Announcing 50:50 Parliament's first CEO

Blog Post from new CEO, Lyanne Nicholl

This is a real ‘pinch me’ moment. If you had asked me what my dream job was a few months ago, I would have said ‘leading an organisation that empowers women – something that spans feminism and politics’. And so, after a rigorous application process, here I am; 50:50 Parliament’s first CEO. I am truly delighted to be here.

Frances Scott has created the most amazing organisation: dynamic, ambitious, successful - but never resting on its laurels. Frances started this organisation from a fire in her belly ten years ago and, despite making great progress, that fire has not dimmed. We are committed, together, to creating gender parity and better representation in elected bodies across the UK. Whilst Frances is passing on the baton, with the day-to-day running of the charity, to me – she will be joining the 50:50 Board of Trustees and keep her fire burning from there.

I am thrilled to be working with such an inspirational Founder, as well as a diverse and talented Board, team and volunteers. I see my job as building on the success the team has already created and growing the charity so that we may encourage and support more women, from all backgrounds, to stand for elected office. I also hope that I can play a part in ensuring that women can thrive once elected, as we take a closer look at the culture of our political arena.

I am really passionate about ensuring women’s voices are heard – my experience as a postnatal healthcare campaigner clarified for me the disadvantages and dangers of not listening to women. As over 50% of the population, we really deserve to have equal seats at the table. “Equal Seats, Equal Say”, as Frances says. I have been inspired by many brave and brilliant women, from the Suffragettes, to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi to our own Frances Scott. We all stand on the shoulders of these giants, as we try to push forward toward a more equal world.

I look forward to meeting our friends, ambassadors and volunteers and, of course, the women who have been inspired by 50:50 to get involved in politics at any level. This is a new era for 50:50 Parliament but the mission remains the same: a democracy in which women and men work together in equal numbers to build the country’s future.

Please do check out our upcoming event #AskHerToStand Day which is being held in Parliament on 21st November. For the whole of November we will be running a huge recruitment drive, so please do like, share and comment on our social media pages. I will be at the event in Parliament and hope to meet some of you then. In the meantime, in the spirit of ‘asking her to stand’ I ask you - “If not me? Who? If not now? When?” #SignUpToStand

50:50 Parliament is a charity working to build a better democracy. Please support our work by becoming a?“Friend of 50:50”?and making a small donation?here. 50:50 is a friendly network here to help women progress in politics at a local and national level. We are an inclusive, intersectional campaign working with all the political parties to empower women with our

#AskHerToStand?and?#SignUpToStand?programmes.

When women click?#SignUpToStand?we: – send them an interactive Personal Political Profile – allocate them a 50:50 Buddy – invite them to weekly party specific Bite Size meetings – and offer bespoke support to women from diverse groups. In the corridors of power, men still outnumber women by 2:1. We invite everyone, men and women, to support our work and join our mailing list at?www.5050Parliament.co.uk