International Women's Day: 13 best companies in Britain for female workers

Ranking highlights firms that have gone "above and beyond in some way when it comes to providing a working environment in which women can thrive", says website Glassdoor

Companies of all different sizes from across a slew of industries were rated

(Rex)

To mark International Women's Day, one of the UK's top online salary benchmarking sites has compiled a list of the best places to work as a female.

The ranking, which includes companies of all different sizes from across a slew of industries, highlights firms that have gone "above and beyond in some way when it comes to providing a working environment in which women can thrive", says website Glassdoor.

Here are the winners:

UKFast

A Manchester-based provider of hosting, servers and cloud computing.

Why? 16 weeks paid maternity leave and on-site creche

Sky

A huge European pay-TV company.

Why? Sky has a 50 per cent target for females in senior management positions. It has been monitoring its recruitment statistics and says there has been a 30-45 per cent increase in women applying to the company since the initiative came in. As part of the initiative, Sky also pulls together 50/50 male/female shortlists for relevant job openings.

Barclays

One of the world's biggest banks.

Why? Barclays has implemented a "Director to Managing Director" promotion mentoring programme for women. It says that this helps it to build a pipeline of next-generation leaders, highlighting female talent. The Barclays Women in Technology Group encourages women to take up IT careers in banking and finance.

Accenture

A major global professional services company.

Why? Nine months maternity leave on full pay.

M&G

One of the UK’s largest investment managers.

Why? Has programmes that encourage female employees in mid to senior roles to network. It's also flexible for working mothers.

Vodafone

Global mobile network provider.

Why? 16 weeks’ fully paid maternity leave and a reduced 30-hour week for the first six months after returning to work.

Ocado Technology

A major online-only grocery retailer.

Why? Part-time options available for working mothers

First Direct

An online and telephone bank that's part of the HSBC Group.

Why? Offer an on-site creche.

J. Sainsbury

Major UK supermarket.

Why? Strong focus on diversity and gender balance in management.

MEC

A media agency networks.

Why? Part-time options available for working mothers

Atkins

A design, engineering and project management consultancy.

Why? Offer flexible working, which may include part-time, term-time or home working.

Sanctuary Group

A UK provider of housing, care and community services.

Why? Offers flexible working and a generous maternity leave package.

ADP

A leading provider of business outsourcing and human capital management solutions.

Why? It has a 'Women in Leadership' network, an initiative focussed on ADP’s female executive development, as well as an International Women’s Inclusion Network, a global women’s business resource group.