“Surely You Would be Happier Being a Nurse?” a Talk by Tracy Aarons

The Alfred Gillett Trust presents a series of talks, seminars and workshops which will focus on the achievements and beliefs of some truly inspirational women.

Tracy Aarons is currently Deputy Chief Executive of Mendip District Council, a role she thoroughly enjoys but not one she anticipated when, as a seventeen year old, she secretly applied to do a degree in civil engineering.

Her talk will cover her life experiences within organisations that were not always use to women taking management roles, the humorous situations she has found herself in, in an industry where women were not generally seen outside of the administration section and realities of juggling work and family commitments without losing sight of what is really important.

She will also look at how far women’s rights have come in the last few decades, the change in attitudes towards women and, as a mother of a daughter, the opportunities for young women today.

As part of this talk Tracy hopes to give a flavour of the many opportunities she has been fortunate to have because she was a woman and celebrate the many positive things going on in the Mendip area.

About Tracy

Tracy Aarons is currently Deputy Chief Executive at Mendip District Council where she has responsibility for delivering the Council’s priorities of transformation and growth.

She has had a varied career initially qualifying as a civil engineer in a period when very few woman entered university for engineering subjects she was the only female on her course. On leaving University she trained as a building control surveyor working in North Oxfordshire with responsibility for safety checks on a range of developments along the developing M40 corridor.

Tracy moved from Oxfordshire in the 1990’s and joined the Metropolitan Police Service, working through the highly emotive and contentious period that saw the murder of Stephen Lawrence and production of the MacPherson Report which identified institutional racism with the service.

Family commitments saw a move to Wiltshire at the start of the century where she formed an access consultancy providing advice and guidance to property owners and developers on how to most effectively make their buildings accessible to all sections of society.

Tracy joined Mendip District Council in 2005 with an initial remit to get a failing building control service performing. Her role at the council has developed over time and seen her responsible for a number initiatives focused on improving opportunities and outcomes for vulnerable people and families, as well as delivering general needs services.

Booking

The talk is free but please book your place to ensure you get a seat. Please reserve your tickets here.

Access

Please note, the talk will take place on the first floor which is only accessible via stairs.

The venue can only be accessed to the right of the food court/car park entrance to Clarks Village.

Information

The talk will start at 6:00pm, but the doors will be open from 5:30pm for teas and coffees.