Mike Acosta, Subject Leader for BA Games Art at WCG (left) and Guy Thomas, Dean of Higher Education at WCG (right) with mentors Leanne Reed, Chloe Smith, Catherine Sabine, Amber Silcock and Emily Evans
A Midlands college has announced a new mentorship programme, known as ‘EqualPlay’, to support female students looking to progress into the games industry.
Royal Leamington Spa College has launched its EqualPlay initiative which will see female students paired up with industry professionals.
The college is based in the heart of Silicon Spa, a moniker for Leamington Spa, a cluster of games developers in the UK.
According to a press release sent to Esports News UK, the initiative will not only provide students with advice and support from those working in the industry, but also encourage equality and diversity in the industry.
A total of six female mentors have signed up to the EqualPlay programme, all of which are former students from the college now working in the industry.
They will be paired up with students from the college’s Games Art BA (Hons) degree course who they will meet with on a monthly basis to provide guidance and support.
“The games industry can be a very male dominated profession. It’s improving, but it’s so important to support young females looking to progress into the industry. I will be looking to inspire and encourage the mentees.”
Amber Silcock
EqualPlay to give students a link to industry professionals
The programme seems similar to NSE’s Intel FutureGen 2023 buddy mentorship programme, where rising esports stars are paired with industry professionals, but is focused on women.
Guy Thomas, Dean of Higher Education at WCG, said of the EqualPlay programme: “Gaming is an extremely male-dominated industry, but has a very diverse consumer base. We want to not only encourage our female students to progress in the industry, but also ensure that the end user feels more represented.
“The mentors will each work with a small number of mentees to provide advice and guidance about the industry and the various career paths available. It will give students a direct link to an industry professional who they can call upon to discuss everything from the very latest developments in gaming to advice on employment opportunities.
“Despite it being focused on women and girls, the initiative will see everyone from underrepresented groups, such as those from underprivileged backgrounds and ethnic minorities, have the opportunity to receive mentoring.”
The Games Art BA (Hons) degree course is delivered through WCG’s Higher Education arm Warwickshire College and University Centre (WCUC).
Amber Silcock, a producer at Excalibur Games, is from Leamington and graduated from WCG in 2019. She is responsible for live games on the Steam and Epic platforms as well as on consoles, manages the company’s development and localisation teams, and more. She wanted to support EqualPlay after being both a mentee and mentor through a different initiative.
She said: “The games industry can be a very male dominated profession. It’s improving, but it’s so important to support young females looking to progress into the industry.
“I’ve been both a mentee and a mentor myself and know how valuable it is to have contacts in what is an ever-changing, fast-paced industry. I will be looking to inspire and encourage the mentees, make them aware of any current industry challenges and also provide long-term support should they move into a role within the industry following their studies.”
Further information about the Games Art BA (Hons) degree is available at wcuc.ac.uk
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
