An independent review undertaken by Lord Davies of Abersoch has urged FTSE 100 firms to aim for at least 25 per cent female board representation by 2015.

The report also recommended that FTSE 350 companies set their own "challenging targets" in order to ensure more talented businesswomen can achive top boardroom roles. According to research from Cranfield University, there is currently only 12.5 per cent female board representation across FTSE 100 companies.

Lord Davies said: "Radical change is needed in the mindset of the business community if we are to implement the scale of change that is needed. "There is growing evidence to show that diverse boards are better boards, delivering financial out-performance and stock market growth."

Juliana Delaney, chief executive officer of Continuum Group, said that while quotas were not necessarily the way forward, more should be done to highlight female potential. "I would like to see increased media coverage of real female business role models - so that young woman can understand what it take to get to and stay - at the top," she said.

"We are actively putting ladies in our company through a Women First training session to encourage them to find the right level for them - hopefully, they will be sitting in my seat in a few years time." Dame Tanni Grey Thompson, chair of the Commission on the Future of Women's Sport, said: "As in business, the number of women holding senior positions in UK sport remains disappointingly low.

"We hope the standards and measures set out in [Lord Davies'] new code of conduct are now embraced and adopted by all UK sporting bodies."