The number of women in the judiciary is to reach an all time high after the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) included five women among the 22 new High Court judges it has recommended for appointment.

The recommended appointments, announced today (6 October), include Sonia Proudman QC and Elizabeth Slade QC, formerly of Radcliffe Chambers and 11 King's Bench Walk respectively.

Both will be sworn in later this month, while three other women will join the bench over the course of the next year.

The appointments will boost the number of women sitting in the High Courts to 17. In total, 11 women and 118 men applied for the 22 new positions.

JAC chairman, Baroness Prashar said: "I am delighted that we are making progress and that our strenuous efforts are beginning to show results. We expect the composition of the senior judges will gradually come to reflect society more closely."

Six months ago there were only 11 women among the 110 High Court judges while five years ago there were only five. However, though women fared well in the latest round, only 4% of applications came from black of minority ethnic (BME) groups and no BME High Court judges were appointed.

The JAC attributed the small pool of BME applicants as a reflection of the proportions entering the legal profession three decades ago.