Trainline had teamed up with Code First: Girls to pledge to help 20,000 women learn to code by 2020.
With International Women's Day on Thursday, the two organisations are launching a free programme looking to get many more women into STEM roles. According to the UK Office of National Statistics' most recent figures, only 3.9% of tech and telco professionals in the UK were female programmers and software developers and Trainline, a travel app company, said the partnership comes at a critical time for women in the UK tech industry.
As well as financial support, Trainline will help deliver the training programme by providing in-house specialists as mentors. It will also open up the programme for women at Trainline who would like to learn how to code.
The diversity drive aims to raise 1.5 million - 500,000 each year for three years to upskill 20,000 women in the UK in coding.
Clare Gilmartin, CEO of Trainline, said that tackling gender imbalance and championing talent is "at the absolute core" of the company's culture. "An increase in female programmers, developers and engineers will have profound benefits to the UK's tech economy, its businesses and its customers," she added.
Amali de Alwis, CEO of Code First: Girls, said that she looked forward to supporting Trainline with "building and tapping into a talent pool of incredible women looking to develop their careers in tech, as well as to help women understand what tech oriented careers are available to them".
As part of a growing focus on how to improve gender representation in the tech industry, a Women in Technology World Series roundtable in London discussion recently examined the role that men can play in advocating gender equality in the workplace.
Head of culture and inclusion at M&C Saatchi Group, Sereena Abbassi, said that there needs to be a real emphasis on creating working environments in which men feel that they can take up shared paternity leave. "The primary caregiver in a family should be a gender-neutral role. The onus can't just be on women; we need to start working in tandem with men in order to create greater gender equality," she said.
-
Should AI PCs be part of your next hardware refresh?AI PCs are fast becoming a business staple and a surefire way to future-proof your business
-
Westcon-Comstor and Vectra AI launch brace of new channel initiativesNews Westcon-Comstor and Vectra AI have announced the launch of two new channel growth initiatives focused on the managed security service provider (MSSP) space and AWS Marketplace.
-
It’s the end of the road for Women Who Code, following loss of “critical” fundingNews The organization supporting women in the tech industry is being dissolved 13 years after it was founded
-
Five common barriers holding back women in tech
Women in tech still face significant challenges in the workplace
-
Report: Brexit and COVID to blame for lack of diversity in techNews One in two surveyed respondents cited the two events as key factors in the failure to improve diversity in leadership roles
-
Australia allocates $6.7 million to advance women in STEM initiativesNews Women make up only 28% of the country's STEM workers
-
IT Pro Panel: What’s stopping diversity in tech?IT Pro Panel The need for more diversity is well established - but we still have a way to go
-
AWS partners with NPower to boost jobs for women of color in techNews Command Shift will find tech jobs for underserved group
-
AWS and The Dream Collective aim to bring more women into techNews The SheDares learning program offers women expert advice on how to pursue a career in technology
-
Why aren’t women heading more tech startups?In-depth Women are in incredibly short supply as founders of top tech firms. What’s going on, and can the situation change for the better?
