This year's Women in Construction Week is being celebrated across the UK sector.

VolkerHighways spoke to members of an all-female team working on the Butterfield Park and Ride project in Luton. Made up of staff from four organisations – VolkerHighways, Luton Council, Project Centre and Zack Contracting – the team is working on creating 320 parking bays, including 17 disabled bays and 19 EV charging bays.

Rachael Geddes (project manager from VolkerHighways), Shannon Rivolta (project quantity surveyor for VolkerHighways), Jiah Nien Teh (project manager for Luton Council and Project Centre) and Rebecca Gray (commercial manager for Zach Contracting) discussed the challenges they face as women in construction management.

According to Ms Gray, the sector is ‘around a decade behind the curve, with highways arguably further', leading to women often feeling the need to prove themselves more.

However, Ms Geddes added that ‘although people can be quick to judge', she had found that ‘they are just as quick to acknowledge and apologise when they recognise their assumptions'.

Marlborough Highways has also marked the occasion by speaking to one of their rising stars, named only as Jenny, an administrator and trainee supervisor. Working closely with project managers on the company's Essex-based contracts, she stated that there's ‘a place for everyone in construction' and that flexible support from the company enabled her to ‘find a balance' that suited her life.

Leading construction charity, the Lighthouse Charity, also highlighted why this week is so important in a press statement: 'Construction remains a predominantly male industry, and that imbalance shapes many of the assumptions people still hold about who belongs here. But the idea that only men can join, progress and succeed in construction is outdated; women are already involved across every part of the sector, and there's space for many more.

'This week gives us the space to acknowledge those biases while highlighting the women already driving projects forward, shaping safer workplaces, and influencing how our built environment evolves. It's about celebrating progress and recognising where change is still needed.'

Women in Construction Anglia noted that 37% of new entrants are now women, with 15% of the total workforce made up of women.