A group of mothers from Medway have come together to form their own 'super group' as part of a networking revolution, specifically tailored to women and mums who want to advance their businesses.

Currently, less than one third of UK businesses are cuowned by women (according to the UENI 2020) - a figure which highlights a significant disparity in gender within the entrepreneurial industry. Although this figure is in fact a remarkable increase from four years ago, when just 17% of business founders were women.

The mastermind behind the project is Jeanette Forder, owner of Phoenix Wellness Coaching. She was inspired by social media guru Leona Burton, the founder of Mums in Business International, and hopes to grow the Medway branch to reach as many women as possible.

Jeanette said: "I've always been passionate about supporting women, so I jumped at the opportunity to set something like this up.

"We didn't have a group locally in Medway. It was a chance to meet other women, but of course it was calculated and allowed me more visibility for my business and the chance to practise key business skills like presenting and public speaking.

"I used to go to networking groups for the Business Network International (BNI) and that's a more traditional networking group - there were only two women in that group so immediately you felt like a minority in the sessions.

"What I've tried to create is a more relaxed environment. Similar to the BNI, we talk business and exchange useful tips, but we also get to know each other on a more personal level and have more fun with it."

One business woman who attended in person for the first time was Kate Walker from Blue Lemon Cleaning.

She expressed to the group how a struggle to recruit in recent months was taking a toll on the expansion into domestic work alongside the successful commercial strand of the local company.

She said: "I've had advertisements out since April. From that I've had 39 applications, but only seven actually turned up to the interviews.

"The people who I wanted to hire then turned around and said that they didn't want the job because it would mean their benefits would be cut so much that they would actually be worse off for trying to break into a career.

"I'm not sure if Brexit or the pandemic is to blame, but it seems the true hard-workers have gone home, there is a real flaw in the system."

"They didn't want the job because it would mean their benefits would be cut so much that they would actually be worse off..."

The group were able to share possible ways forward to improve the recruitment drive for Blue Lemon Cleaning, including social video advertisement and other suggestions from professionals in HR businesses.

Kate wasn't the only one there with a call for help, an employee from a legal consultancy firm had been sent by her boss to the "burn your bras" meeting.

The room chuckled at the prospect that this is how the male boss described the session, but there was a sense of defiance against the phrase - it certainly was not your typical 'mother's meeting'.

The employee had been sent in the hopes of recruiting a qualified accountant for their firm. They were looking for a mother or business woman who could work for a couple of hours at their convenience when needed - the salary of £60 an hour led to an audible gasp in the room.

She explained how they wanted to recruit a mother as the work was not guaranteed so would be the perfect fit for many who would want a "side-hustle" in the evening when the children are in bed.

Michelle Newman from Flow Business Support also shared her views on the industry and hopes more groups like this will pop up around the county to help women feel empowered.

She said: "I come from a very corporate background so I was used to being around men all of the time at work. Women can often be spoken over or disregarded and in groups like this that never happens.

"Women have incredible qualities that make us great business leaders - empathy and multi-tasking for example. Don't overlook a strong woman in business, we create a real synergy and it's useful for everyone."

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