Cheshire International Women’s Day IWD 2026

Following the success of prior IWD events run since March 2020, Tricia and Kirsty will unite to deliver an event for Women in Business in the Cheshire and surrounding region.

The global campaign theme for International Women’s Day (IWD) 2026 is Give To Gain, encouraging a mindset of generosity and collaboration. Give To Gain emphasises the power of reciprocity and support. When people, organisations, and communities give generously, opportunities and support for women increase. Giving is not a subtraction, it’s intentional multiplication. When women thrive, we all rise. Whether through donations, knowledge, resources, infrastructure, visibility, advocacy, education, training, mentoring, or time, contributing to women’s advancement helps create a more supportive and interconnected world. Give To Gain is a worldwide call to contribute – What will you Give to Gain gender equality?

PROGRAMME (subject to adjustment):

Our 2026 programme will see networking activities as well as presentations from several speakers and include morning refreshments and lunch.

Women in business will be offered an event that is fun and supportive and which promises connections, learning and inspiration.

Approximate timings are:

10.00 – Doors open to attendees to browse stalls & for open networking over welcome refreshments.
11.00 – Welcome and Introductions from the event hosts & partners
11.15 – 14.45 – Multiple Speakers, Lunch and Networking Activities
14.45 – Raffle and thanks
15.00 – Event close

SPEAKERS*

Joëlle Warren MBE DL, High Sheriff of Cheshire and Chair of the NCT

Chair of NCT Charity and portfolio Non Executive Director experienced in charity, commercial and public sectors.

Joëlle lives in Alsager, Cheshire. She is married to Andrew, and they have two fabulous sons, Jonty and Ben both married to wonderful women and two gorgeous granddaughters.
Having been born in Liverpool, Joëlle moved to Cheshire when she was seven and has lived here for most of her life, bringing up her family, building a recruitment business in the county and serving as Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Cheshire since 2010.

Joëlle has held board roles in the charity, commercial and public sectors driven by her commitment to social justice, diversity and inclusion and a belief that all people matter and how you treat them matters. Currently Chair of the Board of Trustees of NCT (National Childbirth Trust), the UK’s largest charity specialising in pregnancy, childbirth and early parenthood, supporting people as they become parents resonates with Joëlle’s belief that everyone who becomes a parent should feel confident, connected and safe.

During her year as High Sheriff she will focus on supporting parents and families across Cheshire through, Cheshire Community Foundation, NCT and other charities and community groups.

Joëlle’s business career began in banking before she founded Warren Partners in 1998, the executive search firm supporting organisations to build diverse boards and leadership teams.
Awarded an MBE for services to business in 2016, nine years later after celebrating its 25th birthday, she retired from the business which is now an employee-owned B-Corp that still stays true to its founding principle of treating others as we want to be treated.

The Founding Chair of the Cheshire Community Foundation, Joëlle continues to support the charity as a Vice-President and is a non-executive director on the boards of Chester Race Company and the Dome Youth Zone, an exciting new charity which will provide Crewe’s young people the opportunity to discover their passion and purpose. She is a Lay Canon of Chester Cathedral and is involved in her local church, Christ Church, Alsager, in all sorts of ways from leading services to washing up!

Talk details to follow

Ali Wheeler, Chief Executive Officer, WeMindTheGap

In July 2022, Ali took on the role of CEO for WeMindTheGap, bringing 28yrs Public Sector, Community Sector, and Charity Trustee experience. She is an accomplished transformation and improvement leader across public sector organisations with Board level experience in systems leadership, organisational and social system change. She leads programmes which co-create change across organisations and communities. She brought proven methods and vast experience from transformational and behaviour change programmes to diagnose, co-create and support new systems, process and behaviour changes to ensure sustainable change across whole organisations, systems and communities. She is passionate about population health approaches, lived experience and intelligence led re-design of services which meet the needs of communities, supporting services and organisations to re-imagine ways of working.

Talk details to follow

Helen Tonks MBE, Co-Founder, Hydraulics Online Ltd 

Co-Founder @HydraulicsOnline.com | MBE for Services to Business & Exports | Multi Award-Winning Leader, Mentor, Strategic Advisor | DBT Export Champion | Northern Leaders List | C&W Business Advisory Board | Trustee

Based in Cheshire, Helen has grown the award-winning Hydraulics Online brand from startup to the UK fluid power industry’s only Export Champion, serving 130 countries worldwide. Passionate about championing micro businesses and SMEs, she sits on the Cheshire and Warrington Business Advisory Board and is a key player in the wider business community. A ‘mum’ to seven, Helen actively supports local and regional education, providing careers guidance and business engagement opportunities. Recognised on the Northern Power Women Power List and three times shortlisted for Mentor of the Year, she believes in paying it forward and making every day count.

Talk Details: ‘Give to Gain: The Courage to Take Up Space’ 
From curiosity without credentials to building a global brand from a kitchen table – Helen shares how giving yourself permission to ask, to lead, and to be different can transform a life, a business, and a legacy.

Emma Baylin FRSA, Founder, Shared Harmonies CIC

Author & TEDx Speaker. Trainer | Facilitator | Speaker. Helping managers create happy, healthy & thriving teams.

As the Director of Shared Harmonies CIC, Emma combines her passion for singing, connection, and positive change to create impactful and innovative team building sessions for corporate and community clients. With over 20 years of experience in youth and community work, health and wellbeing, and arts and culture, she has developed a unique and evidence-based approach that enhances communication, confidence, and mental health through singing techniques and group dynamics.

She founded Shared Harmonies CIC in 2013 with the vision of using music as a tool for social change and wellbeing. Since then, Emma has led a team of talented and dedicated professionals who share her values and mission. Together, they have delivered hundreds of sessions across the UK, reaching thousands of participants and supporting various causes and projects. She is also an author, a TEDx speaker, and a Fellow of the RSA, where she continues to advocate for the power and potential of singing and connection.

Talk details to follow

* Our speaker program is subject to potential alteration if we are affected by illness or other late availability issues beyond our control that may require us to replace a speaker or allow them to join by video link. We confirm that a minimum of 3 speakers will be at the event in person.

TICKET TYPES

Early Bird – £54 + £1 booking fee (until 26 Jan 2026)
Standard – £61 + £2 booking fee (until 25 Feb 2026)
Last minute – £72 + £3 booking fee (from 25 Feb to 1 Mar 2026)

Tables of 8 or 10 – Early bird rate guaranteed and no fees (please email tricia.cheshirebe@gmail.com to be invoiced)

Groups of 4 or more can benefit from a group discount (please email tricia.cheshirebe@gmail.com to be invoiced)

Charities – Early bird rate guaranteed and no fees (please email tricia.cheshirebe@gmail.com to be invoiced)

EVENT SPONSORS & PARTNERS

A huge thank you to our current and past event sponsors for supporting this annual event.

2026 SPONSORS

Chase Devere

We opened our doors in 1969, making us one of the UK’s longest established independent financial advisers. Today, we’re also one of the largest, with over 200 advisers across 18 offices nationally.

Centre for Enterprise at Manchester Metropolitan University

The Centre for Enterprise at Manchester Metropolitan University is a trusted partner for business leaders across the Northwest, turning world-class research into practical support that helps companies innovate, grow and thrive. We specialise in empowering small and medium-sized businesses with expert insight, leadership development, entrepreneurial expertise and sustainability-focused solutions grounded in the latest academic knowledge. Through tailored programmes, funded growth initiatives and access to a network of business peers and specialists, we help business owners and leaders unlock opportunities, build capability and drive lasting impact in their organisations and communities.

MLP Law

mlplaw are a law firm with a genuine difference; we strive to find out about you so we can do our very best to solve your problems, helping you to achieve your outcome and benefit from our professional expertise. Whether you are looking for private services or mergers and acquisitions lawyers, we are expert probate solicitors and corporate lawyers who can help with a range of services. We are innovative, adaptable and proactive, we say what we’re going to do and then do it. With a wide range of legal services across corporate and private, we also have our mlpflex service which is a fully flexible monthly service tailor-made to assist your business, ensuring year-round support.

Leavitt Walmsley Associates Limited

LWA is an award-winning firm of accountants with offices in Sale, South Manchester, and Birchwood in Warrington. Although we are a local, independent practice of accountants in Manchester and Warrington, we work with businesses of all sizes providing an award-winning range of services that go above and beyond standard accountancy provision, rivalling the national firms but representing best value for our clients.

For further opportunities, please email kirsty@kirstyjames.co.uk.

TABLE HOSTING

There are opportunities for those wishing to host a table of existing attendees to benefit from additional marketing. If you are interested, please email kirsty@kirstyjames.co.uk to book.

STALLS

A limited number of stall places are available. If you are interested, please email tricia.cheshirebe@gmail.com to book.

FURTHER INFORMATION

DIETARY NOTES:

If you have any food allergies, please ensure that you have added these during the booking process.

RAFFLE:

Our chosen causes for this event are: We Mind the Gap, Cheshire Community Foundation and Shared Harmonies CIC.

Please have cash or a payment card to hand if you’d like to buy a ticket. Tickets are £5.

If you are in a position to donate a raffle prize of products or services, please bring with you and let us know on arrival.

REFUNDS & CANCELLATION:

Refunds will not be possible within 28 days of the event.

Should you need to cancel your place, we will issue a refund if we are able to find a find a replacement attendee to take your place.

This event will run in-person. In the event of having to cancel or postpone the in-person event due to Covid or other logistical changes, we would endeavour to run an alternative online event. Attendees would be contacted and given the option to cancel for a full refund, to carry forward their ticket to the rescheduled event or to attend online with a credit for the reduced event content and applicable price difference.

Pre-booking only

No sector or geographical restrictions. No limit per company

EVENT ORGANISERS:

Cheshire Women in Business is a collaborative project run by Kirsty James and Tricia Peters, who both offer business networking events and services. Between them, they have helped hundreds of people to connect and grow their businesses and they are responsible for thousands of pounds worth of business in the region, as well as significant fundraising for many charities, both regional and national.

The Cheshire IWD event was set up and run by KTS Women in Business, a collaboration between three of the most renowned networking event organisers in the North West, who have been referred to in the regional press and by attendees as the ‘Queens of Networking’, the ‘Three Amigo’s’ and the ‘Backbone of Networking’ in Cheshire and Manchester. When Sue retired late 2024, Kirsty and Tricia agreed to continue running a select number of joint events. 

Although each of the ladies has their own business and their individual style of bringing people together, their core message is the same. They know that, although social media is a fantastic tool for business development, nothing beats direct communication via events and building up a business relationship gradually. They strive to host events, workshops and seminars to facilitate introductions, inspiration and learning for their attendees.