In the lead up to International Women’s Day (IWD), Arriva Rail London (ARL) has teamed up with Breadwinners, a grassroots charity that empowers refugees and young people seeking asylum by providing employment, training and mentoring opportunities.

Founded in 2016, the charity employs refugees to sell organic artisan bread at farmers’ markets in London and Brighton and to manage its online bread delivery service.

ARL colleagues came together to mark IWD at an event hosted by the Breadwinners team, who demonstrated how simple actions can create a positive impact towards a more equal world.

The event began with a quiz designed to test colleagues’ knowledge of key facts and figures around women’s rights and progress. Samantha Nakirya, ARL’s stakeholder and community manager, used thought-provoking questions and statistics to spark discussions on how far we’ve come and how much work remains to be done.

“This year’s IWD theme, ‘Accelerate Action’, emphasises the need to speed up progress towards gender parity. At the current rate, it will take 133 years to achieve full gender equality. We all have a role to play in accelerating this process, whether at home, in our local communities, or at work,” said Samantha. “Through our partnership with Breadwinners, we hope to educate colleagues and inspire them to support organisations and charities that advance the cause of women and girls.”

The event continued with personal reflections from Aliyah Abdulla, ARL’s head of procurement and chair of the equality, diversity & inclusion steering group. Aliyah spoke about the women who have inspired her throughout her life and reminded of the importance of mentorship.

Raina Khan, programme manager and communications officer at Breadwinners, presented the charity’s inspiring work in supporting refugees, particularly young women, as they build careers and transform their lives. Arriving in a new country without a support group and trying to navigate a career can be incredibly challenging. Breadwinners’ three employability programmes aim to alleviate these challenges by offering practical work experience, developing skills and enabling participants to expand their networks. The programmes have already supported 174 women, empowering them with the skills and opportunities they need to thrive.

One of the young women who has benefited from the programme also shared her personal story, highlighting how Breadwinners has helped build her confidence and provided career opportunities.

“It was incredibly valuable for us to be welcomed into the ARL office and see firsthand the significant contributions of women across various departments,” said Raina. “Seeing themselves represented in such diverse roles has motivated our participants to aspire to careers they hadn’t previously considered.”