With International Women’s Day falling on a Sunday this year, my social media feeds have been filled with activity since last Friday - as people finished their working week - throughout the weekend and on the day itself. And now here I am writing about it on Monday. It’s felt like a four-day celebration of the role and rights of women in society, punctuated by sobering and moving reflections about how much work there’s still to do.

As usual, although such voices are in the minority, you hear the questioning of whether such a day is really needed and whether this is marginalising men. I say this is missing the point on both counts. The issues and conversations that need to take place regarding equality and inclusion aren’t just conversations for women to have but men, too. It is a societal conversation, consideration and moral obligation. As Naz Shah MP said in the House of Commons last week, you don’t have to be a woman to understand what sexism and misogyny look like. And if we don’t have a conversation across the genders, we’ll never broaden understanding and perspectives.

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Moving a community forward

This debate isn’t about the personal advancement of any one woman, it is about moving a whole community forward. A global community where the starting point is variable but the commonality is that more progress is needed, and at a faster rate. A new United Nations report has found that at least 90 per cent of men and women hold some sort of bias against women. The Gender Social Norms Index analysed biases in areas such as politics and education across 75 countries. It is interesting that those two spheres were chosen: two areas of life that represent power and progress. Two areas where access to opportunity matters.

People in positions of power often cite the importance of role models in their lives - those who encouraged them, or simply those who were in a position they aspired to and therefore made it look like it could be possible. When I started my career over 30 years ago, every mentor and role model I had was male. In my network, there were no senior women. Yet now, so many women I work with and meet inspire me. That gives me hope that things have changed and will continue to do so at a greater rate.

But even with visible role models, the opportunity to progress has to be there. Society, organisations and individuals all need to recognise and support talent and ability regardless of gender. I’m proud to be part of two sectors - health and education - where the majority of the workforce is female (and not just at a junior level), and where the boards are truly diverse and balanced. But that is the exception, not the rule. And my passion for the education sector comes from the belief that this is the biggest opportunity afforded to anyone in life.

Societal norms

Your education is where you start to be influenced by societal norms. It has the power to reinforce and reproduce social relations. Gender stereotypes here tend to follow you throughout your life. The efforts applied to increase the number of jobs in Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) industries held by women in the UK from a lowly 11 per cent is evidence of the need to challenge these biases. But it is the basic right to an education that needs to be the norm for women around the world. According to the World Bank, nearly a quarter of girls globally do not complete their secondary education - and that number rises to two thirds in low-income countries. One third do not even get a full primary education. That’s 131 million girls not going to school worldwide.

I see from my work in the health sector how education is one of the wider determinants of health and life expectancy. The correlation between low levels of education and poor health outcomes is striking and, globally, has disastrous consequences. More than 300,000 women die each year giving birth. Unesco estimates that if all mothers completed primary education, including lessons about health and hygiene, that number would be reduced by two thirds. This educational input would save 200,000 lives every year. And of course, it’s not only the mother but also the child who is at risk. If all women had a primary education, infant mortality would be reduced by 15 per cent, for secondary education 50 per cent. That’s 3 million lives.

So education matters. But not just for the sake of it. An education that is inclusive and nurturing. Educational establishments that welcome everyone - regardless of starting point - and encourage progression and achievement in whatever form that takes. This is what further education does, at every point in an individual’s life. From the top chefs, game designers, artists and film-makers through to those individuals who need to get their basic literacy levels up. From those starting out in their working lives through to those retraining and reinventing themselves as the world of work changes and new opportunities emerge.

That’s what we do in colleges every day, for millions of people. Men and women alike. And it’s those opportunities and influences that create the belief in individuals that they can be whatever they want to be, regardless of their gender.

And that is worth celebrating. So happy International Women’s Day to everyone working in the sector providing the foundation for success for the women of the future. And to all those women who have, and continue to inspire me, and others, around the world.

Julie Nerney is chair of the Association of Colleges