Grant Thornton UK named in Times Top 50 Employers for Gender Equality for fifth consecutive year
The firm's inclusion on the UK's leading gender equality benchmark reflects five years of consistent, evidence-based progress
Leading business and financial advisor Grant Thornton UK has been named on the Times Top 50 Employers for Gender Equality list for the fifth consecutive year, recognising the firm’s sustained commitment to building a more equitable workplace.
Organised by Business in the Community in partnership with The Times, the Top 50 is the UK’s leading benchmark for gender equality in the workplace. The submission process is rigorous and evidence-based, requiring organisations to demonstrate real progress across representation, progression, pay, flexible working, family support and inclusive culture.
Grant Thornton UK’s mean gender pay gap has halved since 2022, falling from 22% to 11.43% in 2025, driven primarily by increased female representation at director level – rising from 22% in 2022 to 37% in 2025. Retention following parental leave has also strengthened: female retention in the two years following return from family leave increased from 67.7% to 72.3%.
Underpinning this progress is a programme of targeted action. The firm’s Catalyst initiative supports under-represented talent across the organisation, providing high-performing, high-potential colleagues from underrepresented backgrounds with structured development and progression support.
On family support, the firm’s paternity policy now enables non-childbearing parents to take up to six weeks’ leave at full pay, or up to 12 weeks at half pay, with the flexibility to take leave in up to three blocks within the first year. Grant Thornton UK also sponsored the launch of the Family Inclusive Workplace accreditation in the UK and became one of the first organisations to receive it, while maintaining its position as a Top 10 Working Families Employer in 2025.
Abigail Fisher, Chief People Officer at Grant Thornton UK, said:
"What I'm proud of is that our approach to gender equality has been consistent and deliberate. This recognition reflects the collective effort of everyone across the firm who has played a role in making Grant Thornton a place where people can genuinely build their careers, whatever their background or circumstances.
"I've seen real progress in how we develop our senior pipeline and in the way flexibility and family support are now embedded as a normal part of how we work, not an exception to it. Today, 75% of our Service Line Leadership team are female and 50% of our broader leadership team - that's not by chance. It reflects how seriously we take gender equality, and the kind of change that lasts."
Five consecutive years on the Times Top 50 reflects a firm that has kept gender equality a consistent priority – building accountability into how it develops people, how it designs work and how it measures progress year on year.