Avarni Bilan

Avarni’s journey

Over the years I have been fortunate enough to work with some really incredible womxn who have inspired and pushed me to be the best version of myself, both professionally and personally. Through my career in global brand management and events marketing I’ve also built up an extremely varied network of contacts, so I wanted to do something that utilised my experience, skills and position of privilege to positively impact local womxn. In doing this, I also wanted to make sure that the final platform would practically respond to the clear lack of representation that womxn of colour experience on a daily basis and that it would create a place for womxn of colour to unapologetically address topics that may largely only apply to us.

As a woman of colour in the UK it can unfortunately be very normal to feel as though you’re constantly inhabiting places that aren’t meant for you and that your experiences and opinions aren’t valued or appreciated. So I wanted to create a space that was specifically for these womxn, without ever denying a place at the table for any other womxn who want to get involved. In particular, I wanted to focus on how we can use our industry connections to create brand new opportunities for womxn of colour which for one reason or another have previously not been on the cards. For example, in the UK, only 21% of the STEM workforce (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) are women, and the percentage of women of colour is even smaller. So we’ve been working with our industry links within these areas to see how we can improve employment and work experience opportunities for these womxn, making roles within these industries seem attractive and attainable!

Avarni tells us about her time at NGHS

“Like most people I don’t think I realised how good I had it at school until I left and entered the real world. While at times it may have felt like the standards we were expected to uphold were ridiculously high, in reality, being pushed to excel at everything has probably shaped me into who I am today. I was by no means the most academic achiever when I was at school, but I would like to think that the overall experience was a really positive one and I’ve taken away much more on a personal level than I did academically. I often still think about my teachers, Mr Lumb, Mrs Woolliscroft and Miss Peacock, for how wonderful they were and how much of a positive influence they had on my life back then. And to this day, nurse Brenda is still one of my favourite humans of all time!”

And any words of wisdom for the next generation of NGHS girls?

“Don’t take no for an answer, apply for the job you don’t think you’re fully qualified for and never ever settle for less. Devote time to the things that make you light up with joy and never underestimate the power of being kind to others. Oh, and drink more water and sleep for at least 6-7 hours every night; never more, never less.”