EMCSC founder Dr Ismini Vasileiou has welcomed plans for new Government measures aimed at boosting female participation in tech.

Every year, the UK loses an estimated £2 to £3.5 billion as women leave the tech sector – taking with them critical skills, perspectives and leadership potential. The exodus has real consequences for technology being built, with inherent biases built into designs by an unrepresentative workforce unfairly impacting women.

The news measures send a signal that the Government is working to tackle these challenges in order to build a world-leading tech sector. The package includes:

• 300 paid tech placements in SMEs across the country, backed by the new £4 million TechFirst Women’s Programme for those returning after career breaks to re-enter tech jobs.
• A returnship pilot scheme with the UK Home Office and Ministry of Justice UK, helping skilled software developers return to senior tech roles after 18 months or more away from work.
• A new TechFirst Girls Competition to be delivered to thousands across the country later this year to get more girls considering a future in tech from their childhood.

Membership of the Women in Tech Taskforce includes Dr Vasileiou and other influential women from across academia, business, and government. It is working to reverse current trends by ensuring women are supported throughout their careers. 

At its second meeting this week, the Taskforce launched a Call for Evidence to explore how they can better support women around emerging technologies and AI, and address the biases that continue to disproportionately impact them. 

This will ensure the Taskforce continues to be guided by real, lived experience in shaping its work and informing future government action.

For Dr Vasileiou, an associate professor at De Montfort University and an advocate for digital inclusion, this meeting represented her continued commitment to reshaping how women engage, grow, and lead across the technology landscape.

“Too many talented women are still being lost from tech at the very moment their skills are most needed,” she said. “This package is an important step towards a sector where women don’t just enter, but stay, progress and lead – shaping technologies that work for everyone.”

Secretary of State Liz Kendall, who leads the taskforce, said: “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. If we don’t address these issues now, we’ll still be having this conversation in decades’ time and that isn’t good enough.

“We’re acting through a skills and jobs package to get more women into tech quickly. 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.”