{"id":2843,"date":"2026-03-10T13:32:47","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T13:32:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/imperial-people\/?p=2843"},"modified":"2026-03-10T13:32:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T13:32:47","slug":"abby-sanderson-women-at-imperial-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/imperial-people\/2026\/03\/10\/abby-sanderson-women-at-imperial-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Abby Sanderson – Women at Imperial Week"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Abby<\/p>\n

“I grew up playing football, and back then there weren\u2019t any role models you could watch in stadiums. So it\u2019s nice to see how things have changed.”<\/h3>\n

A major sports fan, Abby has managed to turn her passion into a career. Being the Wellbeing Manager is all about how sport and physical activity support wellbeing. Abby works in the Move<\/a> team, part of the Property Division<\/a>, which encourages students and staff to get active. “My role is about encouraging people to increase their physical activity levels.”<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Abby has spent most of her career in the higher education sector, where she loves the buzz of working with young people. \u201cI love the energy that the students bring to Imperial. The start of the academic year is really exciting, especially for those coming to university for the first time, and it\u2019s great being a part of that journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

Women at Imperial Week<\/h3>\n

One of Move\u2019s initiative is Move Learn<\/a> which includes talks, events and workshops around health and wellbeing. \u201cWe try to be insight-led and deliver sessions on what people want to hear about. We get a lot of requests on women’s health, so I’m looking forward to our events for Women at Imperial Week<\/a>. We\u2019ve got sessions on the menstrual cycle, menopause and endometriosis. It\u2019s good to cover topics that aren\u2019t discussed much in a work context.\u201d<\/p>\n

Move is also hosting a range of events and sessions like Girls Night In<\/a> where women can try out different activities from basketball to pilates and the gym.<\/p>\n

Outside of Women at Imperial Week<\/a>, there\u2019s wellbeing support all year round. One initiative founded by Abby is the Staff Menopause Network<\/a> which is for staff members to learn and share experiences. \u201cIt\u2019s a very informal network for colleagues to come together and provide peer-to-peer support whilst learning more about the menopause.\u201d<\/p>\n

Abby thinks Women at Imperial Week<\/a> is a good chance to celebrate our achievements that aren\u2019t often talked about. \u201cPeople do incredible stuff at Imperial and a lot of the time you don\u2019t get to hear it as we\u2019re all focused on our day-to-day roles. I meet many women from different faculties, departments and areas of work, and I\u2019ll often come out of a conversation feeling really inspired.\u201d<\/p>\n

Researching the benefits of physical activity<\/h3>\n

Another aspect of Abby\u2019s role is contributing to research on the role of sport and physical activity in wellbeing. One project in conjunction with the School of Public Health<\/a> studied the Move More<\/a> initiative \u2013 a ten-week programme to get people who are inactive doing more physical activity.<\/p>\n

Abby is also working with the Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship<\/a> exploring the impact of activity on student wellbeing. \u201cIt\u2019s only recently we\u2019ve been involved in research, but I\u2019m encouraged by what I\u2019ve seen. We believe in the power of sport and physical activity at Move and it\u2019s great to have some evidence to back that up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking her work home<\/h3>\n
\"Abby
Abby infront of Wembley Stadium.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Unsurprisingly, sport plays a big part in Abby\u2019s life outside of work, and she loves to go and watch live sport. Although she hung up her own football boots a while ago, she\u2019s still a huge football fan and enjoys seeing how the women\u2019s game has grown. \u201cI grew up playing football, and back then there weren\u2019t any role models you could go and watch in stadiums. So, it\u2019s nice to see how things have changed.\u201d<\/p>\n

In total contrast to the adrenaline buzz of sport, Abby also enjoys knitting. \u201cI\u2019m currently trying to master knitting socks, which has been a challenge. I like how knitting absorbs all your focus and takes your mind off everything else. It\u2019s also nice to have something to show at the end, provided it doesn\u2019t unravel and fall apart!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“I grew up playing football, and back then there weren\u2019t any role models you could watch in stadiums. So it\u2019s nice to see how things have changed.” A major sports fan, Abby has managed to turn her passion into a career. Being the Wellbeing Manager is all about how sport and physical activity support wellbeing. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1693,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[288073],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2843","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-support-staff"],"yoast_head":"\nAbby Sanderson - Women at Imperial Week - Imperial people<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For Women at Imperial Week, Abby Sanderson, Wellbeing Manager, tells us about her interest in sport and the role physical activity can play in wellbeing. 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