Employment characteristics

5.1 Self-employment

In 2025, there were approximately 125,000 self-employed IT specialists in the UK, representing 6% of the total at that time. The incidence of self-employment amongst female IT specialists however was lower (4%) and less than half the level recorded by women in the workforce as a whole (9%).

GENDER AND THE INCIDENCE OF SELF-EMPLOYMENT (2025)

Source: ONS Quarterly Labour Force Survey, analysis commissioned by BCS

5.2 Employees and size of workplace

IT specialists working as employees are, perhaps understandably, more likely than others to be employed within larger workplaces3 (i.e. as micro/small sites are less likely to have an in-house function) and whilst 31% of UK employees as a whole were working in larger sites (those with 250 or more staff) during 2025, a figure of 46% was recorded for IT specialist employees.

There was some difference in the proportion of female vs male IT specialists working in large sites in 2025 i.e. 49% versus 46% over the year.

IT SPECIALIST EMPLOYEES BY GENDER AND SIZE OF WORKPLACE (2025)

Source: ONS Quarterly Labour Force Survey, analysis commissioned by BCS

5.3 Industry of employment

Overall, over two in five (43%) of all IT specialists in the UK in 2025 could be found working in the IT sector though for women the figure was much lower at around one third (35%).

After IT, the next largest employer of IT specialists (male or female) was banking/finance (23% of female IT specialists and 21% of IT specialists as a whole), and the public sector (22% and 12% respectively).

Looking in more detail at the levels of representation for female IT specialists in different industries in 2025, it can be seen that representation was highest in the public  sector (34%) and transport/communications (26%).

Conversely, the construction sector had the worst gender balance with regards IT specialists – within which just 17% of IT specialists were women.

FEMALE EMPLOYEES BY OCCUPATION AND INDUSTRY (2025)

 Source: ONS Quarterly Labour Force Survey, analysis commissioned by BCS