Gender Pay at England's largest MATs on IWD25
15 MATs bucking the trend. Plus: pastoral lineup.
The national pay gap across all sectors of the UK economy sees women paid £0.87 for every £1 paid to men.
On International Women’s Day 2025, we wondered: How does the MAT sector compare? Are there any MATs that buck the trend? And what can we learn from them to accelerate progress to a more equitable system?
This week’s highlight from the We Are In Beta community shares what the excellent Frances Ling found by looking into gender pay at England’s largest MATs.
There’s also an update on the topics speakers at Pastoral Champions Week 2025 will be exploring (and a deadline to meet if you don’t want excluded).
We - schools - Are In Beta - always learning (when we accelerate progress for all women and girls).
This week
🔬15 MATs bucking the gender pay gap trend
🗓️ Register for Pastoral Champions Week 2025 before 21/03 to get full access
🔬International Women’s Day ‘25: Gender Pay across England's largest MATs - do any buck the trend?
This International Women's Day, we've returned to gender pay and analysed data for the 103 MATs in England that educate the largest numbers of pupils.
By comparing MATs with each other, we're looking for those who are accelerating progress towards gender rights, equality and empowerment. Identifying practice we can all learn from in building work cultures where women can thrive.
What did we notice about the gender pay gaps for these MATs?
The full article shares 16 observations links to 115+ documents looked at.
Here are three things Fran noticed in her research:
All but one of the 103 MATs looked at has a gender pay gap that sees lower rates hourly pay for women than men.
As you go up the pay scale there is a decrease in % of women in the jobs in each quartile. With an average of 86.4% women in the Lower Pay Quartile, 80.5% women in the Lower Middle, 73.1% in the Upper Middle and just 68.4% in the Top Pay quartile.
Staff in 22 of the 103 MATs received bonus pay in the 12 months prior to the reporting date. The majority of these payments were made to <5% of staff, but in a small number of MATs >50% of staff received bonus pay.
To read about the other 13 observations and learn how MATs might be closing the gap…
15 MATs that are bucking the gender pay gap trend
The national pay gap across all sectors of the UK economy sees women paid £0.87 for every £1 paid to men.
There are 15 trusts from the 103 we looked at that have a smaller gender pay gap than this in one or both of median and mean hourly pay. All paying more than £0.87 to women for each £1 to men.
While this is still a gap for all but one trust, it offers tantalising *hints* of things we could learn from the actions, policies and practices of these MATs.
The top 5 MATs of the 15 bucking the national trend are....
1. The Arthur Terry Learning Partnership - educating 10555 pupils in 24 schools.
Reported a median pay for women of £1.02 for every £1 paid to men; and a mean pay gap of £0.93 to women for each £1 to men. (Date of report: 11/03/2024)
2. City Of London Academies Trust - educating 8009 pupils in 10 schools.
Reported a median pay for women of £0.89 for every £1 paid to men; and a mean pay gap of £0.89 to women for each £1 to men. (Date of report: 23/12/2024)
3. LiFE Multi-Academy Trust - educating 8061 pupils in 10 schools.
Reported a median pay for women of £0.89 for every £1 paid to men; and a mean pay gap of £0.9 to women for each £1 to men. (Date of report: 27/03/2024)
4. The Gorse Academies Trust - educating 11218 pupils in 15 schools.
Reported a median pay for women of £0.88 for every £1 paid to men; and a mean pay gap of £0.84 to women for each £1 to men. (Date of report: 05/03/2024)
5. The Mead Educational Trust - educating 9227 pupils in 13 schools.
Reported a median pay for women of £0.88 for every £1 paid to men; and a mean pay gap of £0.9 to women for each £1 to men. (Date of report: 07/01/2025)
Want to know who the other 10 MATs are?
Access gender pay gap data and analysis of workforce development resources
For you to know more about what these trusts are doing, we've dug into their gender pay reports, equalities statements, alongside their pay, reward and benefits practices.
This is a paying members only resource.
Not a member?
🗓️ Register for Pastoral Champions Week 2025 by 21/03 to access all resources
There are just over 2 weeks to go until Pastoral Champions Week 25.
Sessions and resources will only be made available to those who register before Friday 21st March.
Here’s a sneak peak of some of the sessions your fellow members have contributed:
Culture and Ethos: Setting up and implementing a Habits for success curriculum at Sewell Park Academy
Behaviour: The Implementation of a new school behaviour policy at Fulham Cross Girls' School
Parent calls: E.T (Easy to) Phone Home at Logic Studio School
SEND: Transitions & Systems - Pitfalls and planning at Royal High School Bath
Internal Alternative provision. Our learning as a Trust by Ted Wragg Trust
Belonging: How did we consciously introduce belonging? by Harris Academy Chafford Hundred
Safeguarding: Developing a Welfare Culture at Prince Albert Community Trust
Relationships: Be Nice: Everyone Welcome, Everyone Respected at John Taylor Free School
Which of these areas are you working on? Want to hear how others are developing them? And dozens of others?
If you are a speaker (or want to speak) at the conference, key dates are follows:
By 7th March - share your session outline in this form
By 12th March – create and upload your session, supported by your SLT
w/c 24th March – conference goes live! Jump in to meet fellow speakers, discuss sessions and learn from a wealth of ideas and resources on offer.
On a personal note
On this (Sunday after) International Women’s Day, I want to thank the following women who help me to help our members get the best outcomes for their students:
my wife: for overcoming brain surgery in January and navigating five weeks in hospital this year. Without your support, patience and understanding, We Are In Beta simply would not exist.
my mum and mother in law: for moving in with us while not one, but two, of our family were in hospital this year (despite the fact our boiler was broken for the final week). Your boundless energy, resilience and generosity are an inspiration.
my daughters: my 12m/o for fighting through two weeks in hospital with pneumonia in Feb and my 4y/o for making it through a combined five weeks without your Muma and baby sister at home, without acting out. You ground me and bring me the peace of mind running a startup can take away.
my team: Fran, Fi, Kasia, Jane, Vanesa and Julia, your values, rigour and determination teach me something new every day. I am hugely grateful for your support and kindness through what has been the most personally challenging period my career (if not life) to date.
our female members, presenters, guests, contributors, researchers - your engagement and wisdom makes the community a special place to be.
Thank you.
Thanks for reading.
@NiallAlcock and the We Are In Beta team
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