Gender Pay Gap Report 2023 - 2024
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Introduction
In 2017, the Government introduced legislation that made it statutory for organisations with 250 or more employees to report annually on their gender pay gap. Northamptonshire Police is covered by the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017 which came into force on 31 March 2017. These regulations underpin the Public Sector Equality Duty and require relevant organisations to publish their gender pay gap annually by 30 March, including: the mean and median gender gaps in hourly pay; the mean and median gender gaps in bonus pay; the proportion of men and women who received bonuses; and the proportions of male and female employees in each pay quartile.
The gender pay gap shows the difference in the average pay between all men and women in a workforce. If a workforce has a particularly high gender pay gap, this can indicate that there may be a number of issues to deal with and the individual calculations may help to identify what those issues are.
The gender pay gap is different to equal pay. Equal pay deals with the pay differences between men and women who carry out the same jobs, similar jobs or work of equal value. It is unlawful to pay people unequally because they are a man or a woman.
Northamptonshire Police support the fair treatment and reward of all staff, irrespective of gender. Our pay approach is based on the principles of consistency, fairness and transparency, supporting the fair treatment and reward of all staff, irrespective of gender.
This report fulfils Northamptonshire Police’s reporting requirements, analyses the figures in more detail and sets out what we are doing to close the gender pay gap in the organisation.
Profile of Northamptonshire Police Workforce
The combined profile of the Force is a total of 2806 individuals made up of Police Officers and Police Staff.
- Male - 1366 (48.68%)
- Female - 1440 (51.32%)
There has been a 5%-point increase in the total workforce in 2023/24. A 0.95%-point increase of males and a 10.01%-point increase of females in the workforce.
Female officers have seen a 0.89%-point year on year increase, and female staff have seen a 16.87%-point increase.
Total of Police Officers (1526)
- Male - 62.84%
- Female - 37.16%
Total of Police Staff (1280)
- Male - 31.80%
- Female - 68.20%
When the workforce figures are separated there remains a higher proportion of male Police Officers to that of Police Staff. The split is nearly 2/3 male officers to 1/3 female officers and 1/3 male staff to 2/3 female staff. There has not been a real change in this over the last few years.
Hourly Pay Gender Pay Gap - Combined
Calculations have been made combining Police Officers and Police Staff.
| Pay Type | Male | Female | Gap (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mean hourly pay | £20.60 | £18.73 | 9.08% |
| Median hourly pay | £22.06 | £18.08 | 18.04% |
The national mean average gender pay gap is 14.3% (as of April 2023). The force is 9.08% which is lower than the national average by 5.22%-points and 0.76%-points lower in force than 2022/23.
Gender Pay Gap in Hourly Pay - Broken down by Officers and Staff
Officers
- Mean Gender Pay Gap Hourly Pay - 11.3%
- Median Gender Pay Gap Hourly Pay - 0%
| Pay Type | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| Mean Hourly Pay | £22.22 | £19.71 |
| Median Hourly Pay | £22.06 | £22.06 |
Staff
- Mean Gender Pay Gap Hourly Pay - 5.68%
- Median Gender Pay Gap Hourly Pay - 11.52%
| Pay Type | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| Mean Hourly Pay | £19.20 | £18.11 |
| Median Hourly Pay | £19.18 | £16.97 |
Northamptonshire Police Pay Scales
Northamptonshire Police uses the national Police Officer ranks ranging from Constable to Chief Constable. Each rank has a specific pay scale. Police Officers move through the pay scale within a rank based on length of service, regardless of gender.
For Police Staff we use the national pay scales determined for the role following formal job evaluations. Each grade has a specific pay scale staff move through the grades based on length of service regardless of gender.
Summary - Hourly Pay Gender Pay Gap
There has been a reduction in the mean gender pay gap by 3.82%-points on 2022/23, and the median gender pay gap increased by 1.45%-points.
The Median hourly pay rate has seen a significant change this year, going from 13.81%-points to 15.36%-points.
Although there are now more females in Force, this increase could be due to them being newer employees on lower pay points.
The Mean hourly pay gap for Officers has increased by 4.8%-points. The staff mean hourly pay gap has seen a decrease of 4.31%-points.
The median hourly pay gap for Staff has increased again from 10.11%-points to 11.52%-points, which could be reflective of less promotions in females or females joining force on higher salaries.
Pay Quartiles
| Quartile | Male 23/24 | Male 22/23 | Male 21/22 | Male 20/21 | Male 19/20 | Female 23/24 | Female 22/23 | Female 21/22 | Female 20/21 | Female 19/20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Quartile | 61.1% | 62.2% | 65.2% | 65.3% | 67.3% | 38.9% | 37.8% | 34.8% | 34.7% | 32.7% |
| Upper Middle Quartile | 59.5% | 59.9% | 54.3% | 58.0% | 59.6% | 40.5% | 40.1% | 45.7% | 42.0% | 40.4% |
| Lower Middle Quartile | 36.3% | 43.2% | 50.1% | 47.6% | 46.2% | 63.7% | 56.8% | 49.9% | 52.4% | 53.8% |
| Lower Quartile | 42.4% | 42.8% | 34.8%% | 36.0% | 36.5% | 57.8% | 57.2% | 65.2% | 64.0% | 63.5% |
There has been an improvement in all quartiles for females, with the biggest increase being in the lower middle quartile which had a 6.9%-point increase.
The lower quartile had an increase by 0.6%-point, 1.1%-points in the upper quartile, and 0.4%-points in the upper middle quartile.
2023/2024 Pay Quartiles
| Male/Female | Upper Quartile | Upper Middle Quartile | Lower Middle Quartile | Lower Quartile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 42.2% | 36.3% | 59.5% | 61.1% |
| Female | 57.8% | 63.7% | 41% | 38.9% |
Bonus Gender Pay Gap - Combined
- Mean Bonus Gender Pay Gap - -30.8%
- Median Bonus Gender Pay Gap - -9.09%
Proportion of Men and Women receiving a bonus payment
- Male - 0.88%
- Female - 1.81%
Police Officers and Staff are eligible for consideration of a bonus payment as per our Bonus Payment policy.
The policy provides details of the circumstances for which an Officer may receive a bonus payment. Officers of Federated ranks may be awarded a bonus payment.
Staff bonus payments are discretionary.
During 2023/34 more females have received a bonus compared to males, and this shows with the minus figures for the Mean and Median pay gaps.
The number of individuals receiving a bonus payment dropped from 19 bonuses paid to males and 35 paid to females in 2022/23, to 12 paid to males and 26 paid to females in 2023/24.
The median pay for females increased from £150 to £300, whilst the males median pay decreased from £400 to £275.
The mean decreased for males from £361.79 to £236.67, however the females has risen from £242.31 to £330.76.
Less bonuses were paid in this period. In 2021/22 this was 8.5% Males and 3.5% females, which changed to 1.4% males and 2.8% females in 2022/23 and 0.88% males and 1.81% females in 2023/24.
Taking Action
Northamptonshire Police are committed to addressing pay gaps
Actions taken:
- Annually the force Diversity, Equality and Inclusion priorities are reviewed to ensure that they are relevant and new measures (key performance indicators) are devised. These are reported through the internal Stronger Together Gold meetings and governed through the People and Culture Board where progress is reported on a quarterly basis.
- Diversity, Equality and Inclusion training is delivered as part of the first and second line leadership courses for both officers and staff, embedding the force DEI priorities.
- Representatives from the Staff Networks provide inputs on Induction sessions for Officers and Staff, sharing the benefits of the networks, support they provide and how to become a member. A new staff network dedicated to staff where English is not their first language has been set up to support staff and to promote understanding
- An internal Safe to Say campaign had been held throughout the year to promote self-declaration of the defined Equality Act 2010 protected characteristics. Changes have also been made to the notification at time of recruitment so that self-declaration is recorded as part of the onboarding process for new starters
- An internal training event for leaders to understand what sexism and misogyny is and how to challenge using active bystandership and peer intervention. External speakers provided a range of inputs and representatives from HeForShe provided awareness and encouragement to join the forces program of allyship
- The United Nations HeForShe Allyship programme continues. Allies meet monthly to address and discuss the gender balance within the organisation. The Allies support the aim to support the growth of female leadership and development within the organisation
- The Force has dedicated leads working on the National Police Race Action Plan, led by the Force Gold Lead, Assistant Chief Constable
- An internal Inclusion Exchange group has been formulated, seeking the views of underrepresented officers and staff. This is led by the Deputy Chief Constable
- Promotion processes adhere to the College of Policing guidelines. Interviews consist of independent panel members who ensure the processes are fair and consistent. Applicants are offered feedback and there is further support which includes coaching, mentoring, interview skills courses available to anyone who is entering a promotion or lateral move process
- The Positive Action team continue to provide a range of services which include promotion of various policing roles at community events, and supporting underrepresented applicants during police officer recruitment stages
Our actions to continue to reduce pay gap:
As well as continuing with the actions already listed above, the force will continue to:
- Continue with the Safe to Say campaign to promote self-declaration of existing staff
- The force Diversity, Equality and Inclusion strategy is due for review in 2025. Nationally a new Culture and Inclusion Strategy is due to be launched in January 2025 and the force will work towards aligning its DEI strategy to the National Strategy
- The Positive action team are creating a career academy for underrepresented groups through promotion to support elevation in role. This has been developed to support underrepresented groups providing advice, guidance, and support from application to interview. The overall focus of the career academy is to focus on increasing confidence, reducing barriers, with aims of improving representation of underrepresented groups at more senior levels within the organisation
- DEI training is ongoing, aiming to highlight the barriers between different groups, how to better embed DEI workstreams and inclusive teams to enhance representation across all areas of the organisation
- A range of podcasts are being developed, with topics centred around DEI and raising awareness of under representation within the force. A mixture of internal and external speakers will share their experiences and learning
- Increase membership in the current Staff Networks, promoting the benefits of staff networks and how they support the development of the force
- The National Lead for the Police Race Action Plan is due to visit the force in early 2025 to review the progress already made and provide advice and guidance
- The Police National Coaching and Mentoring Programme, PushFar, has been established with the College of Policing. It is open to all ranks and grades for serving officers and staff. PushFar supports a matching service to find a coach/mentor across National policing. Northamptonshire Police has signed up to this service to enable the Force to increase the availability of mentoring and coaches to all employees with the specific emphasis of providing support.
- Creating a Career Academy for Officers and Staff to attend to help them improve skills when looking for promotions.