Gender pay gap report

Introduction

In line with UK Government legislation introduced in April 2017, all employers with 250 or more employees are legally required to publish their gender pay gap data annually. This report must be made publicly available by 5 April each year on both the company’s website and the government’s gender pay gap reporting portal.

The gender pay gap is not the same as equal pay. It refers to the difference in average earnings between men and women across the organisation, regardless of role or seniority.

What is the gender pay gap?

The gender pay gap measures the difference between the average hourly earnings of men and women and is expressed as a percentage of men’s earnings. It is calculated in two ways:

• Mean Pay Gap: The average hourly rate across all employees.
• Median Pay Gap: The middle value when all hourly rates are listed from lowest to highest.

Gender pay gap figures

As of 5 April 2024:

• Mean Gender Pay Gap: 0.34% Men are paid slightly more than women on average.
• Median Gender Pay Gap: -6.87% Women earn more than men in the middle range of earnings.

These figures indicate a relatively balanced pay structure, with a slight advantage for women in the median range. This suggests strong representation and pay equity in mid-level roles, and no significant disparity in overall average pay. 

Gender distribution by pay quartile

The following table shows the proportion of male and female employees in each pay quartile:

Our approach: The detail behind the numbers

Understanding how men and women are represented across different pay levels at Westminster Abbey helps us assess how balanced our workforce is and where we may need to focus attention.

• In the upper and upper middle quartiles, men and women are employed in broadly similar numbers.
• In the lower middle and lower quartiles, relatively more men employed (61.0% and 57.6% respectively). These bands include roles such as security and Lay Vicars, which reflects broader occupational trends rather than any pay inequality.

Staff at Westminster Abbey are paid equally for performing the same role, regardless of gender. The overall gender pay gap is minimal, and the median gap favours women, indicating fair and consistent pay practices.

While these results are encouraging, the Abbey remains committed to considering gender balance across all roles, and continues to promote equity, diversity and inclusion throughout the Abbey.

Trends since reporting began in 2017

The mean pay gap ranged -2% to -6.1%, before increasing to +0.34% in 2024–25. This small increase is likely driven by changes among a limited number of higher‑paid roles rather than any wider structural shift across the workforce.

By contrast, the median moved from +11.6% in 2017–18 to -6.87% in 2024–25, having peaked at +10.6% in 2022–23 and +8.8% in 2023–24. This indicates a meaningful change in the middle of the pay distribution, with more women progressing into mid‑ to upper‑level roles and with tighter pay alignment within comparable positions.

This pattern aligns with the 2024–25 quartile data: women are broadly at parity in the upper (47.5%) and upper‑middle (50.8%) quartiles, although they remain slightly under‑represented at the highest levels. Meanwhile, the lower‑middle and lower quartiles continue to include a higher concentration of male roles, which naturally pulls the median towards women even when the mean remains relatively balanced.