January 06 2021

This week’s blog post is from Sonya Byers, CEO of Women in Transport. Sonya gives readers some insight into what her session at the UK Bus and Coach Conference next week will include, from the benefits of a diverse workforce to retaining talent.

I’m Sonya Byers, Chief Executive of Women in Transport. We are a non-profit that proactively supports the professional development of women working in transport through networking, mentoring and professional development. We also act as Secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group for women in transport campaigning for gender balance in the transport workforce across the UK. 

I am delighted to be speaking at the first ever UK Bus and Coach Conference on Wednesday 13 January alongside Martin Harris, Managing Director of Brighton & Hove Buses. We will be talking about the benefits of a diverse workforce and how the industry must continue to attract and retain talent during these challenging times. This will be part of the impact of Covid on our people and our culture session chaired by Jane Cole and will also feature Kathryn Pulham, Finance Director at Pulham & Sons. For a lot of us the pandemic has changed the way we work and we must make sure we can support our teams to reach their full potential.

Under the umbrella of Women in Transport, Chloe Leach O’Connell and I set up the Diversity & Inclusion Bus Group in 2019. We now have representatives from across 20 bus companies, including Jane Cole, MD, Blackpool Transport and President of the CPT, that come together quarterly to share best practice and support greater diversity and inclusion in the bus industry. Chloe will be joining the member Q&A session with the panel, sharing her insight, expertise and passion with delegates.

I am really looking forward to meeting everyone - albeit virtually. There will be an opportunity to ask her questions so I hope you will join us for what promises to be an insightful session.

The conference is FREE for CPT members and local authority officers to attend so head over to the CPT website to find out more and register to join us today!