What was claimed
Less than 10% of engineers in the UK are female.
Our verdict
Official statistics show that in the second quarter of 2017 11% of engineers were women.
11% of UK engineers are women
9 March 2018
“I am one of less than 10% of female engineers in this country.”
Roma Agrawal, 8 March 2018
Slightly more than 10% of engineers are women, according to the latest data.
In April-June 2017, there were an estimated 48,000 women working in engineering professions in the UK, according to the the latest official figures. This is around 11% of the total. They estimated that there were just over 400,000 male engineers.
Because of the low numbers involved, the Office for National Statistics cautions against comparing these numbers over time. But, in the same period of 2011 women made up 6% of engineers, so it’s very likely the number has been on the rise.
Correction 23 March 2018
We originally said at one point that slightly more than 10% of women were engineers, which should of course be the other way round.