Record number of women in Scotland joining the technology sector

A RECORD number of women are joining Scotland’s technology sector, it has been revealed.

New research by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) shows that the number has risen by more than 30%.

The findings were published on Ada Lovelace Day, a global celebration of women in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).

Claire Gillespie, sector manager for digital technologies at SDS, said: “Industry, government, educationalists and charity organisations have all been working together to try and address the gender imbalance, and our concerted efforts are starting bear digital fruit.”

Analysis of the most recent ONS Annual Population Survey shows that the number of women in the field has grown to 23.4% from 18% in the past two years.

The number is also more than double that of eight years ago, rising from 10,300 in 2010 to 24,000 in 2018.

The rise has been attributed to a number of factors, including mentoring in schools and the introduction of digital skills into broader subjects such as languages, art and music.

The creation of best practice guides and tool kits for employers, and a focus by colleges and universities to address the gender gap were also cited as reasons for the positive trend.

Despite the clear rise, Ms Gillespie much more still needs to be done, adding: “Complacency will be the enemy of progress.

“The last thing we need is to take three steps forward and two steps back when tackling this very real and problematic issue.

“We look forward to continuing our work with organisations like Girl Geek Scotland, Education Scotland, Equate, Scottish Government, ScotlandIS and of course the wider industry to help fill the 13,000 digital vacancies that exist in Scotland every year.”