SecurityWomen: Annual Report September 2022 - August 2023
Welcome to SecurityWomen’s Annual Report 2023, which gives an account of the work and achievements of the charity, the challenges, and our vision for a better future.
SecurityWomen (SW) gained UK charitable status as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation in October 2016. The Registration Number is 1169486.
The registered address is:
70 Lexington, 40 City Road, London EC1Y 2AN
Our trustees are:
Barbara Cleary – Chair
David Chitty - Financial Trustee
Kurt Eyre
James Geer
Rachel Grimes MBE
Carolyn Hall MBE
Terri McNerney
Ulrike Theuerkauf
SecurityWomen is also registered in the United States of America since January 2018, with a board of directors as a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation (EIN 82-4491639).
Mission and Purpose
SW is an advocacy and research organisation which seeks women’s greater participation in all aspects of the security sector – policing, defence forces, UN peacekeeping, private security and cyber-security – on a global basis, in what is a very male dominated environment. The premise is that a better security for all is achieved when the makeup of security personnel reflects the composition of society. A greater gender balance may also help deter violence and escalation to conflict.
SW operates on an educational basis and aims to provide information relating to, and promote awareness of, gender equality in the security sector to the public and private sectors, government and the wider community. This is done through gathering of information from around the world, publicising through the SW website
(htps://www.securitywomen.org) and app (htps://app.securitywomen.org), social media, and other media events and platforms.
SW aims to highlight the importance of women’s rights within this sector which has extreme occupational segregation of women and men. SW also carries out evidence-based research into, and monitors, the state of gender equality in security sector organisations, both state-sponsored and in private security.
Actvites and Achievements
A big achievement this year was being granted Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). This means that representatives of SW can attend conferences convened by the United Nations in New York, Vienna and Geneva. We also have access to many ad hoc processes, human rights mechanisms and special events organised by the President of the General Assembly. We are particularly interested in contributing to the promotion of Peaceful and Inclusive Societies as detailed in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 and the achievement of SDG 5 related to gender equality.
In October 2022, the Director of SW attended the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Convention in Washington DC. It was a good opportunity for networking and meeting potential contacts/speakers. At the same time, SW met with Women in International Security (WIIS) at their headquarters in Washington to reestablish partnerships and share common goals.
To mark the anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, SW held a virtual event on 2 November 2022, entitled ‘Women Peace and Security: Making it Happen’. It focused on what progress had been made since 2000 on the inclusion of women within security institutions in Africa – host militaries, policing and UN peacekeeping. Speakers included a Senior Defence Officer from Botswana's Ministry of Defence and Security (MDS) and Senior Research Fellow at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre in Ghana.
Also in November 2022, several representatives of SW attended, both virtually and inperson, the UK Government’s International Conference on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict (PSVI). This is a focus for the UK Government with specific and related responsibilities on the UN Security Council. Much ground was covered including the work of the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was repeated often that the need for justice is profound and that the fallibility often occurs at state level where responsibility for implementing international humanitarian and human rights law is not being taken.
In December 2022, the Director of SW was invited to speak at a Symposium on Women in Counter-Terrorism in East Africa, representing civil society at the event in Nairobi organised by UNODC (United Nations Drug and Crime Agency). Security professionals from 14 countries, including female police officers, public prosecutors and legal representatives attended.
At the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67) in March 2023, SW held a virtual event focused on women’s influence in cyber security, innovation and emerging technologies. The discussion explored the barriers women and girls face engaging in the
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world of technology across the sectors as well as how the gender playing field could be levelled. The importance of education and mentorship to enhance, expand and encourage gender parity across the technology space was highlighted. A recording of the event has been posted on the SW website.
In January 2023, one of SW’s research associates participated virtually in the Partnership Forum of ECOSOC with a theme of “Accelerating the recovery from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at all levels”. Discussions covered innovative efforts to drive action on the SDGs.
In March 2023, the Casey Review was published into the Metropolitan Police Service (the Met) and its culture and standards of behaviour, following the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a serving Met officer. SW continues to follow up on this review and monitors developments in UK police forces.
SW continues to be an active member of GAPS (Gender Action for Peace and Security) UK and is part of the Policy Working Group making contributions to the shadow report on the UK NAP (National Action Plan). SW has participated in virtual and in-person meetings, as well as meetings of the APPG on Women, Peace and Security (WPS).
The SW Director met with Police and Crime Commissioner for Norfolk, Giles OrpenSmellie, in May 2023 and questioned progress on enlisting more women into the Police.
The International Day of Peacekeepers (23 May) was marked again this year with the laying of wreaths at the London Cenotaph for peacekeepers killed in the line of duty and a conference at RUSI organised by UNA Westminster attended by SW.
In June, SW attended the Norfolk Cambridge Society talk by General Douglas McKenzie Chalmers, former Deputy Chief of Defence Staff, now Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, entitled: ‘The Military Instrument – theory and practice’. He was questioned about the gender balance in the Armed Forces and the stated inevitability of war.
In July, SW attended a Women in Defence Conference ‘Changing the face of Defence: a critical mass summit’. It was a large gathering of people from the security and defence industry and institutions, debating how to increase women’s participation.
Research
The research project on Atti udes to Women in the Armed Forces which was suspended during the Covid pandemic, was returned to this year and has evolved. Our approach to survey young people in cadet units was not supported by the Government. We therefore decided to build on points we had prepared for the original project by shifting the focus to broader public perceptions and comparing whether there might be relevant differences in the perception of women in state as opposed to non-state armed forces. Funding has been sought with our partners in the University of East Anglia to analyse public perceptions of women in security forces in a cross-country comparison of the UK, Colombia and Ukraine.
Personnel
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As stated, SW is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation. It has an Executive Director, Dr Juliet Colman and together with SW Chair, Barbara Cleary, we are extremely fortunate to have a team of well-qualified and enthusiastic volunteers and research associates:
In early 2023, SW welcomed the establishment of a team in South Africa, led by LauraJane Watkins, comprising Stephanie Wild, Laura Mitton and Casey Diepeveen, exhibiting a huge amount of talent and experience, including in SAPS (South African Police Service) and South African legal system and Human Rights Commission.
We are most grateful for all the hard work of our research associates from different countries around the world:
Yumna Azeez
Felix Dixey
Emily Dixon
Styliani Eleftheriadou
Alice Macleod
Rebecca Manson
Yegana Mammadova
Florina-Marieta Neagu
Caroline Pinder
Brenna Salkin
Stepanka Stastnikova
SW holds a virtual team meeting once a month at a time when most research associates can attend. The guidance notes for SW and minutes of meetings are held on a Google drive for research associates to access.
Next steps
SW will aim to secure funding to establish proper resource for on-going work on website/app/social media maintenance, and for proposed research projects. SW will aim to fund internships and make plans for a Conference in 2023.
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
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Juliet A Colman
Director, SecurityWomen
August 2023
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Charity Name No (if any) SecurityWomen 1169486 Receipts and payments accounts CC16a For the period Period start date Period end date To from 9/1/2022 8/31/2023 ~~eeee ee~~ Section A Receipts and payments Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Total funds Last year funds funds funds to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ A1 Receipts Reimbursement of prior period expenses - Funding from governments - Voluntary Receipts 28 - - 28 12 28 - - 28 12 ~~a~~ Sub total (Gross income for AR) A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). - - - - - - - - - - Sub total [ - ] - - - - ~~——————~~ Total receipts 28 - - 28 12 A3 Payments Project expenditure - SW Conference 1,600 1,600 Administration of Charitable Activities 2,594 - - 2,594 1,134 Sub total 4,194 - - 4,194 1,134 ~~S$ B55~~ A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) - - - - - - - - Sub total - ~~—~~ Total payments ~~—————~~ 4,194 - - 4,194 1,134 Net of receipts/(payments) - 4,166 - - - 4,166 - 1,122 A5 Transfers between funds - - - - - A6 Cash funds last year end 10,404 - - 10,404 11,526 Cash funds this year end ~~===~~ 6,238 - - ~~==~~ 6 ~~>==>~~ ,238 10,404 Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Categories Details funds funds funds to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £ B1 Cash funds Current Account 6,238 - - Total cash funds 6,238 - - (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) OK OK OK Unrestricted Restricted Endowment funds funds funds Details to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £ B2 Other monetary assets N/A Fund to which Current value Details asset belongs Cost (optional) (optional) B3 Investment assets N/A Fund to which Current value Cost (optional) Details asset belongs (optional)
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B4 Assets retained for the - - -
N/A
charity’s own use
es | | |
Fund to which Amount due When due
Details liability relates (optional) (optional)
B5 Liabilities N/A - -
a | | |
Signed by one or two trustees on Date of
behalf of all the trustees Signature Print Name approval
Barbara Cleary
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Registered Number: 1169486
SecurityWomen
Receipts and Payments Accounts For the year ended 31st August 2023
| Receipts Funding from governments Voluntary Receipts Sub total Asset and investment sales Sub total Total Receipts Payments Project expenditure SW Conference Administration of Charitable Activities Sub total Asset and investment purchases Sub total Total Payments Net of receipts/(payments) Cash funds last year end Cash funds this year end |
2023 2022 £ £ 28 12 |
|---|---|
| 28 12 - - |
|
| - - | |
| 28 12 | |
| - 1,600 2,594 1,134 |
|
| 4,194 1,134 - - |
|
| - - | |
| 4,194 1,134 | |
| - 4,166 - 1,122 10,404 11,526 |
|
| 6,238 10,404 |
Registered Number: 1169486
SecurityWomen
Statement of Assets and Liabilities For the year ended 31st August 2023
| Assets Cash in bank and at hand Liabilities Non-current and current liabilities Net Assets |
2023 2022 £ £ 6,238 10,404 |
|---|---|
| 6,238 10,404 |