Liam Gilbert and Naomi Bedeau Speak at International Women’s Day Event
Oxford United Women Manager, Liam Gilbert, and Captain, Naomi Bedeau, spoke on a guest panel on Monday to celebrate International Women’s Day.
The event, held at Westgate Oxford Shopping Centre, was organised by Louise Gregory and brought together a range of sports and business professionals to celebrate International Women’s Day ahead of Sunday 8 March.
This year’s theme is Give to Gain, with the event raising awareness and funds for Beat the Block, a non-profit organisation set up by Naomi Bedeau which aims to help girls from underrepresented backgrounds reach their full potential.
Speaking to a room of local businesses, Naomi and Liam shared stories from their careers in women’s football and gave professional insights into the development the sport has made in recent years.
Following the event, Naomi said: “It was a really nice event to have inspirational women speaking on a panel about the things they’ve done, the steps they’ve taken to find things for themselves, and some of the barriers they’ve faced.
“The funds are going to be massive for making sure that we can deliver safe workshops and coaching sessions for young girls, so hopefully we can empower as many as we can in the Oxford community.”
Representatives from Oxford United in the Community, the Club’s Official Charity, also attended the event. Rob Porter joined the panel with Liam and Naomi to speak about the new initiatives the Charity had recently delivered to encourage more girls into sport. This includes launching a girls-only futsal tournament in the February half term, and weekly Premier League Kicks sessions.
The event was organised by Oxford United in the Community trustee and director of Gregory Surveyors, Louise Gregory, and was hosted for its fourth consecutive year.
Louise said: “We wanted to showcase the great work that Beat the Block is doing with the collaboration of Oxford United in the Community.
“Already hosting workshops in two schools and impacting 58 girls is incredible and I look forward to seeing the growth they have.”