Ethnicity (BAME) adult social care workforce. Another report discloses that women perform over 85 percent of the direct care jobs in adult social care. It is evident that BAME, particularly black women make up a large part of the workforce in this sector.
Our past projects
- Our monthly empowerment series project, BWIC Careers’ Forum has reached over 2000 BAME women. You can register for a free account at https://blackwomenincare.com/membership/ to become a BWIC member
- Similarly, our annual Awards recognize passionate health and social care workers, and in 2021, the premier Black Women in Care (BWIC) Awards and Summit had an enormous impact as veteran carers from African/Caribbean backgrounds who have never received such recognition in their care careers were awarded duly, here are some awardees’ feedback
Upcoming Projects
- The BWIC Skip for Carers event will hold between the 1st and 10th of October 2022, kindly find attached the event flyer, it seeks to encourage people to skip/or walk-in carers’ shoes by taking 2000 steps or doing 100 – 200 skips daily for 10 days while supporting carers to raise funds for offsetting their bills amidst the ongoing costing of living crisis. More information on the event and donation is at: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/black-women-in-care?utm_term=96dAK3qjGWe would equally be pleased if this is shared within your network for participation.
- The 2022 Awards and Summit will take place on 26th of November 2022 and we are currently receiving nominees at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScOWLuRHw67O8FuJs1cHDuw889W0TSRgHVZKF6BcIUGl0FzuA/viewform?usp=sf_link or
https://blackwomenincare.com/events/nominate-here/ we would be delighted if this is shared with health and social care managers in your network, Private and Public, to nominate their outstanding colleagues. Please note that the nominations will close on Friday, 30th of September 2022.
Conclusion
We hope to share insights into specific ways and best practices for Nurses, Care Workers, & Care managers to support and manage their BAME staff as well as sensitize the UK community in general on workplace equality and diversity.
We will continue to share insights into black women as they relate to the health and care sector.
Thanks for reading and do let us know if you have any questions at info@blackwomenincare.com or call us on 03301749695
Adebimpe Adeneye
Business Development Associate, BWIC
