by Karla Cloete

According to the FTSE Women Leaders Review’s latest edition, 40% of FTSE 350 firms in the UK now have women on their boards. 

This has risen from 24,5% in 2017 when the report was launched. 

However, the UK’s Department for Business and Trade reported that only 19 women are leading FTSE 350 companies

“The UK is leading the charge for gender equality in boardrooms, but we cannot rest on our laurels,” said Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves. “We must break down the barriers that stop many women being represented in decision-making roles so that top talent reaches the highest levels of leadership in businesses driving economic growth across Britain.”

But what are those barriers? 

The British Business Bank Equity Tracker Report 2023 noted that female founders were less likely to secure funding in the investment landscape. The report showed that all-female founder teams raised 162 deals in 2023, worth £232; while all-male teams secured 1413 deals totaling £6.5bn. According to the British Business Bank, this represents 8,2% of deals in 2023, a decrease from 2022. 

Beauhurst's report on female entrepreneurs, detailed that only 25% of the UK’s high-growth companies had female founders. They found that female-founded companies were more likely to take the accelerator route- going through structured programs.

‘Questions about family, children, as well as general ability means that women have to spend a lot more energy proving themselves and convincing the table they’ve established a viable market opportunity,” wrote Lu Li, CEO and founder of Blooming Founders. 

A research study published in December 2023 aimed to identify the challenges facing women entrepreneurs in the UK.

Their study aimed to identify the specific challenges women of colour face in the entrepreneurial space, identifying that access to finance, prejudiced attitudes, and business development skills were key barriers to growth. 

“Too many women are still positioned in support roles instead of decision-making ones,” wrote the Female Lead on their LinkedIn. 

Progress is being made, and glass ceilings are being dented- if not yet shattered. 

Our monthly Founders Circle co-working events are a unique opportunity for new burgeoning founders to gather, support and learn from one another. So many women have joined this space and we have delighted in learning with and from them!

We feel this is one way we are supporting female founders and we hope that more spaces like this will invite more woman entrepreneurs to have a seat- because they have so much they bring to the table! 

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If you want to learn more about woman led companies, check out this blog. If you’d like to learn more about how Atara Partners can help your company grow, find out more here.