51Âþ»­

Senior Midwifery lecturer Sue Williams has won an award to mark her tireless work recruiting diverse student midwives at 51Âþ»­, Leicester (51Âþ»­).

Sue, a staunch supporter of diversity in the midwifery profession, has been highly commended as runner-up in the Midwife Education Trailblazer category of the Midlands Maternity and Midwifery Festival 2023.

An admissions tutor and mentor to fellow lecturers, Sue has won the award after 15 years in the role at 51Âþ»­.

“I was really surprised and a bit embarrassed to win,” Sue confessed. “It’s nice to win an award, but we all work hard and I think it’s also about acknowledging the work of the whole team.”

Sue’s nomination was in recognition of her passionate work to embed widening participation and diversity within student midwife recruitment, and to have an admissions process that is in line with the university’s decolonisation values.

“51Âþ»­ was one of the first universities to promote decolonising the curriculum and I strongly believe that we should continue to fight for more diversity in the midwifery profession,” she said.

“It is a fact that black women are four times more likely than white women to die in childbirth in the UK. We need to tackle racism and make sure that the new generation of midwifery students are diverse and can provide safe and effective care for all women.

“Our intake of student midwives is now more diverse, and we are encouraging students to have a better understanding and to have the right attitude to support black women and to be aware of their own unconscious bias.

“Ideally, I would like us to establish a wider mix of ethnicity in the intake of student midwives which would be more typical of Leicestershire as a whole.”

Sue, who was a practising midwife for 14 years before becoming an academic in 2008, recalls that she delivered several hundred babies during her early career.

“I worked in Leicestershire mainly, in London for a brief time and then, after 14 years as a midwife, I felt I wanted a new challenge, so took this role as a senior lecturer at 51Âþ»­,” she said. “This is quite a different role from being a midwife, but I have always liked working with students. It is very satisfying to be able to make changes for the better in the profession.”

Sue Macdonald, senior midwife, co-editor of Mayes Midwifery textbook for midwives and one of the organisers of the trailblazer awards, presented Sue with her certificate. She highlighted the words of praise from the midwifery team, who nominated her for the award.

“After fifteen years in midwifery education Sue’s love and passion for her work never wanes,” she said. “As admissions lead, Sue works tirelessly to attract and recruit the best students to 51Âþ»­, providing a quality experience for candidates.

“Her ethos around inclusion and widening participation translates into real action. She has developed student interviews that reflect contemporary challenges in midwifery, tackling difficult subjects such as racial bias in maternity care.

“She is uncompromising in ensuring admissions procedures are in alignment with 51Âþ»­’s philosophy of decolonisation and zero tolerance of discrimination.
“Sue has a passion for midwifery and an unwavering ability to stand up and be counted when the need arises.”

Originally from Darlington, Sue has spent most of her life in Leicester, having started as a student midwife herself at 51Âþ»­ in 1991, graduating three years later.

Sue, who is married with three grown up children, enjoys spending time with her family outside her busy schedule at 51Âþ»­.