1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
6. The gender pay gap
The combined mean and median figures outlined below encompass both our police officers and police staff, who are distinct groups. Their pay, grading/rank structures, and gender compositions vary. Police officers follow national pay scales, which are generally higher than the average salaries for police staff. We have a higher proportion of police staff who are female than for officers. In addition, in both cases pay rates rise incrementally. As a general rule individuals within a specific rank or grade with a longer length of service will be paid at a higher rate.
The combined mean pay gap for officers and staff as of 31 March 2024 is 12.4% compared to 14.3% on 31 March 2023. This shows a decrease of 1.9 percentage points.
The combined median pay gap for officers and staff as of 31 March 2024 is 24.6% compared to 22.7% on 31 March 2023. This shows an increase of 1.9 percentage points. Whilst there has been an increase in the median pay gap, for officers, this is primarily because there is a higher overall average length of service for males compared to females across the majority of our ranks. For example, as at 31 March 2024, a total of 36.6% of females were at the highest police constable scale point compared to 43.2% males. As a result, this means that we have a higher number of male officers on higher scale points compared to females. This rank represents the largest proportion of our officers and thus has a greater proportionate impact on the pay gap.
With regards to staff, the gap exists primarily due to the fact that we have a much higher proportion of females in lower graded roles (69.3% in grades A to D) compared to males (49.8%). Higher numbers of our staff work in roles within these grades, thus higher a higher impact on the pay gap.
Pay quartiles officers and staff combined
The table below shows the differences in pay for the genders when the pay points are grouped into quartiles with the higher pay bands (paid at the higher ranks and grades) within the upper quartiles.
| Quartile | Police officers male | Police officers female | Police staff male | Police staff female | Combined officer and staff male | Combined officer and staff female |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper quartile | 69.2% | 30.8% | 48.1% | 51.9% | 67.0% | 33.0% |
| Upper quartile 2023 | 75.7% | 24.3% | 49.5% | 50.5% | 72.5% | 27.5% |
| Upper middle quartile | 67.4% | 32.6% | 43.6% | 56.4% | 52.0% | 48.0% |
| Upper middle quartile 2023 | 73.4% | 26.6% | 33.5% | 66.5% | 64.2% | 35.8% |
| Lower middle quartile | 59.9% | 40.1% | 32.2% | 67.8% | 49.2% | 50.8% |
| Lower middle quartile 2023 | 58.7% | 41.3% | 27.3% | 72.7% | 53.2% | 46.8% |
| Lower quartile | 58.2% | 41.8% | 22.8% | 77.2% | 34.8% | 65.2% |
| Lower quartile 2023 | 54.2% | 45.8% | 20.9% | 79.1% | 30.8% | 69.2% |
The table indicates a pay gap in favour of males. They show that we have more males in senior positions than females, it also shows however that in comparison to last year’s figures the percentage of females represented in the upper quartiles has increased.
In recent years we have undertaken significant recruitment as part of the national Police Uplift Programme. For example, the proportion of new recruits in 2023-4 who were female was 41.2%. This data indicates that the number of female officers progressing through the pay-scales as their service increases is starting to change the distribution of females within the quartiles. This will however take time to be fully realised. We have higher number of officers in the lower quartile pay ranges, and as such the higher proportions of females in the upper quartiles have a lesser effect on the pay gap.
For staff, there are more females than males in all quartiles. This means there are more females in both senior staff positions but also the lowest quartile pay band compared to males. As with our officers there are higher number of staff in the lower quartile pay bands which will impact more readily on the pay gap.
Bonus pay gap - combined bonus pay gap
The following table shows the mean and median of all bonuses paid during the last reporting period of the 2023/24 financial year. The bonuses paid include firearms payments, detective payments, unpleasant scene payments and honorarium payments awarded by a central remuneration panel who review submissions against relevant criteria.
| Gender | Number of recipients | % receiving bonus payment | Median payment | Mean payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 255 | 8.50% | £1,200.00 | £1,120.10 |
| Female | 170 | 10.00% | £1,200.00 | £1,052.30 |
The tables demonstrate that the bonus pay gap has reduced from last year.
The combined mean bonus pay gap for our officers and staff as of 31 March 2024 is 6.1% in favour of males compared to 15.8% on 31 March 2023.
The combined median bonus pay gap for officers and staff as of 31 March 2024 is 0%, this is the same as on 31 March 2023.
We continue to make bonus payments to only a relatively small proportion of individuals.
The bonus pay gap has been positively impacted by bonus payments made to staff. Two thirds of police staff receiving bonus payments were female and 78% of the staff payments related to attendance at unpleasant scenes.
For officers, the majority of bonus payments made relate to either a detective or firearms payments, 25% of bonus payments were paid to female officers.
Overall, the pay gap for bonuses has significantly reduced for both our officers and staff from the last reporting period and since the start of gender pay gap reporting.