The number of women working in the technology industry dropped by 3,000 in the second quarter of the year, according to new figures.

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that while the overall industry grew during the period, the number of women in the sector declined between the first quarter – January and March – and the second quarter – April and June.

Last year Code First Girls, which aims to close the tech industry gender gap by providing employment through free coding education, published research which suggested that by 2025 there will be just one qualified woman for every 115 roles in technology.

BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, also found that male students still outnumber female students in computer science by 3.8 to 1 this year, but the gap has closed slightly from 4.2 to 1 at the same stage in the application cycle in 2022.

In 2022, a report from the institute and Coding Black Females revealed that more than 20,000 Black women were “missing” from the IT industry.

The study found that while Black women make up 1.8 per cent of the UK workforce, they only make up 0.7 per cent of IT professionals.

The figures demonstrate that to be truly represented, there would need to be around 20,000 Black women join the industry.

The report suggested that Black women face barriers to progression within the sector, including lack of flexible working, career development support, and a strong “tech bro” culture in some organisations.

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