Stories

Find out more about about some of our mentees, and their mentors, below. Check out and share our Booklet for more stories!

Emmy, 16

The Girls’ Network is absolutely amazing. It makes me so much more determined

Mentee: Emmy was attending Burlington Danes Academy and is a straight A student and Oxbridge candidate, but also a dancer. She is keen to pursue dance as a career, but her school is encouraging her to follow an academic path

Mentor: Amelia is an account manager at Fieldglass

Their story: Emmy was a very talented dancer, but because her grades were so good, her school was pushing her to go to either Oxford or Cambridge University (neither of which offer dance as an option). Amelia helped Emmy to work through this dilemma and put her in contact with professionals who combine dance and academia. This helped her to discover ways to use both her academic skills and her passions. Emmy also benefitted from Amelia’s general advice and found their time together very inspiring

Sylvia, 16

I learnt how to change things and have a plan B

Mentee: Silvia was attending school in London but struggling with mental health during her GCSE year, which meant she was taking a lot of time off

Mentor: Lorna is a trainer in the People Development Team at Clarion Housing

Their story: Silvia was suffering from a lack of confidence and self-belief before her GCSE exams. She had taken time off due to anxiety, so Lorna helped Silvia get through this difficult time and communicated with the school about what Silvia needed, which helped to turn her Year 11 around. Silvia began to attend school much more and made really good progress with English coursework, earning her target grade of a B in English Literature. She is now applying for a Health & Social course at college and with Lorna’s support is organising work experience at a hospital

Henrike, 16

It’s so good to have time to think about yourself. You get to know yourself better

Mentee: Henrike was attending Hornsey School for Girls, but grew up in Germany. She wanted help with further education in the UK and was also feeling quite homesick

Mentor: Ramona is a Strategic Partner and Channel Manager at Hitachi Consulting. She is also German

Their story: Henrike came to The Girls' Network looking for support and not really knowing what she wanted to do next or how to go about it. English is her second language and as the curriculum in Germany is different to the UK, Henrike was unfamiliar with our school system. Ramona helped her to focus on her strengths and goals, and assisted Henrike with writing her personal statement and deciding which universities to apply for. Both Ramona and Henrike also found a friend away from home

Noor, 15

I met different people, like a fashion designer and a banker from Citi Bank. It was so helpful

Mentee: Noor was attending The Crest Academy studying her GCSEs and unsure of her next step. She was born and grew up in Sweden

Mentor: Ulrika is COO at Battle of the Quants (Global Event Platform, Quantitative Finance). She is Swedish and thought mentoring would be a great opportunity to meet a young person in the UK

Their story: Noor was quite confused about what she wanted to do career-wise and was struggling to make decisions. Ulrika helped Noor to focus on her strengths and uncovered an interest in both finance and fashion. Using her network, she introduced Noor to people who worked in both these fields, which helped her gain an insight into the different routes she could take. Initially Noor decided to follow finance and study economics, but she eventually switched to a fashion degree. Through her The Girls’ Network contacts she became involved in organising a fashion event, which has been very helpful work experience. She is currently studying fashion at the University of Westminster

Lydia, 17

I know how much Janet has helped me, so [in the future] I would want to do the same for someone else

Mentee: Lydia was attending Holly Lodge Girls’ College and was a bright student who had aspirations to go into education or business as her career

Mentor: Janet is Senior Engagement Lead at HMRC with over 30 years’ experience in the organisation

Their story: Lydia was a student hungry to learn and keen to take advice from Janet to plan her next step. Janet arranged work experience for Lydia at HMRC, where Lydia had the opportunity to meet and talk to several civil servants about their working life. While studying her A levels Lydia took on a part time job after encouragement from Janet, where she was quickly promoted. This helped build confidence in her leadership abilities and gave her extra material for her personal statement. Lydia’s goal is now to own her own business one day and find a job where she can be creative and innovative. She has become an ambassador for The Girls’ Network, and actively promotes mentoring opportunities to other girls who were like her