A rail company has seen a sharp rise in women applying for jobs across northern England after launching an award-winning campaign to attract more female staff.
Northern launched its ‘We’re Not Northern Without Her’ campaign in November to promote rail jobs for women.
Women now account for 33 per cent of Northern’s job applications, up from 17 per cent before the campaign.
Gina Edge, employer brand manager at Northern, said: "The campaign was built around a really simple ambition: to challenge perceptions of what a career in rail looks like and encourage more women to see that there is a place for them at Northern.
"What makes this recognition particularly special is the impact we’ve seen since the campaign launched.
"Winning this award is fantastic recognition for everyone who helped bring the campaign to life, but the work doesn’t stop here.
"We want to build on that momentum and continue breaking down barriers, challenging perceptions and creating an industry where more women can see themselves building a long-term career."
The campaign won Best Diversity and Inclusion Strategy at the Employer Brand Management Awards.
Judges said Northern tackled the rail industry’s “long-standing gender imbalance” with a campaign “built around the real experiences of women working in rail”.
Northern also won Best Resourcing Initiative at the CIPD People Management Awards, where its traincrew training programme was named Best Apprenticeship Scheme.
The judges praised the "highly effective" programme for drivers and conductors that has addressed the "major challenge" of "training complete novices, many without formal qualifications or sector knowledge".
Northern trains staff at academies in Leeds and Manchester through classroom lessons and hands-on learning.
Northern is the UK’s second-largest train operator, running 2,650 daily services to more than 500 stations across northern England.