In an incident that has sparked a powerful wave of support and fresh calls for inclusion, West Midlands-based tech entrepreneur Davina Schonle was denied entry into London Tech Week—an event that claims to champion women in technology—because she had her eight-month-old baby, Isadella, with her.
Davina, founder and CEO of Humanvantage AI, had travelled over three hours from her Worcester home to London, hoping to connect with development partners to scale her AI-powered corporate training platform. Instead, she was stopped at the gates of the prestigious Olympia London venue and told she couldn’t enter with her baby.
She, with daughter Isadella, was at the Learning Technologies and HR Tech Exhibition.
“I was asked if I was a VIP,” she told TheBusinessDesk.com.
“When I said I wasn’t, they told me I wasn’t allowed in with a baby. I was later approached by other staff who twisted my badge around—clearly to check if I had VIP access.”
Despite having pre-arranged meetings with exhibitors—who were aware she would be accompanied by her child—Davina was forced to cancel two of the three, after managing to meet just one contact at a café outside the venue. The rejection is particularly jarring considering London Tech Week features spaces like EQL:LOUNGE, advertised as a hub to “amplify the voices of women in technology” and “break barriers.”
For Davina, the irony was inescapable. “I wasn’t asking for special treatment. I was asking to be treated like a professional who also happens to be a mother,” she said.
The response from London Tech Week organisers, Informa, cited insurance and health & safety policies not covering under-16s. But for many in the tech and business community, this incident highlighted a deeper issue—the systematic exclusion of mothers in professional spaces.
Davina’s story, shared on her LinkedIn, has since gone viral, garnering over 400 supportive comments from professionals across the UK and beyond. One particularly striking message came from Florence Bavanandan of Launch Africa Ventures, who had spoken at London Tech Week just a day earlier—with her six-week-old baby in her arms.
She posted in solidarity: “This systematic exclusion of parents – but let’s face it, mothers – is unacceptable.”
Another high-profile supporter, entrepreneur Sháá Wasmund MBE, who met Davina and Isadella at The Rise of the Female Entrepreneur event in May, added: “In 2025, we have to do better…
“If you want to get more women in tech, stop putting up hurdles and start making it easier.” Davina isn’t just any tech founder—she’s also part of the University of Warwick’s Deep Tech Incubator and mentors’ students at the University of Wolverhampton Business School through the Institute of Directors programme.
She represents a new generation of women who are juggling ambition and motherhood, challenging the outdated idea that these roles must exist in conflict. Her experience underscores a broader issue: Events that claim to promote diversity and inclusion must do more than pay lip service.
In a society striving for equality, practical inclusion matters. It means reimagining spaces to accommodate working parents—especially mothers—so their careers don't stall at the intersection of professionalism and parenting.
