Why women get stuck at 13

“At the start of my career I was told, ‘there’s no point applying for that job – it’s bound to go to a man’.” Twenty-six years later, June Barnes, chief executive of East Homes, reacts with frustration to the results of Housing Today’s survey into the diversity of leaders in housing. “The speed of change has been very disappointing,” she sighs.

When the Housing Corporation launched its Leadership 2010 programme in 2003, it set the goal of getting 50% of the largest 200 associations (by stock) into female hands by the end of the decade. But with just five years to go until the deadline, that target looks more remote than ever.

Back in 2003, women made up 13% of the chief executives of these associations. Today, our census of England’s 100 biggest associations indicates that nothing has changed. Women still make up just 13% of the chiefs in housing associations, while the results for England’s councils are even more disappointing: 12% of their housing departments are headed by women.

Considering that the sector is dominated by female employees – figures from the corporation’s Regulatory and Statistical Return 2002 show that 69% of housing association employees are women, while the Employers’ Organisation for Local Government’s 2003 figures show that 76% of council staff are female – the census results are all the more shocking.

So, why are women still under-represented in the more senior roles? With the Leadership 2010 report suggesting those women who had risen to the top had adapted to a “masculine” way of working, it is perhaps understandable that some commentators have raised the question of whether women actually want to do the jobs as they exist at the moment.

Jane Greenoak, director of corporate services at the National Housing Federation, took on the responsibility for implementing Leadership 2010 from the corporation after it launched. She points out that of 900 women invited to a networking event (see panel, right), only 50 accepted. “The thing that goes through my mind is, do people in the sector want these roles? Is it that people aren’t given opportunities, or is it that they don’t have a huge appetite for these positions?

It requires a big cultural shift.”

The Equal Opportunities Commission has been damning about our findings, linking them to overt discrimination in the public sector. “Recent studies show that institutional sexism, a bullying culture and outmoded views of leadership all conspire to ensure low numbers of women reach senior management level in councils. This is despite significant numbers of women at more junior levels,” says Jenny Watson, deputy chair at the commission.

Meanwhile, existing chief executives suggest that low confidence holds women back from applying for the top jobs.

If you see only a certain type of person gets to the top, you don’t go for those jobs

Barbara Thorndick, west Kent housing

Melinda Phillips, chief executive of Housing 21, says: “The housing sector is not one that feels like there is any discrimination – it is very transparent. Maybe [the lack of appointments] is because of women’s confidence – men don’t seem to have the same self-doubts.”

Greenoak agrees. “Studies have found many women feel they need to have 100% of the answers before taking a senior job, whereas men tend to feel they need only 50% of the answers,” she says.

But could it be that lack of confidence is rooted in the status quo? Barbara Thorndick, chief executive of West Kent Housing Association, certainly seems to think so.

“If you see only a certain type of person ever gets to the top, you don’t go for those jobs,” she points out.

Our findings hardly provide reasons for a lack of confidence, however. On average, we found that in associations, women were responsible for roughly the same amount of stock and £2m more turnover than men.

And in councils, the average stock controlled by women was more than 2000 units more than that controlled by men.

In her role as Leadership 2010 champion, Greenoak is starting to make some changes (see box, right). She says the scheme was originally set to get up to £100,000 in Innovation and Good Practice grants, but the corporation had “some financial difficulties and the funding dried up”.

For the moment, even those who strongly advocate helping more women into top jobs admit the 50% target is a long way off. Thorndick says: “It’s probably not something we will hit. But even doubling it from 13% to 25% will be a big achievement.”