What are the top 10 locations in the UK for women to work in?

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A survey evaluates the top 10 UK locations for women to work in, taking into account gender wage gaps, median annual earnings and the amount of female employees in senior roles.

A study by SmartSurvey outlines the best locations for women to work in, when it comes to their careers.

Wandsworth, in London, ranked first as the best city in the UK for women to work in. This is because the average annual salary for women exceeded £40,000 which is almost on par with the men’s salary in the borough.

Second highest was Westminster which is also based in London. However, this area was highly regarded due to having the highest level of women within senior positions (managers, directors or senior officials) at 28.6 per cent. In addition, this location was unique as it was one of 11 where women earn more than men, with average earnings for women around £36,896.

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The third place on the list was Blackpool in the North-West of England. It is one of the areas with the highest percentage of women in employment, making up 60 per cent of the local workforce.

The full list is as follows:

  1. Wandsworth, London

  2. Westminster, London

  3. Anglesey, Wales

  4. Blackpool, North West

  5. Camden, London

  6. Carmarthenshire, Wales

  7. North Ayrshire, Scotland

  8. Conwy, Wales

  9. Merton, London

  10. Lewisham, London

Conversely, the East and West Midlands did not score well within the study having lower rates of women in the total workforce and a higher rate of a gender wage gap.

Furthermore, the South-East had some of the highest rates of gender wage gaps with the four highest being Mole Valley, Bracknell Forest, Waverley and Windsor and Maidenhead.

On a global level, out of 27 countries, the UK ranked twelfth highest country for working women. Norway took the top spot whilst Mexico was ranked last.


*The survey uses data from the ONS to calculate the gender wage gap, median annual earnings of men and women and women as a percentage of a total workforce. To find out the number of women occupying senior positions, the survey utilised Nomis. The survey can be found in full here.

Monica Sharma is an English Literature graduate from the University of Warwick. As Editor for HRreview, her particular interests in HR include issues concerning diversity, employment law and wellbeing in the workplace. Alongside this, she has written for student publications in both England and Canada. Monica has also presented her academic work concerning the relationship between legal systems, sexual harassment and racism at a university conference at the University of Western Ontario, Canada.

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