Powering Progress: Building a Future for Women in Energy
By Emma Rainbird, People Director – Retail, Centrica
If we want more women to work in energy, representation is only the starting point. The bigger question is whether our industry is set up for women to join, stay and succeed. That means looking beyond headline numbers and focusing on the system itself: how roles are designed, how people are trained, how careers progress, and whether working patterns reflect the reality of people’s lives.
At Centrica, transforming the sector is at the heart of our People & Planet Plan. We have set an ambition for 48% female representation across our workforce and leadership by 2030. But targets only matter if they drive real change.
For us, that means tackling the barriers that shape decisions long before someone applies for a role: outdated perceptions of technical careers, uneven access to opportunity, and the belief that frontline jobs cannot offer flexibility. The challenge is not about capability or ambition, but whether the workplace is truly inclusive and designed with women in mind.
Centrica's target for female representation across its workforce and leadership by 2030
That is why apprenticeships matter. They are not just a way to fill skills gaps; they are one of the clearest ways to widen access and challenge outdated assumptions about technical careers. That’s why Centrica has committed to recruiting 3,500 apprentices by 2030, with emphasis on under-represented groups.
This requires new approaches to attraction: transparent recruitment, targeted outreach, and authentic 'day in the life' content give candidates a real sense of what roles involve and how they can succeed. Progress is evident — our two most recent electrical apprentice intakes achieved a 50:50 gender split, proving that actively addressing barriers makes a tangible difference.
But getting women through the door is only half the job. The harder test is whether they can build lasting careers once they are in. The biggest risks to progress are often less visible: training that demands long periods away from home, perceptions of physical demands, or limited flexibility in frontline positions.
At Centrica, we are responding with practical changes: evolving training structures, embedding flexible working where possible, and strengthening mentoring and development pathways. Our Centrica Women’s Network and dedicated Female in the Field Events are integral, supporting career progression, influencing policy, and fostering a sense of belonging across our organisation.
Looking ahead, the next phase of progress will be defined by how effectively we embed these changes at scale. This means designing roles that work for a more diverse workforce from the outset, using data to better understand attrition and progression gaps, and ensuring leadership pipelines reflect the diversity we are building at entry level.
No single employer will solve this alone. Many of the barriers women face in utilities are shared across the sector. Real progress will come when more organisations work together to change that.
Change at this scale does not happen overnight. But with sustained focus and deliberate action, we are building an environment where more women can see themselves — and succeed — in the future of our industry.