DLUHC's gender pay gap report 2021
Published 27 January 2022
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This report is for the former Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. It does not reflect the data of any Cabinet Office employees transferring in to form the new Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
Background
In 2017, the government introduced world-leading legislation that made it statutory for organisations with 250 or more employees to report annually on their gender pay gap. Government departments are 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 the relevant organisations to publish their gender pay gap data by March annually, including mean and median gender pay gaps; the mean and median gender bonus gaps; 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 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. DLUHC supports the fair treatment and reward of all staff irrespective of gender.
This report fulfils the gender pay gap reporting requirements, analyses the figures in more detail and sets out what we are doing to close the gender pay gap in the organisation.
Organisational context for gender pay gap reporting
For the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Group (now known as the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC)), our overall gender pay gap figures incorporate data for the Planning Inspectorate and the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre (QEIIC) as well as the core department. A total of 3,390 people are included in the dataset, with women making up 49%, the same as last year.
This is the fifth annual report on gender pay gaps in the DLUHC Group and we remain committed to analysing and investigating any gender pay gaps and ensuring that we put in place the correct action plans to address them. Gender pay gaps in the core department are modest, in part because of the even distribution of men and women throughout the organisation. However, for the Planning Inspectorate the gender pay gaps are more structural, and it is our priority to find the best possible interventions to deal with these issues without introducing new biases in recruitment.
Gender pay gap for the DLUHC Group
The Group (DLUHC core department and agencies) shows a mean pay gap of 5.3% and a median pay gap of 11.6%. Both gaps have widened slightly since the reporting exercise in 2020 when the mean gap was 5.1% and the median gap was 7.7%.
Mean and median pay gap by organisation - 31 March 2021
| Mean DLUHC | 3.2% |
| Median DLUHC | 5.3% |
| Mean PINS | 13.1% |
| Median PINS | 26.9% |
| Mean QEII | 12.2% |
| Median QEII | 14.6% |
| Mean DLUHC Group | 5.3% |
| Median DLUHC Group | 11.6% |
Gender pay gap results vary in different parts of the Group:
| Mean Gender Pay Gap 2021 | Mean Gender Pay Gap 2020 | Median Gender Pay Gap 2021 | Median Gender Pay Gap 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DLUHC Core | 3.2% | 3.1% | 5.3% | 3.0% |
| PINS | 13.1% | 11.6% | 26.9% | 14.6% |
| QEII | 12.2% | 10.2% | 14.6% | 9.6% |
DLUHC has demonstrated its wholehearted commitment to equality of opportunity over a sustained period of several years, taking concrete steps to help us build a more inclusive and diverse organisation. We have an ambitious diversity and inclusion strategy, targeted at bringing in and advancing a diverse workforce, at all levels, including at our most senior levels. The objective of our strategy is to improve representation in certain areas, but above all to continue to create an inclusive and fair culture where all talent can flourish.
Pay quartile distribution for the DLUHC Group
Pay quartiles have been calculated by splitting all DLUHC group employees into 4 even groups according to their level of pay. Looking at the proportion of women in each quartile gives an indication of women’s representation at different levels of the group. An analysis of the DLUHC group showing the proportion of male and female employees in each quartile is shown in the graphic below:
Proportion of male and female employees in each quartile, 31 March 2021
| Quartile | Female | Male | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper quartile | 44.3% | 55.7% | 100% |
| Upper middle quartile | 48.7% | 51.3% | 100% |
| Lower middle quartile | 49.9% | 50.1% | 100% |
| Lower quartile | 55.8% | 44.2% | 100% |
Bonus pay for the DLUHC Group
Bonus pay is included in all gender pay gap calculations. This included in-year Exceptional Performance schemes (cash awards and vouchers); end of year bonuses for a defined proportion of staff and specific profit-related incentive arrangements at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre. Slightly more women (61.1%) received a bonus in the 12 months ending 31 March 2021 than men (57.4%).
Bonus pay gaps can be significantly impacted by relatively small changes from one year to the next – for example the DLUHC Group median bonus gap has been 0% in recent years but is now -20.5% in favour of women, but this can reflect the difference between a £250 and a £300 cash award at the median position, rather than any change in approach to targeting bonuses for exceptional performance.
Proportion of men and women paid a bonus
| Women | 61.1% |
| Men | 57.4% |
3-year comparison table for DLUHC Group
| 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mean gender pay gap - ordinary pay | 4.3% | 5.1% | 5.3% |
| Median gender pay gap - ordinary pay | 6.0% | 7.7% | 11.6% |
| Mean gender pay gap - bonus pay in the 12 months ending 31 March | -16.5% | -10.9% | 5.3% |
| Median gender pay gap - bonus pay in the 12 months ending 31 March | 0% | 0% | -20.5% |
Proportion of male and female employees paid a bonus in the 12 months ending 31 March
| 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 47.2% | 61.4% | 57.4% |
| Female | 50.3% | 63.1% | 61.1% |
Data methodology and approach
This year our gender pay gap data has been provided by the Annual Civil Service Employment Statistics (ACSES) based on our data supplied to the Cabinet Office for the period ending 31st March 2021.
As part of this approach, each full-pay relevant employee’s hourly rate of pay was determined using full-time equivalent salaries and contracted weekly hours. Permanent and pensionable allowances, non-consolidated performance payments, and salary sacrifice deductions are all incorporated to ensure that the methodology is consistent with reports produced in previous years. The department is satisfied that this approach is wholly consistent with the actual salary, hours and earnings (ASHE) approach applied in each of the last 4 years.
DLUHC continues to work closely with its executive agencies, the Planning Inspectorate and QEIIC, to ensure consistency with previous years following the change in approach to submission of the core statistics which make up the ACSES report. However, as their gender pay gap data is submitted directly to the Cabinet Office as part of the annual collection of civil service statistics, we are no longer able to analyse and explain their data in the way that we have done in previous years.
Tackling the DLUHC Group gender pay gap
DLUHC is committed to closing our gender pay gap, as a key part of our overarching ambition to have skilled, talented, committed, diverse and high performing people, supported by effective leaders.
Each of our organisations has been directed to formulate a plan to address their gender pay gaps. The action plan for the core department is set out in the accompanying Annex to this report. Annex B and Annex C set out detailed action plans for the Planning Inspectorate and the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre.
DLUHC: Core Department gender pay gaps
While the gender pay gaps reported for the core department last year were 3.1% at the mean and 3.0% at the median, our gender pay gaps have increased slightly this year. The gender pay gap for the core department as at 31 March 2021 is 3.2% at the mean and 5.3% at the median. We have employed 653 new staff between 31 March 2020 and 31 March 2021, and so our dataset is substantially changed from that on which previous analysis was based. To further add to that point, 405 of the staff included in last year’s report have left the Department in the time since.
An analysis of the gender pay gaps by grade* for the core department shows:
DLUHC average (mean) gender pay gap by grade
| Grade | Female mean hourly rate of pay | Male mean hourly rate of pay |
|---|---|---|
| SCS2 (5.3% difference in pay) | £52.6 | £55.6 |
| SCS1 (3.5% difference in pay) | £39.7 | £41.1 |
| G6 (1.7% difference in pay) | £34.6 | £35.2 |
| G7 (1.5% difference in pay) | £28.2 | £28.7 |
| SEO (1.1% difference in pay) | £21.0 | £21.3 |
| HEO (1.1% difference in pay) | £17.3 | £17.5 |
| EO (2.6% difference in pay) | £14.7 | £15.1 |
| AO (3.0% difference in pay) | £13.2 | £13.6 |
*Grades in the civil service progress in seniority from AO (Administrative Officer) through to SCS (Senior Civil Servant).
Gender pay gaps in the core department have been impacted by considerable changes in the Executive Team in recent years. Whereas previously we had a female Permanent Secretary and female Chief Financial Officer, the data for March 2020 reflected the appointment of a male Permanent Secretary and the permanent appointment of the male CFO is reflected in GPG data for March 2021. The largest GPG by grade is therefore at DG level.
However, the gender pay gap at Director level has continued to close at the mean to 5.3% (this was 6.7% in 2020 and 8.3% in 2019) reflecting a number of pay anomaly adjustments made to Director pay during the 2020/21 pay award round and transfers in of higher paid female Directors. The GPG at Deputy Director level has also closed slightly from 4.2% at the mean to 3.5% this year.
For Senior Civil Servants’ recruitment, we scrutinise new appointments to ensure that we benchmark appropriately and that any differentials in pay offer are justified in terms of skills and experience. However, there are cases where individuals transfer in from other departments and we are bound to the CS rules for either level transfer or increase on promotion. Despite this requirement we are managing to contain gender pay gaps at SCS level with a downward trend.
There have been only marginal changes in gender pay gaps at EO (Executive Officer) to Grade 7 Level. At Grade 6 the gender pay gap has closed from 3.0% last year to 1.7% this year, impacted by female appointments in Finance, Digital and Building Safety.
At AO (Administrative Officer) level the gender pay gap has continued to close from 4.0% in 2019 to 3.4% in 2020 to now 3.0% in 2021. Gender pay gap calculations do not differentiate on region so gender pay gaps are impacted by the location of our AOs. We have 67 AOs in total (36 female, 31 male), 71% of male AOs are based in London where the AO spot rate is £26,344pa. The gender pay gap at AO level is impacted by female appointments in the regions, where the spot rate is nearly £3,000 per annum lower at March 2021. Female AOs make up 64% of the National based AOs.
An analysis of the quartile distribution for the core department by grade shows a relatively even distribution of men and women in all quartiles which plays a large part in explaining our modest gender pay gaps. Whereas last year 48% of females were in the upper quartile, this year this has increased marginally to 48.2%. It is worth noting however that in 2019, 51.2% of women were in the upper quartile, with the downward shift in representation explained by the analysis above. Whereas last year 53.8% of women were in the lower quartile, this year this has shifted to 55.4%. These changes in the distribution of men and women in the quartiles explain the widening of our gender pay gap in recent years.
Proportion of male and female employees in each quartile: 31 March 2021 for DLUHC Core
| Quartile | Female | Male | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper quartile | 48.2% | 51.8% | 100% |
| Upper middle quartile | 52.2% | 47.8% | 100% |
| Lower middle quartile | 50.2% | 49.8% | 100% |
| Lower quartile | 55.4% | 44.6% | 100% |
Core Department gender pay gaps: bonuses
The data for bonus gender pay gaps for the core department includes a diverse mixture of vouchers; small cash awards; and SCS performance bonuses of between £3,000 and £12,000 depending on whether they are for in-year or end-year performance recognition.
The bonus pay gap data set out in the table on page 6 is for the DLUHC Group, which includes the Planning Inspectorate and the Queen Elizabeth II Centre. As each organisation in the Group submits their data directly to the Cabinet Office via the ACSES system we are no longer able to interrogate and analyse the data for the Arm’s Length Bodies, but we continue to have a positive story with a median bonus pay gap of -20% in favour of women; and a mean bonus gap of 5.3%. For the core department, the median bonus pay gap is -3.3% in favour of women, with the mean gap just about equal at 0.1%. More women than men receive a bonus and this has been a consistent pattern over a number of years at DLUHC.
The non-consolidated performance pot for delegated grades in the DLUHC core department has been fully in-year and delegated to directorate level since 2016. The terms of reference are clearly communicated, and local areas are allowed to nominate vouchers up to £100 and cash awards up to £1,000 for exceptional performance on specific deliverables. This scheme is fully audited by HR on an annual basis, with analysis covering grade and all protected characteristics, not just gender. We report back to each Director General so that they can see the full equality analysis of their performance awards for the previous pay remit year.
As regards SCS performance bonuses, for the 2020/21 performance year a total of 34 SCS received an end of year performance bonus – 50% were female. Of the 48 SCS who received an in-year performance bonus during 2020/21, 60% were female.
Closing the gender pay gap: Core Department Action Plan
Whilst the increase in gender pay gaps for the DLUHC Group is disappointing, the change is small and we will continue to ensure that equality is integral across the department. Our pay policy ensures that men and women in equivalent roles receive the same pay and we will continue to work closely with our arms length bodies to address the reasons for these pay gaps across the Group.
The actions and interventions to close the gender pay gap are set out in the accompanying Annex. These are drawn from the DLUHC refreshed diversity and inclusion strategy launched in June 2021.
Declaration
Our calculations followed the legislative requirements as set out in the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017. The DLUHC Core departmental data has been verified by an analyst and signed off by the Chief Financial Officer. Our report is also in line with the recommendations made from the Inclusive Data Taskforce report published in September 2021.
All staff who were deemed to be full paid relevant employees at 31 March 2021 were included. Our data includes that of our Executive Agencies. The data set reflects a total workforce of 3,390 individuals based on those in scope for gender pay reporting purposes:
- DLUHC Core: 2,493
- The Planning Inspectorate: 855
- Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre: 42
Annex A: Group structure and gender balance
Women make up just under half of employees at all grades in the DLUHC Group. Women are well represented at SCS level, with 4.2% of all female staff working at this level compared with 4.1% of men. This representation for SCS compares favourably with the rest of the Civil Service.
Grade balance for the DLUHC Group as of 31 March 2021
| Grade | Number of men (% of men who work in this grade) | Number of women (% of women who work in this grade) | % female |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA/AO | 100 (5.9%) | 130 (7.7%) | 56.5% |
| EO | 180 (10.6%) | 200 (11.9%) | 52.6% |
| HEO/SEO | 590 (34.7%) | 630 (37.5%) | 51.6% |
| Grade 6/7 | 760 (44.7%) | 650 (38.7%) | 46.1% |
| SCS | 70 (4.1%) | 70 (4.2%) | 50.0% |
| Total | 1,700 (100%) | 1,680 (100%) | 49.7% |
In comparison, this table shows the proportion of men and women at each grade in the Civil Service overall.
Grade balance for the Civil Service overall as of 31 March 2021
| Grade | Number of men (% of men who work in this grade) | Number of women (% of women who work in this grade) | % female |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA/AO | 61,320 (28.4%) | 79,340 (31.4%) | 56.4% |
| EO | 55,430 (25.7%) | 73,460 (29.1%) | 57.0% |
| HEO/SEO | 63,040 (29.2%) | 65,960 (26.1%) | 51.1% |
| Grade 6/7 | 32,230 (14.9%) | 30,190 (12.0%) | 48.4% |
| SCS | 3,880 (1.8%) | 3,410 (1.4%) | 46.8% |
| Total | 215,900 (100%) | 252,360 (100%) | 53.9% |
Grade balance information above is taken from the Cabinet Office Civil Service Statistical Release for 2021. These figures include all paid employees in the DLUHC Group and wider Civil Service as of 31st March 2021 and do not exactly match the number of full-pay relevant staff in scope for Gender Pay Gap reporting purposes.
Please note that some non-CS standard roles are mapped to an equivalent Civil Service grade for the purpose of the Cabinet Office collection.
Annex B: The Planning Inspectorate gender pay gap analysis
Summary
The pay gap reported as at 31 March 2021 was 13.1% at the mean, the current gender pay gap has increased by 1.5% since the last report in 2020. We are disappointed that there has been an increase in our gender pay gap in the year. The Chief Executive and the Executive Board are committed to implement plans to address current pay gaps, and this is a priority for the Inspectorate Executive team. Like other professions and industries, we are working hard to improve our gender balance and reward but will have a long lead time in addressing the gender imbalances of the past.
Organisation structure and gender balance
The Planning Inspectorate has 2 distinct groups of staff: office-based staff and home-based Planning Inspectors, approximately a 50/50 split. Office-based staff follow the traditional Civil Service grading structure while Inspectors are graded into 3 bands according to the complexity of the casework.
Planning Inspectorate grade structure and salary scales
| Grade | Male | Female | Total | Male % | Female % | Range min | Range Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCSPB2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0% | 100% | - | - |
| SCSPB1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 75% | 25% | - | - |
| GM | 1 | 0 | 1 | 100% | 0% | - | £79,676 |
| Professional lead | 3 | 2 | 5 | 60% | 40% | - | £79,676 |
| G6 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 55.6% | 44.4% | £65,773 | £72,387 |
| G7 | 11 | 13 | 24 | 45.8% | 54.2% | £54,124 | £58,948 |
| SEO | 33 | 31 | 64 | 51.6% | 48.4% | £40,114 | £53,097 |
| APO | 7 | 7 | 14 | 50% | 50% | £32,291 | £34,348 |
| HEO | 34 | 40 | 74 | 45.9% | 54.1% | £32,291 | £34,348 |
| EO | 54 | 44 | 98 | 55.1% | 44.9% | £25,666 | £27,122 |
| AO | 63 | 88 | 151 | 41.7% | 58.3% | £20,952 | £22,227 |
| AA | 4 | 6 | 12 | 40% | 60% | - | £19,040 |
| APP AO | 1 | 10 | 11 | 10% | 90% | - | £17,809 |
| APP HEO | 2 | 3 | 5 | 40% | 60% | - | - |
| Professional staff total | 221 | 250 | 471 | 46.9% | 53.1% | - | - |
| Grade | Male | Female | Total | Male % | Female % | Range min | Range Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Band 3 | 49 | 29 | 78 | 62.8% | 37.2% | £70,551 | £76,270 |
| Band 2 | 111 | 50 | 161 | 68.9% | 31.1% | £57,937 | £64,307 |
| Band 1 | 90 | 55 | 145 | 62.1% | 37.9% | £46,960 | £50,350 |
| Inspectors total | 250 | 134 | 384 | 65.1% | 34.9 | - | - |
| Grade | Male | Female | Total | Male % | Female % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PINS total | 471 | 384 | 855 | 55.1% | 44.9% |
The gender pay gap at the Planning Inspectorate is structural - the overall gender pay gap is directly attributable to the large proportion of our senior Inspectors being male and a large portion of our AO and APP AO (apprentice) population in our casework and corporate services teams being female.
During the last Band 1 Inspector external recruitment campaign, the number of female applicants remained lower than male but at 43% was significantly higher than the number of female applicants for Band 2 and Band 3 Inspectors when recruited last year (only 27% of applicants were female).
Band 1 Planning Inspector recruitment by gender
| Band 1 Recruitment | Male | Female | Prefer not to disclose |
|---|---|---|---|
| percentage total applicants | 54.6% / 118 | 42.6% / 92 | 2.8% / 6 |
| percentage passed sift | 56.3% / 18 | 40.6% / 13 | 3.1% / 1 |
| percentage passed interview | 64.7% / 11 | 29.4% / 5 | 5.9% / 1 |
Inspectors are recruited from Architects, Town Planners, Surveyors, Legal Profession and Civil Engineers which are all male dominated industries. The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) has launched a 10-year action plan in 2020 to make the planning profession more diverse and inclusive.
Our analysis illustrates that the equal pay gap within most of our grades is quite narrow, further supporting the structural explanation for the imbalance. In Tables 3a and 3b below, the mean equal pay gap is shown for each CS equivalent grade level, and apart from SCS2 and SCS1, most equal pay gaps are small or advantage women providing evidence of a gender-neutral pay approach for equivalent roles and no overt underlying Equal Pay issues. The SCS population is very small (4 people) including Sarah Richards, CEO and her leadership team.
Planning Inspectorate mean average pay gap
| Grade | Male | Female | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCSPB2 | £74.8 | - | |
| SCSPB1 | £46.4 | £57.9 | -24.9% |
| PL | £42.0 | £42.0 | 0.0% |
| G6 | £35.6 | £34.6 | 2.9% |
| G7 | £29.0 | £28.6 | 1.3% |
| SEO | £21.6 | £21.1 | 2.3% |
| HEO | £17.3 | £17.3 | 0.3% |
| APP | £17.0 | £17.0 | 0.0% |
| EO | £13.8 | £13.8 | -0.1% |
| AO | £11.3 | £11.4 | 0.1% |
| AA | £9.9 | £9.9 | 0.0% |
| APP AO | £9.4 | £9.4 | 0.0% |
| APP HEO | £14.4 | £14.4 | 0.0% |
| BAND 3 | £37.6 | £37.6 | 0.2% |
| BAND 2 | £31.0 | £30.4 | 2.0% |
| BAND 1 | £24.4 | £24.7 | -1.2% |
| Gender Pay Gap | £23.9 | £20.7 | 13.1% |
Planning Inspectorate median average pay gap
| Grade | Male | Female | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCSPB2 | £74.6 | - | |
| SCSPB1 | £44.7 | £57.9 | -29.7% |
| PL | £42.0 | £42.0 | 0.0% |
| G6 | £34.6 | £34.6 | 0.0% |
| G7 | £28.5 | £28.5 | 0.0% |
| SEO | £21.1 | £21.1 | 0.0% |
| HEO | £17.0 | £17.0 | 0.0% |
| EO | £13.5 | £13.5 | 0.0% |
| AO | £11.7 | £11.7 | 0.0% |
| AA | £9.9 | £9.9 | 0.0% |
| APP | AO £9.4 | £9.4 | 0.0% |
| APP HEO | £14.4 | £14.4 | 0.0% |
| BAND 3 | £37.1 | £37.1 | 0.0% |
| BAND 2 | £30.5 | £30.5 | 0.0% |
| BAND 1 | £24.7 | £24.7 | 0.0% |
| Gender Pay Gap | £24.7 | £18.1 | 26.9% |
Gender pay gaps are significantly impacted by the distribution of genders across the organisation, more easily understood by looking at the quartile distribution of pay shown below – which confirms that the upper and upper middle pay quartiles are predominantly filled by men.
Planning Inspectorate staff breakdown, equivalent to CS grades
| Quartile | Male | % Male | Female | % Female |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Quartile | 174 | 65% | 92 | 35% |
| Upper Middle Quartile | 86 | 61% | 56 | 39% |
| Lower Middle Quartile | 107 | 52% | 97 | 48% |
| Lower Quartile | 87 | 44% | 113 | 57% |
Progress and action plan
For the Planning Inspectorate it has been a period of change for the last 2 years focussing on our organisational design, digital upgrades, process review and performance recovery. This programme of activity has resulted in a new business strategy, a people strategy, and mass recruitment campaigns, all of which have had or will influence the gender pay gap. Included in our people strategy is a core strand of diversity and inclusion, and we launched our Diversity and Inclusion Strategy in September 2020 with detailed action plan and deliverables.
As part of our recruitment campaigns we have ensured that the language used in the candidate packs is inclusive so that we attract candidates from a diverse background. We are currently prioritising work on our Flexible Working Policy to offer greater flexibility to our staff at all levels.
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We have conducted Diversity analysis from the recruitment campaigns to develop strategies to target more female candidates. Initial analysis has been carried out on all volume recruitment. We will be engaging external consultants to review all recruitment processes from a D&I perspective. This information will be used to better understand attraction rates and fall out rates at the different stages. Improvements to future campaigns are planned to include reviewing the essential criteria requirements for different roles to ensure fair and robust processes.
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We are reviewing out Inspectors in Training provision to be more flexible to individual circumstances when undertaking the 18-month training programme.
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To bring about genuine long-term equality in pay, The Planning Inspectorate during 2021/2022 we have focussed on internal promotion for Band 2 and 3 Inspectors to help grow our own talent as the external pool is very male dominated. Our external recruitment has focussed on several rounds of Band 1’s and Appeal Planning Officers where we have greater success in attracting more female applicants. We have also changed away from where we advertise from Planning, Architecture, Law and Engineering websites to focus on targeted audiences on LinkedIn, BAME in Property and Proud Employers. We are hoping to see an increase in diversity in the 2021 financial year
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We are setting up staff networks and encouraging champions for each network. So far, we have established Well-being and Inclusion champions network, Disability Network, REACH network, LGBTQ Network and a Women’s network. Additionally, representatives from the women’s network are also part of the South West regional Women’s’ network. It is our plan to support peer support, mentoring and coaching within these groups to encourage women to step into leadership roles.
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In order to build a talent pipeline, we are sponsoring women in AO-HEO grades to take part in Future Leaders Academy program.
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We recruited Chartered Town Planner Apprentices for the first time in conjunction with the University of the West of England and we had a much higher proportion of successful female applicants coming through that way, whilst having a negative effect on our GPG initially it will support our longer term initiative to “grow our own” talent.
The Planning Inspectorate Apprentice Recruitment
| Chartered Town Planner Apprentice - 71627 | Male | Female | Prefer not to disclose |
|---|---|---|---|
| percentage total applicants | 59.8% / 101 | 37.9% / 64 | 2.4% / 4 |
| percentage passed sift | 35.0% / 7 | 60.0% / 12 | 5.0% / 1 |
| percentage passed interview | 33.3% / 2 | 50.0% / 3 | 16.7% / 1 |
We will be recruiting further cohorts of RTPI apprentices and are looking to implement the new entry level apprenticeship launched by RTPI during 2021.
We have appointed to a new post focussing on Apprenticeships and Outreach work during 2021/2022 which has allowed us to expand the number of apprenticeships on offer at the Inspectorate and aim to exceed the general 2.3% in 2022/2023.
Annex C: The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre gender pay gap analysis
Context
The QEII Centre is a small Executive Agency of DLUHC. On 31 March 2021 the Centre employed 42 staff in 37 different roles, many of which are specialist and therefore unique to the work of the Centre (venue operation and technical delivery) rather than the Civil Service. The Centre employs a spot salary system, determining pay on a role-by-role basis rather than through a centralised pay and grading structure. Taken together, the size of the organisation and absence of a clear civil services grading system make comparative analysis of pay and gender difficult and removes any ability to generalise findings.
As at 31 March 2021 the Centre employed 16 women and 26 men, compared with 20 women and 28 men in the previous year. There was very little change in the distribution of men and women across the different grades from last year.
The QEII Centre closed for events on 17th March 2020 and re-opened in October 2020 for events with reduced capacity. From the beginning of 2021 it was also used as a Civil Service Asymptomatic Test Centre, in line with the response to the COVID pandemic. QEII Centre staff continued to work from home, with the majority redeployed either on a part time or full-time basis within MHCLG. No staff were furloughed.
Gender pay gap
The total gender pay gap for the Centre as of 31 March 2021 was 12.2% (Mean) and 14.6% (Median). This has widened slightly from the previous year in which the gap was 10.2% (Mean) and 9.6% (Median).
Gender Pay Gaps at the QEII Centre provide us with a rare opportunity to see the impact of calculating GPGs on a relatively small sample, far fewer than the 250 headcount which is used as the basis of the legislative requirement to report on gender pay gaps. Relatively minor changes in personnel can have a significant impact on GPG, especially in the more senior roles where the hourly rate can skew the data at the mean if there is change from a female to a male incumbent.
Since 2020, salary data for QEII Centre has been submitted directly to the ACSES team in the Cabinet Office, so DLUHC lost the opportunity to scrutinise the changes in the way that we were able to do when GPG was first implemented for the 2016/2017 reporting year.
Bonus pay gap
The Centre operates an annual non-contractual discretionary bonus scheme. The award is calculated based on the performance of the Centre as a whole, determined through the audited accounts. The award is split into corporate performance and individual performance, the latter of which is determined by end-of-year performance assessment, for which a percentage of the individual’s salary is awarded.
The mean average bonus pay gap for 2020-21 was 10.7% (median 10.7%). The bonus is calculated as a proportion of salary; though there are fewer women in the organisation, 2 of the 4 highest-paid individuals who received bonuses (3 G6 and 1 SCS1) are women which skews the mean average pay for women upwards when compared with men.
Comparison with previous year
As recently as 31 March 2019 the Centre’s mean gender pay gap was 8.0% in favour of women (-1.9% at the median). This swung to a mean gap of 10.2% in 2020, with a median gap of 9.6%. This has widened further to 12.2% at the mean and 14.6% at the median for this year’s reporting. As mentioned above, differences in the pay of only 1 or 2 individuals can have a disproportionate impact to the overall picture. However, the way in which bonus payments are reported has also contributed to the swing.
Bonus payments are calculated annually for the bonus level pay gaps to be calculated. However, they are also included in the snapshot calculation for March hourly rate of pay. Up until 2019, MHCLG annualised the calculation for bonus and used the average monthly value for inclusion in the March hourly rate of pay. As a number of senior employees were female during this period this impacted the negative gender pay gap in favour of women.
The ACSES methodology, in force from 2020 onwards uses the actual value of any performance bonus in March, which for QEIIC is much lower than the average – as it would be unusual for the performance bonuses to be calculated and paid in March, which is before the end of the financial year in which the profits have directly impacted bonuses at the QEIIC. It is this change in the methodology which has contributed in part to the swing in data for QEIIC.
Progress and action plan
The QEII Centre operated as an asymptomatic testing site for civil servant employees across Whitehall from early January until mid-July 2021 after which event activity resumed.
Whilst event activity in volume has started to return for Autumn 2021, this situation remains very changeable with some events cancelling, downscaling or moving to a virtual platform during the period October 2021 to March 2022.
The challenge now is to move forward and work collaboratively to rebuild the business, client base and resourcing levels so that the Centre can return to profitability.
All recruitment exercises will continue to be fair and open with a focus on diversity and inclusion, using social media and suitable advertising platforms to reach out to candidates.
It remains to be seen what the impact of COVID will be on gender pay gaps at QEIIC when we next report in 2022.