Mary Lee Berners-Lee, one of the world’s first IT contractors, has died aged 93

A truly inspirational woman, Mary Lee Berners-Lee achieved so much, yet had such a humble attitude.

On the programming team in 1951 that released the first computer to be sold commercially in the world, (the Ferranti Mark I) she was unhappy to discover that her and her other female workers were on less pay compared to their male counterparts.

As a result, she led an equal pay campaign that was a huge success – long before the Equal Pay Act came into force.

She went on to marry her fellow programmer colleague who she’d met on the Ferranti Mark I project and had her first child not long after.

As a first-time mum, she began freelancing as a software expert and working from home – something that was very much unheard of at the time and as a result, made her one of the world’s first freelance programmers, paving the way for other mums who are looking for the flexibility and better work-life balance that comes with being self-employed.

Throughout her career she worked for the likes of London Transport and Air Ministry; became a maths teacher and then went back to programming right up until she retired in 1987.

She passed away 29^th November 2017, leaving her husband Conway, her four children Tim, Peter, Helen and Michael, seven grandchildren and three step-grandchildren.

To find out more about contracting please contact Jaime on 01442 795 100 or email jaime.thorpe@dolanaccountancy.com.