In 2025, women make up just under half of the UK workforce. Yet equality at work remains unfinished business. The latest FTSE Women Leaders Review reports that women hold 42% of board seats in FTSE 100 companies and 41% across the FTSE 350, up from 12.5% in 2011. That is real progress, but it is not the full picture: women hold only 11% of chief executive roles and 19% of chair positions, and the pipeline to the most senior executive jobs is still narrow.
The pay gap tells a similar story. In 2024 the median gender pay gap for full-time employees in the UK was 7.7%, according to the Office for National Statistics. When part-time workers are included, the gap widens to 14.3%, because women are far more likely to work part-time or in lower-paid sectors. Since 2017, large employers have had to publish gender pay gap data, shining a light on the issue but also showing how slowly it is closing. At the current rate, the Fawcett Society estimates it could still take decades to close the gap completely.
One of the biggest barriers is the uneven flow of women into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The UK needs more women in STEM roles, yet stereotypes about “men’s jobs” and “women’s jobs” still shape choices made in childhood. Women now represent 29% of the core STEM workforce, but only around 16.5% of engineers and roughly a quarter of tech specialists. Research by the Fawcett Society and others shows that social and cultural assumptions — that girls are better suited to caring professions and boys to technical or scientific work — continue to steer young people down different paths.
A strong foundation: encouraging girls in education
Change has to start long before the boardroom. In schools, subject choices remain stubbornly gendered. Joint Council for Qualifications data for A-level entries in 2024 shows girls made up just 15% of computing candidates, 24% of physics candidates and 39% of maths candidates. At university level, women account for around 45% of STEM undergraduates overall, but only about 18% of engineering and technology students and 22% of computer science students, according to UCAS and WISE figures.
These patterns are not about innate ability. By the time they reach secondary school, many girls have already absorbed the message that science and maths are not for them. Unconscious bias among teachers, parents and careers advisers can discourage girls from taking maths, physics or computing. A lack of female teachers in these subjects and a shortage of visible women engineers and technologists reinforce the idea that these fields are not for girls.
There is, however, a growing range of initiatives tackling this. Programmes such as STEM Ambassadors, Tech She Can, the Institute of Physics Limit Less campaign and EngineeringUK’s schools outreach are working to challenge stereotypes and show girls what STEM careers look like in practice. T Levels, apprenticeships and skills bootcamps are also opening routes into technical roles that do not depend on a traditional degree.
Attracting and retaining graduate talent
Graduate recruitment has become more inclusive in some respects. The Institute of Student Employers reports that women now make up more than half of graduate hires in many sectors, with one recent survey putting the figure at around 54%. Yet the picture is uneven: technology, engineering and parts of finance still recruit far more men than women, and female graduates are more likely to leave certain industries within a few years.
Employers are responding with more inclusive job adverts, blind recruitment, structured internships and mentoring schemes. Returner programmes are helping women who have taken career breaks — often for caring responsibilities — to move back into skilled roles. Flexible and hybrid working, accelerated by the pandemic, has also made some sectors more accessible, although it can bring its own risks around visibility and progression.
Careers fairs and campus events remain useful, but only if the message matches the reality. Graduates are quick to spot tokenism. Businesses that want to attract talented women need to show clear progression routes, transparent pay and senior leaders who look like the workforce they say they want.
Visible role models at every level
Female role models matter, but visibility cannot be limited to a handful of famous chief executives. Women need to see people like them succeeding at every stage of a career, from first-line management to the executive committee. Peer role models — those only a few years ahead — are often the most powerful, because their paths feel achievable.
For women running their own businesses or building careers, attending networking events and joining peer groups can provide practical support that complements formal workplace programmes. These spaces create opportunities to share experiences, find mentors and build the confidence needed to pursue senior roles or start a business.
Conference platforms and industry events are slowly becoming more balanced. Campaigns such as the 50/50 Pledge and The 30% Club have pushed organisers to think harder about speaker line-ups, and “manels” — all-male panels — are now widely called out. Inside organisations, formal mentoring, sponsorship and career progression workshops are helping women build networks, negotiate pay and plan their next move.
These efforts work best when they are part of a wider strategy, not a one-off event. Sponsorship — where a senior leader actively champions someone for promotion — is particularly effective at breaking through the “broken rung” that stops women moving from middle management into senior roles.
Inequality in the workplace costs businesses and society dearly. Closing the gender gap could add billions to the UK economy and help tackle skills shortages in sectors such as technology and engineering. The good news is that the tools for change are well understood: challenge stereotypes early, recruit fairly, support progression and make women visible at every level. The challenge now is to keep up the momentum until equality is no longer an aspiration, but the norm.
