New UK schemes aim to boost number of women in tech – and keep them in the sector

The government has launched a new multi-million pound scheme to get more women into the tech industry.

The £4 million program, which will kick off later this year, aims to provide 300 women with coaching and support with interview preparation, as well as paid work placements of at least six months at SMBs across the country.

Meanwhile, a new “returnship” pilot scheme aims to help software developers re-enter the workforce via senior tech roles in government after time away.

Piloted with the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice, it will be open to any software developers who have been away from work for 18 months or more – such as women who have been caring for children.

"Women aren’t being given a fair shot in tech – whether that’s getting into the sector, staying in it, or returning after time away bringing up their families," said technology secretary Liz Kendall.

"If we don’t address these issues now, we’ll still be having this conversation in decades’ time, and that isn’t good enough."

Encouraging careers in tech

Meanwhile, a new TechFirst Girls Competition will be rolled out to girls across the country later this year, with the aim of getting more girls to consider a future in tech.

Rolled out in partnership with IBM, the competition will see thousands of 12 and 13 year old girls compete in challenges related to AI and coding.

The projects build on the launch of the Women in Tech Taskforce in December, which brings together leading female tech figures with the aim of getting more women entering, progressing, staying, and leading in tech.

"These aren’t warm words - they’re real jobs, real placements, and real routes back in through a door that has been too hard to open, for too long," said Kendall.

"But we’re not just fixing today’s problem. Through the Women in Tech Taskforce, I want to make sure women aren’t just entering this sector - they’re shaping it. Co-creating the technologies, the culture, and the future of an industry that for too long has been built without them."

New proposals for career support

Separately, Kendall has proposed a new voluntary charter for the research community aimed at making it easier for women to build research careers.

This includes commitments to paid maternity leave for PhD students, more help to return to work, and more flexible working options.

The government will more than double its support for the Daphne Jackson Trust from £1.7 million to £4 million per year, boosting the number of fully-funded fellowships it offers women from 15 to 25.

Similarly, the Trust will launch up to 15 new Research Technical Professional Fellowships per year, a program for retraining and reskilling research technicians who are vital to UK science as they return to R&D.

"Women scientists and researchers are responsible for driving some of the most important breakthroughs that are improving lives for people right across the country. Yet too many see their career ambitions delayed or even halted by vital responsibilities like raising a family or caring for a loved one – trade-offs that should never have to be made," she said.

"The charter will set clear expectations on funders of research – they must act quickly and decisively to give more women the backing they need to resume their studies, whether through greater maternity support or flexible working."

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