SWINDON will mark International Women’s Day on Saturday, March 8 with workshops, displays, activities and discussions surrounding the topics of respect and empowerment in and around the Central Library.

The event will launch on the evening of Friday March 7, with five individual art exhibitions at Post Modern, Artsite and the library. On the Saturday, women will be offered makeovers and will be able to take part in journal-writing, crafts, henna painting, and story-telling.

These will be followed by a panel discussion on women in business, hosted by Elaine Godley, founder of VitalityMax.

Central to this year’s IWD celebrations is the Respect Not Violence campaign, which highlights the vital role of men in putting an end to violence against women.

Event co-ordinator Rosa Matheson said: “According to statistics, one in four women experience violence. The fact is that the majority of men find this as horrible as women do, but get little chance of voicing that; this is their chance to say so.”

There will also be a white balloon launch on the Saturday.