UK Parliament to recruit more female coders

UK Parliament yesterday unveiled a new scheme to hire more female data and software engineers in partnership with Code First Girls.

The trainees, the majority of whom are seeking to change career, have backgrounds in a diverse range of fields including recruitment, languages, chemistry and scientific research. 

The Parliamentary Digital Service is employing the recruits, as well as sponsoring them through Code First Girls courses, the first EdTech unicorn dedicated to women.

Launch event 

At the project launch in the Speaker’s House, the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle said:

“It’s great to welcome so many new female trainees to the Parliamentary Digital Service (PDS) – for some this will be their second career after success in other industries. Around 40 per cent of PDS staff are women – that’s twice as many as the national average in tech, but with the help of the training opportunities provided by Code First Girls, we hope to do even better. More female staff coming from different working backgrounds and at different stages of life will help ensure our digital team is even stronger and better able to respond to the needs of a modern Parliament.” 

Lord Speaker and co-host, Lord McFall, said:

“Digital technology is changing our lives now and will change them even more in the future. The nation needs tech-savvy workers, and I know that we can find them among people from all sorts of diverse backgrounds. 

I’m delighted that the Parliamentary Digital Service is partnering with Code First Girls in this excellent initiative to develop the tech talents of women and girls. I hope this project will be a stepping stone for trainees to a rewarding and successful career, helping them to play their part in building the UK of the future.”

Anna Brailsford, CEO at Code First Girls, said:

“We’re delighted to partner with UK Parliament to support more women into the tech industry, helping their digital team to recruit more female coders. 

There is currently a stark gender gap, with many women facing significant barriers to entering STEM careers, starting at school and continuing throughout their lives.

UK Parliament has recognised that a diverse range of experiences and skills will only benefit its workforce, bringing invaluable opportunities to both the House of Commons and House of Lords as well as the individuals themselves.”

Marianne Cwynarski CBE, Director General (Operations) for the House of Commons, said:

"I am delighted to welcome the Code First Girls candidates to our Parliamentary community.

We are working towards closing the gender technology gap and are championing women in digital roles. Our Partnership with Code First Girls is an exciting opportunity to continue driving meaningful change in this space and help to grow our own pipeline of talented women innovating in our data and software engineering teams.”

Parliamentary Digital Service

Currently, 41% of Parliamentary Digital Service employees are women – higher than the national average; analysis of the latest ONS Labour Force Survey shows that women make up 18% of computer programmers and software development professionals, web design professionals and data analysts.

By embracing the benefits of actively recruiting women from non-technical backgrounds and employing a more diverse workforce, UK Parliament aims to draw on diverse voices and insights and ensure innovation and creative solutions for a ‘modern Parliament’. 

Emma Canny, PDS Interim Head of Software Engineering, said:

"We are really excited to be partnering with Code First Girls and be part of the important work to help more women start their career journey in tech and play our part in closing the gender gap in tech. Our trainees will work in our data and software engineering teams in the Parliamentary Digital Service and this partnership will increase the diversity of our teams as well as drive innovation as we bring in new ideas to the team". 

PDS trainee, Flipia Sampaio, said:

"I have a background in Biology, some coding experience, and for the past couple of years I have been working as a research assistant in a genomics lab. I want to switch to a tech career as I am keen to use data to help make informed data-driven decisions and identify areas for improvement, which I find exciting. The learning and career support provided by Code First Girls have been invaluable, and I’m beyond excited for the opportunity to apply those skills at UK Parliament." 

Liberty Clough, another PDS trainee, said:

"I was a recruitment specialist before I found Code First Girls but I found out quite early on that it wasn’t for me. I took quantitative analysis at university which is where I found my passion for data analysis and programming. My experience at university was not enough to get me into technology, I would never have been given the chance to have a career in technology if not for Code First Girls’ free Kickstarters and CFGdegree. "