Government calls for more female engineers in transport

The government has called for more female engineers to deliver large transport projects such as HS2.

Following a meeting of senior women in transport, the government is encouraging more female engineers to close the skills gap on large transport projects. Women currently represent 12% of the engineering workforce and 18% of the transport sector workforce, which the government says must grow to deliver big projects.

To coincide with International Women in Engineering Day opportunities within the sector are being highlighted for women entering the workforce. A roundtable was held with representatives from Royal Academy of Engineering, Ford, Heathrow Airport, Network Rail, the Women in Maritime Taskforce, and Virgin Atlantic to discuss women in transport, lead by the Department for Transport’s Permanent Secretary Bernadette Kelly.

Bernadette Kelly said: “We want to challenge traditional perceptions of engineering to ensure our transport industry has the skills it needs for the future.”

“This isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s necessary for engineering and transport to thrive. We simply need more engineers and people in the industry as investment grows. Currently, we’re not making use of a huge section of society and that can’t continue.”

“Building on progress and productive conversations with industry, I hope to help women across the country and of all ages see there are amazing careers in transport – from building site to boardroom.”

Research from Engineering UK shows that interest in engineering as a career has grown by 35% among 7-11-year-olds, thanks to a government campaign to encourage careers in the industry. The roundtable also discussed progress already being made in the industry, such as Network Rail collecting data on gender and companies such as HS2 Ltd. providing work experience for young women interested in working in the industry.

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