To mark International Women’s Day, Key Equity Release has announced that 19% of its advisers are now women – an 8% increase since the start of the pandemic.

Additionally, across Key’s day-to-day adviser support functions, 53% of the roles are filled by women and a quarter of Key’s advice delivery team are female.

Key says the the growth in the number of female advisers highlights not only the strength of the later life lending market but also the gradual move away from the stereotypical view of who an equity release adviser is.As part of its recruitment process, Key says it looks to actively #breakthebias by looking to recruit from a wider range of candidates and using its internal adviser academy to upskill existing colleagues across the business.

Will Hale, CEO at Key, said: “Over the past two years we have seen a different and challenging landscape but the later life lending market has continued to grow and it is great to see that one in four are women within our advice delivery team . However, more needs to be done.

“Financial services has traditionally been a more male dominated arena and it is time to #breakthebias and encourage more women into the financial sector, specifically into the adviser force.”

Alison Longley, people director at Key Group, said: “At Key Group, we are committed to not only building a team which reflects the customers we serve but also helping existing colleagues to build exciting and long lasting careers. Whether it is as an adviser, T&C consultant or as member of our finance team, we focus on ensuring that gender-bias is not a hurdle applicants need to navigate as part of the recruitment process.”

Donna Francis, chief operating officer at the Equity Release Council, added: “As the demand for equity release continues to grow, it is vital that this expansion brings opportunities to more women who believe in the sector’s potential.

“Given the role the later life lending market has to play in meeting some of the UK’s biggest social challenges, there’s never been a more exciting time to join the industry and a more representative workforce means we are better able to reflect the range of customers who look to us for support.”