The South East Women's Mentoring Programme saw over 70 volunteers helping 100 women in senior management roles across the region.

The scheme was designed and run by Business Link, with finance coming from South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) and the European Social Fund (ESF).

Sussex Business Link's Rachel Crossey said: "According to the National Management Salary Survey, although more than a third of managers and directors that make up the UK workforce are female, the glass ceiling effect still exists.

"The programme was designed to help women working in small and medium sized businesses to fulfil their potential and it has been tremendously successful."

In total 80 per cent of women who took part said they now felt in greater control of their careers, while 40 per cent felt they had achieved a better work-life balance.

The project also aimed to contribute to the overall productivity and competitiveness of the South East.

There are currently 165,000 female led businesses in the region but if women matched the number of male business start-ups, 25,000 additional firms would be created.

Business Link offers access to events, workshops, clinics and online tools – all designed specifically for women whether they are just thinking about starting a company or are well established.

To find out more about the support available, call 0845 600 9 006 or visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/southeast.

Business Link is producing a directory, due out this summer, which is designed to help women find the help and support they need with ease.

Any enquiries for the directory should be forwarded to Roz Maher roz.maher@businesslinksurrey.co.uk.