At an International Women’s Day Event held at the Senedd, Taylor Edmonds, a poet and creative writer, said that young women should be taught to use creative writing to express their feelings and amplify their voices.

She said: “I think it’s really important to teach women from a young age to have like confidence in their voice and for me creative writing is a way to express that.”

Edmonds writes poems that tell stories of male violence and sexual harassment, she thinks that telling these stories through poetry leads to an increased emotional effect on the readers.

She said: “When I read a poem that I see myself in, that resonates with me, I get a felling in my chest that I want to create for others. People who have experience male violence or sexual assault will feel seen by it and feel understood.”

Natasha Asghar MS attended the event where she shared her thoughts on the struggles women of colour have in politics.

She said: “It saddens me to say that there are instances where women are treated differently because of the colour of their skin, their sexuality, they have a disability.

“But I’m one of those people who believe in smashing through glass ceilings not just breaking them, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that every woman no matter their political background or race will have a place in politics.”

Mali and Annie, students from Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Gwent Is-Coed in Newport. felt that the event was inspiring and that conversations with Molly Fenton, an award-winning female activist who lives with an in-operable brain tumour, helped them realise that they are not alone in their struggles.

Mali said: “Todays event has been really inspiring for me, it’s not often that you see so many young women together in a room discussing issues that probably wouldn’t have been talked about otherwise. We’ve had lots of interesting discussions about women in healthcare and women in stem.”

Annie said: “I was a little bit skeptical when I first arrived, but after sitting and watching the panel, talking to specifically Molly Fenton about the struggles women have when it comes to our healthcare. It made me realise that advocating for myself is more important than anything and that I’m not the only one in this situation.”