The number of women appointed to the boards of FTSE100 companies has fallen. On International Women's Day, we look at why more must be done to tackle gender inequality

For the first time since records started in 1999, the number of women in top level positions has fallen, according to data from The Professional Boards Forum (PBF). This is in spite of the fact that the deadline set by Lord Davies for 25% female representation on FTSE boards is just two years away.

It might be a fractional drop, from 17.4% to 17.3%, but Jane Scott, director of BoardWatch at the PBF, which aims to identify and promote senior women to non-executive directors, says female appointments to board level jobs have slowed down over the last year. "The numbers we're talking about are very small so in itself that's an insignificant change, but I'm quite surprised because we've been on a very positive growth path since the Davis report." It's difficult to determine the reason behind this drop, she adds.

The number of female directors has risen quickly since 2011, from 12.5%, however much of this growth is a result of non-executive appointments. The number of women working their way up through a company and making it onto the executive board has barely risen at all, from 5.5% to 5.8%.

Dr Roger Barker, head of corporate governance at the Institute of Directors, admits it is difficult. "When you're talking about the executive pipeline, so women coming up through senior management ranks to become the chief executive or the chief financial officer, we still continue to have a real problem.

"It's neck and neck in terms of the sexes until you get to a couple of rungs below executive director level and then suddenly there is a falling off in terms of gender equality and appointments. Men are continuing to dominate the appointments at that level."

Gay Collins, executive chairman of MHP communications and a member of the steering committee of the 30 Percent Club, believes that this slow progress is down to the nature of the appointment process, rather than a general complacency on gender equality.

"It's unfashionable and potentially has a reputational implication to put your head above the parapet and say an all-male board is fine, whereas a year ago people were still happy to be on that side of the fence", she says.

However, according to accountancy firm PwC, women's progress in the labour market has stalled dramatically since the recession. Its Women in Work index, published today on International Women's Day, measures the gender pay gap and various employment rates and this year has seen the UK slip from 14 out of 27 in the table, to 18th place.

Margaret Cole, general counsel and executive board member at PwC believes that getting women into the workplace is the key to economic recovery but that women have been pushed down the agenda since the downturn. "Businesses should be held to account over their female promotion pipelines and diversity goals," Cole says.

"Young women want visible and aspirational role models at all levels and boards should be accountable for providing these. Without strong and accountable action from British businesses, it is hard to see how we can achieve any real change and move past tokenism."

So what can companies do to achieve Lord Davies' target in 2015? "Businesses must think about how they can accommodate childcare and short career breaks which are needed for family reasons, but without that completely derailing an executive career. They must make sure there are ways back onto the path to the top," says Barker.

"It's those types of things that companies need to think about much more carefully if we're going to make an impression on that executive front." He admits that companies must do more to meet the target in 2015, and that true equality at executive level, with 50% men and women on boards is a long way off yet.

To help push the equality agenda forward, this April the Guardian will be launching a new online section on women in leadership. It will be a community space for people and businesses to network and share their experiences, with events, online Q&A sessions and a regular newsletter.

To find out more, drop us a line here.