For centuries, women have played a vital role in engineering and have helped shape the world we live in today. Yet, in 2025, gender bias prevails and underrepresentation of women in engineering continues to be an issue. To mark Women’s History Month, the Engineering Council is sharing the stories of history’s leading female engineers to inspire upcoming female engineering talent.

Letitia Chitty MA CEng FRAeS MICE (1897-1982)
Letitia Chitty was a talented mathematician turned aeronautical and civil engineer, and the first female Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS). During the Second World War, Letitia investigated stresses in submarine hulls and underwater explosions. In 1958, Letitia became the first woman to be appointed to a technical committee of the Institute of Civil Engineers (ICE) and was the first woman to be awarded ICE’s Telford Gold Medal (the highest award of the ICE).

Isabel Hardwich MA CEng MIEE1 MIOP HonMWES (1919-1987)
Isabel Hardwich was an electrical engineer and photometry expert, most notable for her involvement in the Women’s Engineering Society (WES). Isabel helped set up the WES Manchester Branch, served as chair between 1947-1948, was the editor for the society’s journal ‘The Woman Engineer’ between 1952-1956, and went on to become President of the society between 1961-1962 and Fellow from 1962.

Peggy Lilian Hodges OBE MA CEng FRAeS FIMA HonFIET (1921-2008)
Peggy Hodges was a defence electronics engineer known for her work on guided weapons at GEC Marconi. In the 1960s, she was featured in a BBC documentary which captured her working at the Ministry of Defence’s guided missile firing range at Aberporth in Wales. In 1969, Peggy became one of three female Fellows at the Royal Aeronautical Society and was President of the Women’s Engineering Society between 1971-1973. She also became the first female Honorary Fellow of the Institution of Electronics and Electrical Incorporated Engineers (EEIE, later the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)) in 1994.

Professor Margaret Law MBE BSc CEng FIFireE FSFPE (1928-2017)
Margaret Law was a fire safety engineer and considered a pioneer in the then new field.  She spent 20 years at the UK Government’s Fire Research Station where she established herself as one of the world’s leading fire scientists, contributing to 34 reports. In 1974 she joined the Ove Arup Partnership where she worked on major projects such as Pompidou Centre in Paris and Kansai International Airport in Japan.

The achievements of these women, and many more, laid the foundation for all future female Chartered Engineers (CEng), Incorporated Engineers (IEng) and Engineering Technicians (EngTech). However, according to EngineeringUK’s 2024 data, the proportion of women working in engineering and technology roles has declined in the past year from 16.5% to 15.7%, specifically among women aged 35 to 44. In contrast, 56.1% of women make up the rest of the UK workforce.

With this in mind, continued efforts are needed to attract and maintain female engineers. The sector, including engineering and technology companies, must understand why few women pursue a career in STEM and leave early, and from there, create better opportunities and incentives for them to return.

To read about the careers of our modern-day registered engineers and technicians, visit our Case Study page.

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