Rebecca Kibby, the new Chair of Women in Residential Property, set out her vision at the Regional Lunch at Browns Covent Garden. She emphasized the need for stronger connections, greater inclusivity, and increased visibility within the industry. With plans for cross-sector collaboration, expanded membership, and a new mentoring program, her speech marked the start of an exciting chapter for WiRP.
The Speech went as follows:
Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you so much for being here.
It’s an absolute pleasure to welcome you to today’s Regional Lunch—and my first as Chair of Women in Residential Property.
It’s wonderful to see so many faces in the room: familiar, new, and everything in between.
For those I haven’t met yet, I’m Rebecca Kibby. I’m a lawyer by background and have worked across the residential property sector for many years—collaborating with estate agents, developers, mortgage brokers, surveyors, and so many others who make this industry work.
Like many of you, I’ve seen how the industry has evolved. There’s been real progress—more collaboration, more innovation, and greater recognition of the value that diverse voices bring. But there’s still work to do, especially when it comes to breaking down silos and building more inclusive spaces.
That’s what drew me to WiRP in the first place. I believe in the power of networks to create meaningful change—not just in terms of career development, but in shaping a more connected, more collaborative industry. And that’s why I applied to be Chair.
Being in this role is an incredible privilege. WiRP has already done fantastic work in creating a space for women across all areas of residential property to come together, share ideas, and support each other. My role now is to build on that strong foundation.
Looking ahead, my vision for WiRP is threefold: more connected, more inclusive, and more visible.
- More connected—by strengthening relationships across the full property chain. Not just within the legal world, but with estate agents, developers, surveyors, brokers and more. We all have so much to learn from each other.
- More inclusive—by growing our membership and making sure WiRP is a welcoming space for everyone, at every stage of their career, and from every background.
- And more visible—by actively collaborating with other fantastic women-led groups like Women in Estate Agency, Conveyancing, Construction and Banking. I want us to champion one another, not compete.
We’re also very conscious of the importance of allyship. True progress is inclusive, and we want men in the room, at the table, and part of the conversation—helping to challenge the status quo and support the next generation of women in the sector.
One of the initiatives I’m most excited about is our upcoming mentoring programme. It’s still in development, but our aim is to create structured, meaningful relationships that open doors, grow confidence, and encourage shared learning across disciplines. I know how transformative a good mentor can be, and I can’t wait to see that come to life within WiRP.
Ultimately, everything we do is about connection. Connection leads to knowledge-sharing, better communication, more effective collaboration—and it drives progress, not just for women, but for the entire industry.
So thank you again for being here and for being part of this brilliant network. Whether you’ve been with WiRP for years or this is your very first event, we’re so glad you’re here and we hope you’ll be inspired to get involved.
I’m really excited about what’s ahead—and I hope you are too.
Thank you.
