The government requires us to submit and publish information regarding our gender pay gap on an annual basis, and the information is based on a snapshot date of 31 March each year. This report summarises the key findings of the report.
Key Findings
Our gender pay gap is 23.55% mean (26% in 2023) overall, which means that, on average, women were paid 23.55% less than men in our trust last year. The median gender pay gap was 49.24% (56% in 2023). The median gender pay gap is the difference between the middle of the distribution in the hourly earnings of men and women (the middle being when half men/women earn more and half less than the median).
If we split teaching and non-teaching staff, the mean for teachers is 8% (same as 2023) and the median is 0% (same as 2023), and for non-teaching staff the mean is -1.39% (3.5% in 2023) and the median is -1.44% (0% in 2023). The minus figure for non-teaching staff means that men in this cohort have on average, lower pay than their female counterparts.
Gender Split per Quartile 2024 – Overall
This is the information we submit nationally, which details our gender split against four quartiles:
| Quartile 1. Lower | Quartile 2. Lower middle | Quartile 3. Upper middle | Quartile 4. Upper | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male (% males to all employees in each quartile) | 19% (15%) | 14% (18%) | 26% (28%) | 34% (36%) |
| Female (% females to all employees in each quartile) | 81% (85%) | 86% (82%) | 74% (72%) | 66% (64%) |
Whilst we have more females in every quartile, the percentage of males increase throughout the quartiles except for Quartile 2, hence the overall gender pay gap. The lower quartile includes roles such as cleaners and catering staff, and they are roles that have a high volume of staff attached to them, paid at the lowest point within the non-teaching national pay scale.
An interrogation of the data illustrates a good gender balance in the top layers of the organisation, in that 40% of TEAL’s top ten earners are female and 44% of the top 50 earners are female.
A key factor in the gender pay gap is the significant difference in pay between teaching and non-teaching staff. For example, the hourly rate for the lowest earning teachers at the snapshot date was £23.67, while for associate staff it was £11.59, which is a difference of over £12 per hour and equates to a 51% difference. This is reflected in the table below, which shows how many teaching and non-teaching staff sit within each quartile.
Number of teaching and associate staff in each quartile
| Quartile | Non-Teaching Number of Staff | Teaching Number of Staff |
|---|---|---|
| Upper quartile | 2 | 285 |
| Upper middle quartile | 100 | 188 |
| Lower middle quartile | 286 | 1 |
| Lower quartile | 288 | 0 |
Gender Split per Quartile 2024 – Teaching Staff
Our gender pay gap breakdown for our teaching staff is as follows:
| Quartile 1. Lower | Quartile 2. Lower middle | Quartile 3. Upper middle | Quartile 4. Upper | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male (% males to all employees in each quartile) | 27% (37%) | 36% (28%) | 29% (39%) | 42% (30%) |
| Female (% females to all employees in each quartile) | 73% (63%) | 64% (72%) | 71% (61%) | 58% (70%) |
The increase on the number of females represented in the lower quartile may be attributed to the fact that we transferred in a few primary schools between the snapshot date in 2023 and the snapshot date in 2024, which are predominantly staffed by females. It is also worth noting that 3 of the 4 schools that transferred in during the snapshot dates have male Headteachers, which may account for some of the increase in the male/female split in the upper quartile.
Gender Split per Quartile 2024 – Associate Staff
Our gender pay gap breakdown for our non-teaching staff is as follows:
| Quartile 1. Lower | Quartile 2. Lower middle | Quartile 3. Upper middle | Quartile 4. Upper | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male (% males to all employees in each quartile) | 26% (15%) | 9% (13%) | 9% (17%) | 22% (22%) |
| Female (% females to all employees in each quartile) | 74% (85%) | 91% (87%) | 91% (83%) | 78% (78%) |
Benchmarking
The Local Government Association (LGA) undertook an analysis of the gender pay gap for the school sector for the snapshot date in March 2022, with a mean gender pay gap of 17.9% and a median gender pay gap of 27.6%. Their analysis is based on 815 employers’ responses, 51% of which are MATs with primary and secondary schools, and it recognises that some MATs outsource areas (e.g. cleaning and catering) therefore the comparison is not always accurate.
Work already undertaken at TEAL which may reduce the gender pay gap
The following changes have already taken place; however this will not be apparent in the data analysed as they were implemented after the snapshot date.
- Changes to the pay structure for Cover Supervisors, meaning they are now paid on a progressive scale at a similar rate to non-qualified teachers.
- Changes to our family leave policy, which offers a sector leading enhanced pay package for all staff.
Next Steps
Although we have reduced our gender pay gap slightly on last year’s figure, our aspiration is to reduce our gender pay gap further and maintain an inclusive culture for all staff.
Work already implemented or that is underway includes the following:
- Further review of non-teaching pay, terms and conditions, development opportunities and career pathways.
- Review of recruitment to ensure it is inclusive, free from unconscious bias, creative and effective.
- Review of EDI training and development.
- Review of leadership development training.
- Continued review of the professional development pathways and offers for our non-teaching staff and further development of the career pathways open to them, including increased and varied use of the apprenticeship route.
We prefer not to establish a target and to instead undertake meaningful reviews and changes where we can. We will undertake the reviews planned and detailed above and update the Trust Board/Resources and Finance Committee accordingly, with the aim of improving our gender pay gap further next year.