WeAreTheCity is an online forum that provides free careers advice and launched the prestigious Rising Star awards in 2015 to showcase the pipeline of female talent in the UK and create role models across 20 different industries and professions.

Last year, Niri Arambepola, Claire Gott and Athena Livesey from WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff; Marina Parry from Cancer Research UK, University of Manchester; and Mary Akangbe from the NHS were named among 100 new Rising Stars created by WeAreTheCity for 2017 after being placed in the top five in the Science and Engineering category.

Speaking about her year as a Rising Star, Athena said: “Winning the award has made me more aware of how amazing the women in our world are and of all the different jobs we can do, including some I didn’t know existed. Through the event I have met some inspiring women who are undoubtedly role models in their fields, yet we don’t always get to know about them.

“We need to do more to champion these roles to make science and engineering more inclusive and introduce young women to the number of options available in careers that offer a real sense of purpose. We also need to show them that what they can achieve has no limits.”

Athena’s achievement was recognised by the geological community and her university, Portsmouth, ran an interview with her and featured all five Science and Engineering Rising Stars during an Engineering Geology 50-year celebration. She has also been nominated for a Northern Power Women 2018 award.

Added Athena: “It’s been wonderful to have this support.”

As well as championing the role of women across a wide range of industries, the awards help women progress in their careers. More than 40 per cent of previous award winners have been promoted since winning a Rising Star award.

Niri said: “I had never been involved in anything like this before, so winning the award was a big surprise. I am generally a shy person and, for me, the main impact of winning a Rising Star award has been increasing my confidence at work.

“Through this new-found confidence I have been able to ask for the work projects that I want rather than just taking whatever is given to me. I’m now working on the concept design for High Speed 2 (HS2) Euston which is my dream job. The award has also given me more recognition within my team and I have just been promoted to an Associate.”

Speaking about the awards, Vanessa Vallely, managing director of WeAreTheCity, said: “Over the past three years, with the support of more than 40 leading organisations, we have been able to celebrate the achievements of more than 300 women in the UK through our various awards.

“By highlighting the accolades of these women, WeAreTheCity is not only promoting the female talent that exists across the UK, but is actively encouraging organisations and business leaders to invest in and recognise these women as the leaders of tomorrow.”

Wynne Lewis, Technical director for 3M in the UK and Ireland, added: “As a science-based innovation company, we are particularly keen to encourage female students to consider STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) careers. We are therefore delighted to sponsor the Rising Stars in Science and Engineering category, helping to shine a light on role models who can inspire the next generation.”

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