The percentage of women in senior management in the UK’s financial services industry has flatlined in 2021 among signatories to the Women in Finance Charter. Joy Macknight reports.

Female representation in senior management did not improve in 2021, according to New Financial’s recent review of the progress made by 209 signatories to HM Treasury Women in Finance Charter. For the first time since the charter’s launch in March 2016, the average level of female representation stalled, at 33%.

While 66% of signatories either increased or maintained their proportion of women in senior management, the remaining 33% saw their proportion fall – the highest number of signatories (70) to report a drop in female representation since the launch of the charter.

However, the research also found that more than a third of the signatories have met their 2021 targets and 41% that have targets with future deadlines are on track to meet them. Signatories’ ambitions are also rising, with almost half setting a target of 40%, up from 30% the year before.

Of the 31 that missed their 2021 targets, the most common reasons were restructuring and the Covid-19 pandemic.

While signatories remain committed to altering recruitment practices, they are increasingly focused on developing their own female talent. Some firms are applying the charter principles of setting targets, introducing accountability frameworks and monitoring progress to drive momentum across their initiatives.

Across the 209 signatories, levels of female representation range from as low as 11% up to 70%.

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