The Tech Talent Charter is granted Government funding as it welcomes its 90th signatory

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Tech Talent Charter is delighted to announce that it has received Government funding as it welcomes its 90th signatory ahead of the launch event today.

The latest organisations to become signatories include HP, CA, BBC, Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) who are joining the mission to tackle the gender imbalance in the UK technology industry. They join a growing list of 90 businesses that have signed up to the Charter since its inception two years ago, including Monster, Global Radio and Nationwide, as part of their commitment to implement recruitment and retention policies that will support women in digital and technology roles. The Tech Talent Charter is a Community Interest Company (CIC) and was included in the UK Digital Strategy. DCMS has provided the Tech Talent Charter with a grant to support its early-stage development.

Matt Hancock, Minister of State for Digital said:

"You can't catch all the fish if you only fish in half the pool. Yet our tech industry is still too male dominated, in fact and in culture. We want to see equal opportunities for men and women in one of the fastest growing areas of life, and we want to see Britain's tech industry using the talents of the whole nation. So we funded this fantastic initiative to help tackle the gender divide in technology jobs to end the gender divide, which is wrong in principle and wrong in practice.

As part of the Digital Strategy we committed to work with industry on the Tech Talent Charter so everyone can access exciting technology careers.

The charter gives organisations tangible actions and principles they can adopt and I encourage all organisations employing tech specialists to sign up."

The retention of tech talent, and encouragement of candidates to roles, is essential for the UK to have the skilled tech workforce necessary for a thriving economy. Research by Tech City UK stated 1 million tech workers are needed by 2020; female workers have a vital role to play in ensuring the UK continues to have a strong role in technological and digital innovation. Alarmingly the representation of females in these all important roles is disproportionately low - only 17% of tech and telco workers are currently women. These stats highlight that businesses need to do all they can to bring female talent into their organisations and celebrate the valuable contribution they make.

The Tech Talent Charter is a passionate and ambitious organisation that moves away from simply talking about the issue to implementing positive action to ensure women play a significant role in the growing UK tech industry.

Debbie Forster, CEO, Tech Talent Charter, commented,

"We’re very excited to be taking the next step on our journey. It’s vital for the industry to come together to show females that a career in technology is incredibly rewarding, to increase the number of females working within the industry, to attract those considering a career change, and to inspire younger generations. One single company can’t do it alone which is why we created the Tech Talent Charter, to bring organisations and individuals together to effect the change we need. We’ve come a long way since we first started out, and it’s hugely rewarding to see the amount of signatories we already have on board. We look forward to welcoming many more as we continue our important work."

George Brasher, Managing Director for HP UK and Ireland said:

“At HP we believe that the more points of view a business can draw on, the better its products and the company as a whole will be. Diversity helps drive new business, fuel innovation, and attract and attain the best employees. We are delighted to be a founder signatory of the Tech Talent Charter and look forward to working alongside other signatories to share best practise and to together improve diversity within the UK tech industry. Words are not enough and actions have to be measurable to be effective. As a starting point HP UK will commit to hiring a minimum of 50% female interns each year and we are introducing a “Returners Program” which will focus on encouraging women back into the workplace through fixed term maternity cover, which we hope will in turn lead to permanent positions.”



For more information about the charter please click here.
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