We've partnered with the Confederation of School Trusts (CST) and Brightmine to publish the 2026 Gender Pay Gap in School Trusts report. Drawing on mandatory reporting data from more than 10,000 organisations and pay data submitted by CST members, the report examines how school trusts compare with the wider economy on gender pay. 

In this article, Daniella Davies, HR Consultant at Browne Jacobson, explores the key findings and what they mean for trust boards.

Gender pay gap reporting has been mandatory since 2017. The regime requires employers with more than 250 employees to publish six statutory figures each year: mean and median gender pay gaps in hourly pay; mean and median bonus gender pay gaps; the proportion of men and women receiving bonuses; and the proportion of men and women in each pay quartile. 

As the regime evolves, with mandatory equality action plans on the horizon, the question for school trusts is not simply what the data says, but what it means and what to do about it.

The national context

The median gender pay gap across all reporting organisations stood at 8.3% in 2025, the eighth consecutive year showing a gap in favour of men, with the mean falling just 0.4 percentage points from 11.2% the year before. 

Of the organisations that reported in both years, 50.8% reduced their median gender pay gap over the twelve months to 5 April 2025, a figure that underlines both the progress being made and the scale of the challenge that remains.

On the mean measure, for every £1 a man earns, a woman earns 91.7p. The public sector recorded a median of 14.0%, with 91.8% of public sector organisations reporting a gap in favour of men. Many have defined pay bands, yet the gap remains high. Where women sit in the job structure is playing a significant part.

How school trusts compare

Analysis of school trust data reported to Brightmine suggests the median gender pay gap for school trusts stands at 6.4%, significantly lower than public education at 16.4% and the public sector as a whole at 14.0%. 

The sector records the second lowest median and mean gender pay gaps of any sector in the Brightmine dataset, while carrying the highest female representation at senior level: women make up 62.2% of the senior leadership cohort, the highest proportion of any sector in the comparison data. That is a genuinely positive picture, and one the sector should recognise.

A look at the four-year trajectory, however, tells a more nuanced story. The median gap for senior leaders fell from 13.2% in 2022 to 3.3% in 2024, then rose to 6.4% in 2025, with the mean more than tripling from 2.2% to 6.8% in a single year indicating that progress on the gender pay gap is not linear. The most recent movement is a prompt for continued strategic attention rather than complacency. 

Understanding the structure behind the numbers

The most important analytical step for any board is to understand why a gap exists. Gender pay gaps and equal pay aren't the same thing, and the existence of a gap doesn't indicate unfair pay practices.

Gaps are commonly caused not by paying men and women differently for equal work, but by the unequal distribution of staff across roles. In school trusts, women hold the majority of senior positions overall, but men remain disproportionately represented in the highest paid executive roles within that tier. High female representation and a meaningful pay gap can, and do, coexist. 

The size and scale dimension

The data reveals striking size-related patterns. Trusts with 2,000 or fewer pupils record a median gap of just 1.8%, while those with more than 10,000 pupils record a median of 15.9% and a mean of 18.2%.

Analysed by number of schools, the picture shifts. Trusts with just one to five schools record the largest gaps of any group, with a mean of 16.5% and a median of 13.0%, despite having the highest female representation at 66.5%. In smaller trusts, one or two highly paid senior roles can significantly distort the figures. That context is essential when boards interpret their own data.

The regulatory direction of travel

Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 framework, employers with 250 or more employees are moving toward mandatory equality action plans alongside gender pay gap reports, voluntary from April 2026 and mandatory from April 2027. 

Legislation requiring ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting for large employers has also been confirmed. The direction of travel is clear: from publishing a gap to explaining it, acting on it and demonstrating measurable progress year on year.

A call to action for trust boards

Tackling the gender pay gap isn't about compliance alone. It's about building organisations that attract, develop and retain the best people regardless of gender. The practical steps are clear:

• Review your pay quartile data and ask where women are concentrated within your senior leadership structure.
• Assess whether your most senior roles are genuinely accessible to those working flexibly or returning from maternity leave.
• Build succession planning that actively develops women into executive pathways.
• Bring that analysis to your board as a strategic workforce question, not a compliance exercise.

School trusts have both the responsibility and the opportunity to lead. The data, the frameworks and the sector support are all in place. The trusts that will make the most progress are those that move now – from understanding their gap to acting on it. Progress takes time, but with the right focus it is achievable.

The full Gender Pay Gap in School Trusts report, produced in partnership with CST and Brightmine, is available to download now. It includes sector-by-sector comparisons, breakdowns by trust size and number of schools, four-year trend data and practical guidance for boards. 

We also encourage all school trusts to contribute their senior leadership pay data to the joint CST and Brightmine benchmarking initiative. Participation is free, and every submission strengthens the sector-wide evidence base that helps trusts benchmark their pay practices, identify gaps and demonstrate progress. 

The more trusts that take part, the richer and more representative the data becomes for everyone. 

How to submit your data