Press Release - 8 September 2006

Deputy Minister meets with Muslim women in Rotherham

Left to right. Adeeba Malik, Parveen Qureshi, Gillian Dodds, Sonia Ashraf and Meg Munn MP.

Deputy Minister for Women and Equality, Meg Munn, was in Rotherham yesterday (Thursday 7 September 2006) to consult with a group of Muslim women about the barriers they feel they have to overcome to improve their social and economic circumstances.

The visit is part of a series of regional visits by Meg Munn to meet with Muslim women across the country to hear about the issues affecting their families an communities.

The talks, which take place at the United Multicultural Centre in Rotherham, form part of a major government funded project run by Bradford-based diversity and community charity QED-UK.

The Minister's visit is the latest initiative from the project 'Narrowing the Gap' which aims to help 2,000 Pakistani and Bangladeshi men and women throughout the Yorkshire and Humber region to become economically active over the next three years, with 500 of them securing jobs.

The discussion involved Minister and partners from four community organisations across Yorkshire that are working with QED-UK to improve employment opportunities for Muslim women. Meg Munn also viewed a DVD produced by QED-UK which is being piloted and encourages Muslim women to enter the workforce.

Talks covered the issues faced by Muslim women and tried to identify solutions to the problems. It was chaired by QED-UK's deputy chief executive, Adeeba Malik MBE.

Meg Munn, Deputy Minister for Women and Equalities at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), said:

"We want all women to have genuine choices when thinking about entering the workforce, or trying to balance professional and working like.

"Talking to Muslim women in Rotherham today gave me the chance to hear first hand their views about the barriers they feel that they face to gain stronger social and economic independence. I was concerned to hear from a number of women that although well qualified they were not successful in getting jobs. Employers are missing out on vital skills and experience and need to give equality of opportunity to all including women from minority communities.

"I look forward to the launch of this innovative DVD nationally later this month, which I'm confident will help inspire Muslim women across Yorkshire area and beyond."

Deputy Chief Executive of QED-UK Adeeba Malik MBE expands on the issues facing Muslim women: "The barriers to employment for most Asian women in the UK include a lack of education training and qualifications. Coupled with social and domestic pressures, this means that women from ethnic minorities often lack the confidence and knowledge to join the country's workforce. Meg Munn MP tackled these issues head on with the people that are directly affected by them.”

"QED-UK and its four partners can help these women access training opportunities and find jobs, organise childcare and help them improve their interview techniques.”

Recent figures from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) show that there is a 30 per cent employment gap between people with Bangladeshi and Pakistani origin and the rest of the community. With just 25 per cent of Muslim women venturing into the workplace this new DVD sets out to significantly increase employment opportunities for Asian women in the UK.

The charity is working closely on the Narrowing the Gap project with the United Multicultural Centre, Rotherham, Pakistani Muslim Centre, Sheffield, Shantona Women's Centre, Leeds and Sangat Centre, Keighley. It is supporting 30 more community groups in the region that are seeking to remove the obstacles preventing ethnic minorities from entering the labour market.

For media enquiries contact Simon Collister by telephoning 01423 567111 (07971612857 out-of-hours). Alternatively email: simon@cicada-pr.com