Gender Pay Gap

As of March 2025, the overall mean gender pay gap at Northumbria University is 10.7%, while the median gender pay gap is 13.9%. This represents an improvement from 2024 figures (mean 11.4%, median 15.8%). The median gender pay gap is higher than the mean because of the positioning of the ‘middle’ man and ‘middle’ woman in the pay structure, i.e. the ‘middle man’ sits in a higher grade.

 

The university’s progress in narrowing the gender pay gap has been slow since 2021, but the most recent figures point to modest progress. The mean gap, which fell from 12.3% in 2021 to 11.4% in 2022 before widening to 13.7% in 2023, has since improved steadily – returning to 11.4% in 2024 and reaching its lowest level of 10.7% in 2025. The median gap has been slower to change, remaining close to its 2021 level until the latest year, with the median gap narrowing to 13.9% – down 2.1 percentage points from 2021.

While progress has been uneven year to year over the entire period since 2021, the 2025 data provides the clearest indication yet that the gender pay gap may be starting to narrow more meaningfully. Further moves on increasing the representation of women at senior levels, and removing barriers to progression and promotion throughout the structure, should assist further narrowing in future.

In 2024, the gap was largely due to fewer women in senior, higher-paid roles. By 2025, the representation of women at these levels had improved, most notably the proportion of academic women at grade 10 increasing from 30.77% to 40% and the proportion of professional support women at grade 9 increasing from 55% to 61.5%. This has therefore narrowed both the mean and median gaps. The balance of women in (lower-paid) professional support roles has become more balanced following the decision to merge grades 1 and 2.

*Data from the government’s gender pay reporting portal will be added once available.

 

Gender pay gap by staff group

The gender pay gap at Northumbria varies between academic and professional support staff, reflecting differences in workforce composition. Among academic staff, the mean gender pay gap is 7.8%, with no median gap (0.0%). For professional support staff, the mean gap is smaller at 2.4%, while the median is 3.7%.

Both sets of figures are significantly narrower than the overall university gender pay gap, showing that the overall gap is not primarily driven by disparities within academic or professional staff groups, but rather by the distribution of men and women across the groups combined.

Academic roles, which are occupied predominantly by men (53.2% men, 46.8% women), only feature in grades 6 to 10, whereas professional support roles, which are more often occupied by women (59.5% women, 40.5% men), feature in all grades. This structural imbalance, rather than pay disparities within job categories, significantly influences the overall gender pay gap.

Gender pay gaps by grade

Analysis of gender pay gaps by grade shows that the largest gaps are seen in grades 4 and 10. Grade 10, which includes the University Executive, continues to show the widest disparities, though gaps have narrowed: the mean gap reduced from 22.0% in 2024 to 16.5% in 2025, and the median gap fell from 21.4% to 0.0%.

In a shift from last year, grade 4 now shows a pay gap. The mean gender pay gap has shifted significantly, widening from -7.3% in 2024 (in favour of women) to 4.9% in 2025, while the median gap also increased from 3.7% to 6.9%. There are only a small number of colleagues at grade 4 so small shifts in the composition of the group create a large percentage shift and investigation of this shift indicates this is due to changes in how men and women are distributed across the five points within grade 4. Progression within this grade is automatic, based on service, indicating that more women have been employed for less time at this grade compared to men.

The other pay grades show either no gender pay gaps, small gaps in favour of women, or minimal differences, with mean gaps ranging from -1.2% to 2.2% and medians at 0.0% in most cases. The fact that most grades show no gap at the median is a positive sign, as it indicates that men and women are paid equally within each grade. The overall institutional gap is therefore not the result of unequal pay for equal work but reflects how men and women are distributed across the university – particularly the underrepresentation of women in the most senior roles.

Gender pay gaps by faculty/service

An analysis of the gender pay gaps across faculties and services highlights that while some areas report relatively modest gaps, others show disparities above 5%. As the gender pay gaps by grade are small, the data by faculties and services reinforces that the overall pay gap arises primarily from differences in workforce composition, the types of roles held by men and women (occupational segregation), and the influence of earnings for a small number of senior male staff at grade 10.

The Vice Chancellor’s Office, though small with only 18 employees, shows the highest mean gender pay gap at 19.5%. This is largely due to the presence of two top-paid roles held by men, which significantly skews the average.

In HR, almost 80% of staff are women, and four out of five members of the Senior Management Team are women. Even so, the mean gender pay gap is 15.5%, and the median gap is higher at 21.9%. This happens because there are very few men in the Service, and most of them work in higher-graded roles (grade 6 and above). Finance and Research and Innovation Services (RIS) show the same pattern. Because men and women are paid equally for the same work, and women are well represented at all levels, the pay gap can only be reduced by having more men in lower graded roles.

In Campus Services, despite a nearly equal gender split, men are more likely to hold technical or managerial roles, while women are concentrated in lower-paid administrative and operational jobs, leading to a 12.0% mean and 5.5% median gap.

The Faculty of Engineering and Environment shows an 11.7% mean and 11.6% median gap, reflecting broader STEM sector trends where women are underrepresented in academic and leadership positions.

Strategy, Governance and Engagement (SGE) has a 10.7% mean and 17.6% median gap, driven by a few senior male-held roles despite a predominantly female workforce.

The Faculty of Health and Life Sciences shows a 9.3% mean and 4.0% median gap, with women clustered in lower academic and professional support roles, while men dominate senior research and clinical positions. In the Faculty of Business and Law, the mean gap is 8.0% but the median is 0.0%, suggesting some imbalance in higher-paid posts.

Global Marketing and Business has a 5.2% mean and 3.7% median gap, reflecting male dominance in specialist and senior commercial roles despite a largely female workforce.

Faculty Operations shows a modest 4.0% mean gap, but a higher median of 7.3%, indicating some skew towards the representation of men at higher grades.

Digital Technology and Transformation Services has a low mean gap of 2.0%, but a notable median gap of 10.7%, with men clustered in higher grades and women making up only 19% of staff.

In contrast, Student, Library and Academic Services and the Faculty of Arts, Design and Social Sciences (ADSS) show very small gaps, with mean gaps of 1.6% and 5.1% respectively, and both having a median gap of 0.0%, indicating minimal disparity.

Gender pay gaps by age

Analysis of the gender pay gap by age shows a similar picture to 2024 where the gap is minimal or even favours women until age 34. From this point onwards, a gap favouring men emerges and continues to widen with age, peaking at 42.5% between median pay for men and women aged 65 and over, reflecting the concentration of men in the very highest-paid roles within this age group.

For academic staff, the pattern is particularly pronounced. Among those aged 16–24, women earn on average 4.2% more than men, and the median gap also favours women at -8.8%. However, by ages 35–44 the mean gap has widened to 4.8%, and rises further for those aged 45 and above. Median gaps for those in the oldest groups (aged 55–64 and 65+) are significantly higher, exceeding 16%, indicating that male academics are more likely to occupy the most senior and highest-paid posts.

Among professional support staff, the pay gap follows a similar but less marked trend. The mean gap is minimal across the younger age groups but increases noticeably from age 55 onwards – reaching 8.8% for those aged 55–64 and 14.5% for those aged 65 and above.

As there are more women in all but the 16 to 24 age bracket, this suggests that men progress at a faster rate throughout their careers compared to women. Those in the older age brackets entered higher education at a time when women were less likely to progress into senior academic and leadership positions, and these patterns are still visible today. By contrast, younger groups have a more even representation of women and men, and the gaps are narrower. As efforts to achieve gender balance across all levels of the organisation continue, as older staff retire the overall pay gap should continue to narrow over time.

 

Gender pay gaps by length of service

The pattern by length of service broadly mirrors that seen by age: pay gaps are smaller among newer entrants to the university but widen among longer-serving staff, reflecting the historical underrepresentation of women in senior roles.

Controls are in place to set appropriate starting salaries therefore among staff with less than three years’ service, the gap is relatively small, with a mean of 5.8% and a median of 6.7%. This reinforces that new recruits enter on broadly similar pay levels.

For staff with three to six years’ service, the mean gap rises sharply to 13.2%, although the median falls to 3.7%. This divergence indicates that while most men and women in this group are on similar pay levels (hence the low median gap), higher-paid roles are disproportionately held by men, which drives up the mean.

In the six to ten years’ service band, the gaps narrow again, with a mean of 6.9% and a median of 5.6%. However, for staff with ten to twenty years’ service, the gaps widen once more, to a mean of 13.6% and a median of 10.8%, suggesting that differences in career progression may become more marked with longer tenure.

The widest disparity appears among staff with twenty or more years’ service. Here the mean gap is 9.7%, but the median rises sharply to 26.7%. This suggests that while the average pay difference is not the largest, men dominate the very highest-paid roles within this group, skewing the median comparison.

A further analysis of salaries shows that starting salaries are mostly applied fairly, but the more significant challenge lies in ensuring a gender balance across all roles and grades at the point of recruitment.

Bonus pay gap

Northumbria rewards colleagues via long service awards and one-off recognition payments, via a scheme named ‘Going the Extra Mile’. Both sets of payments are considered as bonuses for gender pay gap reporting purposes.

In total 101 women and 109 men received a bonus in the latest reporting year. This represents similar proportions of staff at 4.5% and 5.8% respectively. The mean bonus gap is 24.7% in favour of men, while the median bonus payment paid to men and women was the same, resulting in no median bonus pay gap. This compares to a mean bonus gap of -30.8% in favour of women in 2024. There are only a small number of colleagues in receipt of this type of payment so small shifts in the composition of the group or value of individual payments create a large percentage shift.