Weekend Woman's Hour: Laura Jurd: Dido Harding; Raven Kaliana

According to the TUC, Thursday was Equal Pay Day, the point in the year on which a woman in full-time employment effectively stops earning. They say that women are paid 15% less and that in some areas the picture is far worse. So what needs to happen to close the gender pay gap? And is it time for mandatory pay audits? On Thursday Jenni talked to Nicola Smith, Head of Economics and Social Affairs at the TUC and was joined by Maria Miller, the Minister for Women and Equalities to discuss what the government is doing to promote equality in the workplace.

Dido Harding has been the CEO of TalkTalk Group for just over three years, having previously worked for top retailers like Sainsburys and Tesco. She’s keen to make sure that her workforce is as diverse as possible and wants to see more women running companies not necessarily on their boards. On Tuesday the former amateur jockey and mother of two told Jane what it’s like to juggle family life with life as a chief exec.

The Woman's Hour Powerlist

A new survey published on Monday by the British Association for Adoption and Fostering illustrates a number of myths around who can and can’t be an adoptive parent. In National Adoption Week we look at how these misconceptions could be preventing children finding a permanent home. On Monday Jane was joined by Alice Noon, manager of the London Adoption Team for Coram, the children’s charity and adoption agency.

The EFG London Jazz Festival begins on Friday 15th November and to celebrate its 21st year it has commissioned 21 compositions. One of these is from Laura Jurd, one of the jazz world’s brightest young stars. She has already been awarded the Dankworth Prize for Jazz Composition and the Worshipful Company of Musician's jazz award, and she is only 22. You may have heard her Maida Vale session on BBC Radio 3’s Jazz on 3, who discovered her work through the BBC Introducing uploader.

Raven Kaliana was made to work in the porn industry for many years by her parents. The money she earned paid the mortgage. The years of constant sexual abuse was dehumanising but when she witnessed another young child being killed as part of a movie she realised her life was in danger as her father was making similar plans for her. Eventually she escaped to San Francisco and got a job with a puppeteer. She devised a puppet show “Hooray for Hollywood” about her life, which has helped her deal with her traumatic past, and educate others about child abuse.

Outspiral

Childline
0800 1111
Get help and advice about a wide range of issues, talk to a counsellor online. You can also send ChildLine an email or post on the message boards.

NSPCC Helpline
NSPCC Child Protection Helpline - 0808 800 5000
The NSPCC is the UK’s leading charity dedicated to stopping child abuse. You can call their child protection helpline or contact them via email at [email protected].

MOSAC
MOSAC is a voluntary organisation supporting all non-abusing parents and carers whose children have been sexually abused. They provide advocacy, advice and information, befriending, counselling, play therapy and support groups following alleged child sexual abuse. Visit their website or call their national helpline on 0800 980 1958.

Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre
The CEOP Centre is the UK's national police agency set up to tackle child sexual abuse. If you are worried about someone's behaviour towards a child, online or offline, you can report this at www.ceop.police.uk. You can get help, advice and support on all issues related to internet safety for young people by visiting www.clickceop.net.

NAPAC
NAPAC is the National Association for People Abused in Childhood. It is a registered charity providing support and information for people abused in childhood.

For more links to useful organisations click here

Pauline Campbell and Violet Van der Elst were separated by more than half a century but their aims were the same – to transform the prison system. When Pauline’s daughter took her own life in prison in 2003, she embarked on a campaign to change the way women are treated behind bars, whereas Violet took to the streets in the 1930s to put an end to capital punishment. A new report from the Howard League for Penal Reform looks at the impact and success of their work. Guest : Laura Topham

From the bickering lovers Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing to the doomed couple, Romeo and Juliet, who are the Bard’s best flirts and who are the most unlikely flirters? Guests: actor Samantha Spiro and Peggy Reynolds, Professor of English at Queen Mary University of London.