Middlesbrough women share stories at “Resilient Women”

Middlesbrough: On Monday, the seats of Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium won’t hold football fans. They’ll hold stories.

Sahida Ditta planned “Resilient Women” to bring women together who might never cross paths otherwise. A chief constable. A Methodist minister. A former prisoner. A coach, a teacher, a mum. She wanted a space where disability, mental health, menopause and motherhood could be spoken about without lowering your voice. “We need a place where women from different backgrounds can support one another and feel a real sense of belonging,” Ditta said.

For Samina Zaman, 45, the timing feels personal. She was given the all clear from breast cancer in January. This will be her first Eid since hearing those words. She’ll stand up and talk about early detection, and about premenopausal symptoms she’s lived through. “Menopause and breast cancer are taboo subjects,” she said. Some women feel embarrassed and stay quiet. She doesn’t want that anymore. “We need to just be able to openly speak about these things.”

Ditta will share her own recovery too — learning to walk again after an injury. The Reverend Charity Hamilton will speak on health. Another guest will talk about the barriers different ethnic communities face getting mental health support. A former prisoner will tell how she turned her life around. Chief Constable Victoria Fuller will talk about her career and about being a mum.

Maureen Rigg, 80, from Eaglescliffe, is coming to listen and to share. A retired English teacher and Christian, she fasted for Lent and also tried a day of fasting during Ramadan. “It gave me a much better appreciation of the women that I’d known for years,” she said. She believes the event will encourage women to step up as leaders and build confidence.

Ditta chose to hold the event during Eid and International Women’s Day for a reason. She wants Muslim women to feel culturally recognised, and she wants women from every background who feel overlooked or unheard to know this space is for them too.

The event is part of Amal Project Teesside, which works to improve access to essential services for ethnically diverse communities. But on Monday, it’s less about services and more about voices. Women talking openly, listening without judgment, and finding strength in each other’s stories.