Still hoping we can work on that Caroline if you can fit it in!
I think childcare practicalities, and the usual socialising formats could certainly be factors. It’s something which as conference organisers we can definitely think about.
I noticed a healthy amount of women attendees at @media this year, but dev conferences (which ours tend to lead towards) still appear heavily male-dominated, both in terms of speakers and attendees (disclosure: I helped organise the future of web apps!). Hoping that at future events and of course on Vitamin, that together we can raise the profile of a more diverse range of talent in the industry – that diversity has to be there in the first place though.
Maaike – we normally have an event wiki where you can post about meet-ups, and so this would be a good chance to make sure you hook up with fellow females at an event.