PROFESSOR KEITH MCLAY: And now we come to the stage in the ceremony for our Honorary Award. The Honorary Awards are given by the University in recognition of somebody who has made a very significant contribution in their particular field. I now have great pleasure in inviting Professor Warren Manning, Provost Innovation and Research, to give the commendation for the conferment of an Honorary Master of the University to Dionne Reid. Professor Manning.
PROFESSOR WARREN MANNING: Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, Lord Lieutenant, The Deputy Mayor of Derby, honoured guests, graduands of 2023 and all our guests here today, it gives me great pleasure to present Dionne Reid for the award of Honorary Master of the University.
Dionne is the founder and CEO of multi award-winning Derbyshire charity, Women's Work. She's a powerful voice and passionate advocate for vulnerable women in Derby. Women's Work supports local women from the most deprived and troubled backgrounds, equipping them with the skills and confidence to make lasting change for themselves and their families. Dionne's work has touched the lives of many thousands of women over the last 20 years and her impact in the city has been transformational.
Dionne started her working life as a croupier and after working up to a casino inspector she decided to return to adult education to study Business and Accountancy in 1992. She worked in many part-time roles while studying and raising her young family and in 2003 she studied a Postgraduate Diploma in Addictive Behaviour at St George's Medical School in London.
She founded Women's Work in April 2003 after walking the streets of Derby late at night and talking to women to understand the challenges they faced. She built a team of 33 staff and 40 volunteers which now support over 1,000 women and children every year across the UK to improve their lives, skills, confidence and relationships. The specialist programmes developed by the charity are now impacting the lives of young women far beyond the UK, in Australia and America.
Dionne's knowledge about the lived experience of marginalized and vulnerable women now informs national policy and many research projects. Her expertise helped to build a framework for the National Ugly Mugs scheme, a UK-wide charity working to end all forms of violence against sex workers. She's also travelled to Amsterdam with ITV News to report on the sex trade in the Netherlands, and work with Sky News and the BBC Politics show to report on the social challenges faced by vulnerable women. She's been a regular speaker on Heart FM and on her local radio station Radio Derby.
Over the last 25 years, Dionne has taken on numerous voluntary roles in the city including Chair of Derby's International Women's Day Committee, Vice Chair of Derby's Gender and Diversity Committee, and Vice Chair of Derby City Council's Standards Committee. She was also an elected Women's Ambassador for the East Midlands.
Dionne was voted Derbyshire's Most Inspirational Woman in 2017 and in 2019 hosted Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal at the charity offices. In 2022, Derby Museum recognised Dionne as a Woman of Historical Significance for social impact. This year the charity published its biography to mark its 20th anniversary.
Joining Dionne today to celebrate her impressive achievements are her husband, Winston, daughter, Natalie, and her colleague, Rose.
Chancellor, in recognition of her outstanding support for vulnerable women in the city, we are delighted to award Dionne Reid the Honorary Degree of Master of the University.
DIONNE REID: Deep breath. Good day to you all, Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, Deputy Mayor, Lord Lieutenant, honoured guests and, of course, you, all our 2023 graduates. It is a real pleasure and an honour to be stood here on this stage today. And it's one of those occasions for me when you think to yourself, "Oh, what am I doing here?" Even though this is my third graduation ceremony, today is a little different as I had no hand in the decision to make me an honorary graduate.
When I first heard about this award I was taken back to my first lecture on my post-graduate course at St George's in London. I was surrounded by my classmates who were doctors, psychologists and nurses who I assumed must be way smarter than me. Well, you know what that little miserable imp that we have inside our head tells us, "you're not going to be able to do this course, you you're going to fail, you're not good enough..." It wasn't until I completed my course with distinction that it kind of dawned on me that maybe, just maybe, I might be a little bit smart too.
Over the past 25 years, working in the community, educating, inspiring and helping women to change their lives for the better, I have learned so much about people, society and myself, resulting in my own personal growth and further empowering me to step away from them self-limiting beliefs, and finally I believe I am smart enough, I am good enough, and I won't fail.
I would like to say a special thank you to the thousands of women who have come to Women's Work for help over the last 20 years. They have touched my heart, educated me, inspired me, motivated me, left burning questions in my mind, given me sleepless nights, and caused me to reflect. They, those women and the hairy curve balls of Life, have ultimately made me who I am today and freedom is a wonderful feeling.
I also need to thank my cheerleaders, my children, Ash, Lou and Tilly, grandson Beeny, and to my husband, Win. As you know, behind many great women there is often a browbeaten man. The most tolerant and supportive man on the planet award definitely goes to him. He has suffered for nearly 40 years my excessive thirst for knowledge. I rarely sleep at night, I read, listen to podcasts and hum, yes, hum. My excessive energy, which would earn me a label of being hyperactive, perfectionism to the point of obsession, in my quest to understand the world, the reason for our existence and my commitment to making society a better place for women and their families. Without Mr Gordon, I do not think I would be stood on this stage today.
When we work hard enough and we believe in ourselves we can achieve anything, regardless of the limitations that fear, society and external influences impart on us. Women's Work has also taught me that we must never give up on our dreams, our aspirations and most importantly never give up on people. We have an obligation to all that come after us to strive to do our very best, strive to believe in our own capabilities and to inspire others, ensuring they know they can achieve great things too.
2023 has been an eventful year for me personally and professionally, celebrating a number of significant milestones and anniversaries and being recognised for my contribution to the local and wider community is the icing on the cake. The last quarter century (now I do sound old) has been an epic journey, a colourful adventure where I have been struck by some really ugly curveballs, however I will be eternally grateful for the life experiences and honours I have been gifted enabling me to live a truly fulfilled, purposeful and authentic life.
Now to our 2023 graduands. I would like to gift you all a few pearls from my very own personal wisdom book. Work hard, never give up on your dreams, you can achieve anything if you are willing to do the work, so always getup, show up and remember you make your own luck. Fear has often kept me company and sometimes tormented me at night however if I'd listened to fear Women's Work would not exist and I would not be me. I now know when faced with the fear wall the best and the biggest rewards are always on the other side of that wall, so keep pushing, keep dreaming and keep believing.
Always be curious and never stop asking why. Seek to understand, which will eventually lead to wisdom. Always be grateful. I believe life is a gift and our mission here is to learn and to be of service to others and of course having a little fun along the way.
But remember, life will always throw big hairy scary curveballs at you every now and again and they come when you're least expecting it and they come with a strong dose of pain that can completely derail you in all the plans you've made for the future. Alas, do not fear them, they are a necessity aiding your growth when these life monsters strike and they can strike at any time, doesn't matter what party you've planned to go to, or how busy you are, just stop, observe, reflect, make your plan, action it and things will eventually get better. There is always, of course, the risk that your plan could lead to an even bigger hairier curveball comes along with all its siblings and its, you know, hairball gang, you know, with serious pain, but the pain won't last, it won't last forever, it will ease with time so no regrets about any decision you ever make in life, it was the right decision when you made it.
Never stop learning. Learning is a journey, it doesn't matter how you learn, any learning will do whether it be further academic studies, self-learning, learning from others, just keep learning. And last, it's never too late to be what you could have been, so never close the book. You all are the author of the next chapter, so make it happen. Today is the first day of the rest of your lives.