****THE SIGNAL BRIEF**** ****What’s new:**** Fix Auto UK has launched EmpowHER to encourage more women and girls into automotive repair and support those already working in the industry. ****By the numbers:**** Each of its 145 Franchise Partners is being asked to host at least one female-focused event and two school or college visits a year. ****What’s next:**** Schools, colleges and industry partners can contact the EmpowHER team about getting involved. A Female Development Programme is also being developed, including a dedicated mentoring scheme. Fix Auto UK, the country’s leading group of independently owned vehicle repair centres, has today revealed the full programme behind EmpowHER, its powerful national strategy to get more women and girls into automotive repair, and help those already in the industry go further. The numbers explain why. According to the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), women make up less than 19 per cent of the UK’s automotive workforce and 11 per cent of those working in vehicle maintenance and repair. In senior roles, that figure drops to around 10 per cent and has fallen over the past three years. Among apprentices, alarmingly just four per cent are female. Meanwhile, and worryingly, nearly half the sector's workforce is over 45, leaving a widening skills gap that girls choosing Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics – or STEM – subjects today are perfectly placed to fill. Devised by Fix Auto UK, EmpowHER tasks every one of the organisation’s 145 Franchise Partners to open their doors and host at least one female-focused event and two school or college visits a year. The initiative is being supported by a ready-made kit of materials, scripts and detailed support so repairers can get involved with minimal extra effort. The strategy rests on three pillars: attraction and retention (getting more women through the door, and keeping them), advancement (clear routes up for women already in the business), and perception (challenging outdated ideas of what a career in vehicle repair looks like). Four initiatives bring it to life: 1. **See It To Be It:** Ready-made outreach tools for schools and colleges, including careers materials, presentation content and a short film to increase awareness of careers in collision repair 2. **Open Doors: Female Edition:** Hands-on autumn-term visits to local repair centres for students, parents, teachers and careers advisers, featuring live demos, training and career-pathway talks and informal Q&As. 3. **A social storytelling series:** Authentic content from women across the business, told through formats including Myth vs Reality, How I Got Here and A Day in My Role. Advancement runs alongside attraction: Fix Auto UK is also developing its own Female Development Programme that includes a dedicated mentoring scheme, plus an internal-first hiring policy so existing talent gets first refusal on new roles. Ian Pugh, Managing Director of the Advantage Group of Companies, which Fix Auto UK is part of, said: > "The automotive repair industry has a perception problem and we believe Fix Auto UK is perfectly placed to start changing it. Modern collision repair is a highly skilled, technology-driven, profession in which men and women can thrive, yet women make up less than19 per cent of our workforce. EmpowHER is about doing right by our people and building a stronger, more resilient, business for the future, and I'm proud our Franchise Partners are getting behind it from day one." Erika Woolacott, Chair of Fix Auto UK's leadership team and a second-generation Franchise Partner who runs her three sites with her sister, added: > "I grew up around this industry and, alongside my sister, Alena, I've built my career in it. EmpowHER matters to me because it's personal, not just a campaign. I want every young woman who walks through our doors to see a future for herself, the same way I have." Fix Auto UK is already ahead of the industry averages. Across the business as a whole, the team is 47 per cent female, more than double the figure for the wider sector. That balance holds up the ladder too: women make up more than 47 per cent of managers with 43 per cent directly reporting to the Managing Director, against an industry figure of little more than 10 per cent in senior roles. The pipeline within the organisation is moving fast, too. Incredibly and against a sector average of just four per cent, female apprentices grew from 17 per cent of those trainees who joined the organisation in 2025 to 27 per cent in 2026. This summer, Fix Auto UK became the first organisation in the vehicle repair sector to implement a new degree apprenticeship programme, significantly, it is 50/50 female to male. And Fix Auto UK is home to one of the country's few all-female-run bodyshops, where sisters Erika and Alena Woolacott run three successful sites serving motorists in the South West. That progress is already earning recognition: This year alone, four women will be recipients of the coveted 2026 30 Under 30: Rising Stars accolade giving out by the leading trade publication Bodyshop Magazine that’s designed to recognise promising individuals while numerous colleagues featured in Auto30 Per Club’s "Women Who Inspire Me" series. The Organisation also has individuals shortlisted in the Motor Trade Women in the Motor Industry Awards. Schools, colleges and industry partners interested in EmpowHER, or franchisees wanting to register a site visit, can contact the EmpowHER team at empowherleadership@fixauto.co.uk ## Staffordshire's Fix Auto sites: ### Fix Auto North Staffordshire**** Higher Woodcroft, Leek, Staffordshire, ST13 5QF ### Fix Auto Stoke-on-Trent**** Portland Road, Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST3 1EW ### Fix Auto Lichfield**** Crossfield Ind. Est.Lichfield, WS13 6RJ ### Join The Staffordshire Signal on WhatsApp Never miss a single breaking update, local news story, community event, or deep dive. See everything happening in Staffordshire first, straight to your phone! Get Instant Updates

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Friday night, empowHER Wisconsin, WRTP|Big Step and local contractors in Wisconsin hosted an event to celebrate and connect women in Wisconsin’s construction industry through photos by Graham Images.