FCDO gender pay gap report 2025
Published 16 December 2025
© Crown copyright 2025
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fcdo-gender-pay-gap-report-2025/fcdo-gender-pay-gap-report-2025
Executive summary
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has prepared this report as part of the legal requirement for public authorities to publish their gender pay gap on an annual basis.
The FCDO continues to see a gender pay gap (GPG) although we have made positive progress in the last year in most measures.
Since 2024 there has been the following changes in the FCDO’s GPG:
- the mean GPG has decreased from 2.5% to 2.0%
- the median GPG has increased from 2.7% to 3.2%
- the mean bonus GPG has decreased from 9.1% to 4.3%
- the median bonus GPG has been maintained at 0.0%
Although there is still work to be done, the FCDO continues to compare favourably across Whitehall with the lowest mean GPG and third lowest median GPG – Civil Service average is 6.9% mean and 6.4% median. The FCDO is also well below average Civil Service bonus GPG of 22.5% mean and 14.3% median.
The main drivers in the reduction of the GPG this year have been increased representation of women in the senior grades and continued shortening of the pay ranges to remove disparities within each pay band. This completes pay alignment following the merger and means a more equitable approach to consolidated pay uplifts will be possible in future years. There continues to be a larger GPG for part-time workers, due to the increased rate of women who have this working pattern.
There has been a 0.5 percentage point increase in the median GPG which is driven by FCDO Services having a larger median GPG (10.8% compared to 5.7% in FCDO only). FCDO Services is a STEM organisation made up of 68.5% of men and higher pay scales; FCDO Services report separately on steps to close their GPG.
The reduction in the mean bonus gap is mostly attributable to a higher proportion of staff receiving bonus pay in the FCDO in 2024 to 2025 (while still one of the lowest in Whitehall), and the difference between men and women receiving a bonus further reducing to 2.4 percentage points. The median bonus GPG has been maintained at zero.
This report outlines actions we are taking in the FCDO to continue to reduce the GPG, including an effort to increase women in the Senior Civil Service (SCS), investing in our talent, support those experiencing the menopause, and ensuring equalities considerations are taken into account in the FCDO2030 change programme.
1. 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. Government departments are covered by the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017, which underpin the Public Sector Equality Duty and require relevant organisations to publish their gender pay gap annually by 30 March. This includes the 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 men and women in each pay quartile.
This report fulfils the FCDO’s reporting requirements, analyses the figures in more detail, sets out our progress to date and what we are doing to close the gender pay gap in our organisation. The reporting period is 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.
Organisational context
This is our fifth gender pay gap report as the FCDO.
The FCDO is governed by the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2022 to 2025, which focusses on attracting talent from all backgrounds, investing in our people capabilities and driving a performance culture that delivers improved outcomes for our citizens. The FCDO aims to create a workplace where employees from various backgrounds feel valued, respected and empowered.
The FCDO uses an outcome-focused and data-driven approach to diversity and inclusion. This directs focus on key priorities and targets interventions on building an inclusive work culture. We are bound by Public Sector Equality Duty to eliminate unlawful discrimination; advance equality of opportunity; and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. Greater transparency and accountability are key to enable organisations to demonstrate their commitment to equality, attracting talent and boosting staff engagement.
The FCDO aspires to represent the country we serve, as such we aim for our workforce to match the UK Economically Active Population (50% women). A key tool to help us address the gender pay gap will be to increase levels of women in the senior civil service. As of 31 March 2025, women comprise 49.0% of the organisation (including agencies), however this reduces to 46.8% in the SCS (Senior Civil Servants). This figure is increasing each year, and we can see a direct correlation in greater levels of senior women and the reduction of our GPG.
This report includes data for all FCDO staff, including employees from our Trading Fund (FCDO Services) and Executive Agency (Wilton Park). In line with statutory requirements, this report includes staff defined as UK-based employees who are on FCDO payroll. The report does not include data for Country Based Staff (employees who are locally employed at Posts overseas).
Figure 1: FCDO gender split by organisation
| Organisation | Men | Women | Change in women since 2023 to 2024 (percentage points) |
|---|---|---|---|
| FCDO (excluding agencies) | 48.7% | 51.3% | −0.3 |
| FCDO Services | 68.5% | 31.5% | +0.2 |
| Wilton Park | 26.1% | 73.9% | −0.3 |
| All staff | 51.0% | 49.0% | −0.3 |
Most of the FCDO’s employees are below SCS level. There is a higher proportion of women in junior grades, and this decreases as seniority rises. Ongoing fiscal pressures have meant that workforce controls have remained throughout this reporting cycle, meaning fewer promotion opportunities at all grades.
Despite this there was still an increase in representation of women in the SCS over the last year, marking 5 consecutive years of increases. Conversely, we have seen small reductions of women in most of the delegated grades, with only HEO and SEO seeing a modest rise. The table below shows the distribution of men and women across the grades on 31 March 2025.
Figure 2: FCDO gender split by grade (including agencies)
| Grade | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| AA and AO | 50.4% | 49.6% |
| EO | 47.9% | 52.1% |
| HEO and SEO | 50.7% | 49.3% |
| G7 and G6 | 51.8% | 48.2% |
| SCS | 53.2% | 46.8% |
Figure 3: Graph to show distribution of grades by gender (including agencies)
| Grade | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| AA and AO | 5.3% | 5.4% |
| EO | 10.2% | 11.5% |
| HEO and SEO | 38.1% | 38.6% |
| G7 and G6 | 40.0% | 38.7% |
| SCS | 6.4% | 5.8% |
| All | 100% | 100% |
2. Gender pay gap report
The gender pay gap (GPG) refers to the difference in average earnings between men and women in the workforce. For example, a GPG of 5% would indicate that the average hourly earnings of women are 5% lower than their male counterparts. This would mean for each £1 earned by a man, the average women’s earning would amount to 95p. If a workforce has a particularly high gender pay gap, this can indicate that there may be a number of issues to address.
The GPG is different to equal pay, which refers to men and women receiving equal pay for performing the same or similar work. It is unlawful to pay people unequally because they are a man or a woman.
The data shown in this report has been calculated according to the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017.
Figure 4: 2025 FCDO gender pay gap headline figures
| Reporting organisation | Mean pay gap | Median pay gap | Mean bonus gap | Median bonus gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FCDO (excluding agencies) | 2.7% | 5.7% | 2.4% | 0.0% |
| FCDO Services | 6.4% | 10.8% | 6.6% | 3.3% |
| All staff | 2.0% | 3.2% | 4.3% | 0.0% |
Figure 5: Gender distribution through each pay quartile (including agencies)
| Pay quartile | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest | 50.1% | 49.9% |
| Lower-middle | 50.3% | 49.7% |
| Higher-middle | 52.3% | 47.7% |
| Highest | 52.7% | 47.3% |
Figure 6: Proportion of staff receiving a bonus in 2024 to 2025
| Reporting organisation | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| FCDO (excluding agencies) | 42.6% | 43.8% |
| FCDO Services | 90.3% | 94.2% |
| All staff | 50.5% | 47.8% |
3. Analysis of pay gap
The rules governing SCS pay are set by the Cabinet Office, via annual SCS Pay Practitioners Guidance. In recent years the FCDO has sought exemptions from aspects of this to introduce consistent performance-related progression for the SCS. For grades below the SCS, decisions around pay are delegated to departments, within the parameters and cost controls set out by the Cabinet Office’s annual of the Civil Service Pay Remit Guidance.
Since the formation of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in September 2020 work has been underway to align pay ranges, allowances and terms and conditions and all HR policies from our legacy departments (Department for International Development and Foreign and Commonwealth Office), many of which would have an impact on the gender pay gap.
The FCDO mean pay gap has reduced from 2.5% in 2023 to 2024 to 2.0% in 2024 to 2025, representing a decrease of 0.5 percentage points. The median pay gap has increased to 3.2% in 2024 to 2025, representing an increase of 0.5 percentage points from 2023 to 2024.
Figure 7: Gender pay gap trends since the formation of the FCDO (including agencies)
| Gender pay gap | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean | 5.0% | 4.7% | 4.0% | 2.5% | 2.0% |
| Median | 9.8% | 9.1% | 8.7% | 2.7% | 3.2% |
Figure 8: Breakdown of gender pay gap by reporting organisation
| Reporting organisation | Mean 20/21 | Mean 21/22 | Mean 22/23 | Mean 23/24 | Mean 24/25 | Median 20/21 | Median 21/22 | Median 22/23 | Median 23/24 | Median 24/25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FCDO (ex. agencies) | 6.7% | 6.4% | 4.9% | 3.4% | 2.7% | 15.2% | 12.4% | 11.6% | 5.9% | 5.7% |
| FCDO Services | 8.6% | 6.0% | 7.4% | 6.6% | 6.4% | 20.1% | 15.4% | 18.1% | 16.6% | 10.8% |
The FCDO gender pay gap continues to be mostly driven by a gender imbalance across the grades. As shown in the introduction, representation of women decreases as the grades increase in seniority. This is also represented in the distribution of women in the pay quartiles.
There has been a 0.5 percentage point increase in the median GPG which is driven by FCDO Services having a larger median GPG (10.8% compared to 5.7% in FCDO only). As a STEM organisation FCDO Services is made up of 68.5% men. To address thegender pay gap our efforts are focused on increasing representation of women in the senior grades.
The 2024 pay award built on the aligned pay structure that was introduced in 2022 and developed in 2023. Primarily, it focused on continuing to shorten pay ranges to remove disparities within each pay band. This will enable the FCDO to achieve pay range lengths that mean no further range shortening will be necessary for alignment purposes, and therefore a more equitable approach to consolidated pay uplifts will be possible in future years.
Critically, this approach reduces equal pay liability, giving all staff in the delegated grades a realistic prospect of reaching the top of the pay range in a reasonable timeframe. This will continue to be strengthened by the introduction of performance-related pay progression, where those who objectively deliver more for the FCDO, will be progressed through pay ranges more quickly.
Figure 9: New FCDO pay scale for the delegated grades effective 1 August 2024 (increasing seniority)
| Grade | Minimum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|
| AO | £28,000 | £28,000 |
| EO | £30,000 | £31,500 |
| HEO | £37,200 | £41,200 |
| SEO | £44,500 | £49,500 |
| Grade 7 | £55,500 | £64,000 |
| Grade 6 | £67,000 | £77,000 |
FCDO Services also has a higher pay range. This combined with the underrepresentation of women has led to a 0.5 percentage point rise in median GPG this year.
Figure 10: FCDO Services pay scale for the delegated grades effective 1 August 2024 (increasing seniority)
| FCDO Services grade | Civil Service equivalent | Minimum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|---|
| A2 | AO | £27,360 | £27,360 |
| B3 | EO | £30,379 | £33,855 |
| TPB3 | EO | £31,657 | £35,204 |
| C4 | HEO | £35,824 | £40,205 |
| TPB4 | HEO | £38,351 | £44,860 |
| C5 | SEO | £43,200 | £49,299 |
| TPB5 | SEO | £45,608 | £52,006 |
| D6 | Grade 7 | £55,970 | £64,771 |
| TPB6 | Grade 7 | £58,123 | £67,633 |
| D7 | Grade 6 | £70,575 | £78,813 |
The gender pay gap is higher for FCDO staff who are working part-time, and the gap has increased over the past year (up by 0.2 percentage points mean and 1.5 percentage points median). Rates of women working part-time has increased by 0.8 percentage points this year to 78.4%.
It is unlikely that this gender split will change significantly over time and increased flexibility in working patterns can help more women take up senior roles. Women who work part-time are spread reasonably evenly across all the grades, yet most men who work part-time can be found in the middle grades with a higher median salary. We will continue to monitor the impact of part-time working on the gender pay gap.
Figure 11: Gender pay gap by working pattern (including agencies)
| Working pattern | Mean | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Part-time | 8.3% | 11.0% |
| Full-time | 2.1% | 2.7% |
| All staff | 2.0% | 2.7% |
4. Analysis of the bonus gap
Performance bonuses for delegated staff are funded from the department’s non-consolidated performance related pay pot, which is a fixed percentage of pay bill and has been built up over a number of years. For SCS the bonus pay budget is set by the SCS pay guidance. Executive Committee decides how this should be distributed amongst qualifying staff, with decisions on SCS3 taken by the Remuneration Committee to avoid conflict of interest.
In 2023’s gender pay gap report we outlined that as an exception, due to the cost-of-living crisis, bonus values were grade neutral. In 2024, the FCDO reverted to a bonus pay approach which awards differing amounts per grade to be more proportionate to individual salaries and reflect the difference in performance. For example, a senior Grade 6 would get more performance related pay than a junior EO, even if they both received the same rating. We expected that this reversion could lead to a rise in the bonus gap, however that has not happened.
Over the last reporting year, the FCDO mean bonus gap has reduced from 9.1% to 4.3%. This represents a decrease of 4.8 percentage points from 2024 and continues a downward trend since the formation of the FCDO. The median pay gap has been maintained at 0.0%.
Figure 12: Gender bonus pay gap trends since the formation of the FCDO (including agencies)
| Gender bonus pay gap | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean | 23.6% | 20.3% | 16.0% | 9.1% | 4.3% |
| Median | 25.4% | 22.2% | 22.9% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
Figure 13: Breakdown of gender bonus gap by reporting organisation
| Reporting organisation | Mean 20/21 | Mean 21/22 | Mean 22/23 | Mean 23/24 | Mean 24/25 | Median 20/21 | Median 21/22 | Median 22/23 | Median 23/24 | Median 24/25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FCDO (ex. agencies) | 13.9% | 12.9% | 12.5% | −0.1% | 2.4% | 6.7% | 6.7% | 10.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| FCDO Services | 13.7% | 5.9% | 4.6% | 6.2% | 6.6% | 12.0% | 1.9% | 3.3% | 5.6% | 3.3% |
More staff in the FCDO (including agencies) received bonus pay in this year compared to the year before. In 2024 to 2025, 47.8% of women received bonus pay, 2.5 percentage points more than the previous year. A higher proportion of men received bonus pay at 50.5%, 2.4 percentage points more than 2023 to 2024.
The difference in men and woman receiving bonus pay has continued to reduce, this year by 0.1 percentage points, which will also have helped reduce the Gender Bonus Gap. The proportion of women receiving bonus pay is the second lowest across Whitehall with the Civil Service average being 72.6%. The proportion of men receiving bonus pay is the sixth lowest across Whitehall, with the Civil Service average being 67.3%.
Figure 14: Percentage of men and women receiving bonus pay (including agencies)
| Year | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 50.5% | 47.8% |
| 2024 | 48.1% | 45.3% |
| 2023 | 45.5% | 40.5% |
| 2022 | 58.4% | 54.6% |
While the gender pay gaphas shown disparities for part time staff, this is not shown in bonus figures. The gender bonus pay gap for part-time staff for 2024 to 2025 is −5.6% median or −5.1% mean, reflecting that women working part-time on average received higher bonus pay compared to part-time men by both measures. Since last year, there has been a 6.3 percentage point rise of part-time women receiving bonus pay compared to a 1.4 percentage point rise for part-time men. We will continue to monitor this in the future.
Figure 15: Percentage of men and women receiving bonus pay by working pattern (including agencies)
| Working pattern | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Part-time | 61.4% | 50.9% |
| Full-time | 54.4% | 45.6% |
| All staff | 52.5% | 47.5% |
5. Targeted action to reduce and close the gender pay gap
The FCDO is committed to closing the gender pay gap. Since our last gender pay gap report there has been a range of actions to support women in the FCDO and to progress in the organisation. These actions will contribute to closing the gender pay gap and will continue throughout the coming years. FCDO Services will publish their own separate action plan to help them address their own gender pay gap.
Supporting staff through the menopause
The FCDO is committed to providing an inclusive and supportive working environment where all staff are treated fairly, with dignity and respect, and health and wellbeing is fully supported. Since 2023 the FCDO has embedded Menopause Policy and Guidance raising awareness and reducing the stigma of the effects of the menopause at work. This allows us to support staff, retain valuable talent and support attendance.
We ensure access to information about the menopause, signposting to appropriate healthcare and ensuring that adjustments and additional support are available to those where needed, including for staff who are posted overseas. The FCDO also has guidance on navigating miscarriage and baby loss in the workplace and a new period toolkit launched in February 2024.
FCDO2030
In response to a rapidly shifting global backdrop, the FCDO will undergo significant transformation in the coming years, making us better equipped to deliver enduring impact for the British people. Building on our strong foundations, we are sharpening our strategic focus, investing in professional excellence, and embracing new technology and ways of working.
Our focus is clear: enhanced strategic thinking and stricter prioritisation to deliver on the things that matter most to the British People. This will mean a smaller workforce, with the right capabilities, supported through digital and technological transformation. The FCDO will be reviewing its strategic direction on Diversity and Inclusion, in alignment with the former Foreign Secretary’s challenge to the department to be more open and diverse.
Increasing representation of women in the SCS
Since the formation of the FCDO in 2020 we have been focused on reaching gender parity in the senior grades. In this reporting cycle women’s representation at Directors General level reached 56.3% (FCDO only). We continue to see lower rates of women applying for senior positions, but they are usually more successful at securing a role.
One way we have tried to address this is by encouraging greater use of flexible working models such as more part time roles, job shares and flexible hours. A business area ran a pilot to advertise all roles with a starting principle that they could be done flexibly; recruitment was done solely on merit, and there was a commitment to find a solution to any flexible working requests. This has shown some early success and will be kept under review.
Alongside this, the SCS Pipeline Talent Approach (SPTA) has identified those showing potential to be ready for the SCS within the next 5 years and is providing targeted talent development. This can include supporting staff to apply for the Civil Service Future Leaders Scheme and the FCDO Individual Leadership Development Programme as well as encouraging directorate-led development offers.
Performance and delivery
The FCDO has updated our performance framework, making clear that performance will be assessed against more objective measures, such as the delivery of outcomes against key priorities. The aim is to motivate staff, recognise and reward high performance, and identify early where more support is needed and to remove subjective assessments, which could give rise to discriminatory outcomes.
Alongside this, the FCDO has introduced a pay progression structure for the delegated grades, mirroring the approach for the SCS over the last 2 years. This is a key milestone in becoming a more modern employer, focused on recruiting and retaining the best talent, with an emphasis on high-performance and delivery for the British public. This should help to reduce our gender pay gap by providing opportunity for staff to progress through their pay band in a reasonable timeframe.
We will monitor the impact of these policies to ensure fairness and compliance, working with the trade unions to look at further steps we can take to promote equality of treatment.
Behaviours and culture
The FCDO continues to focus on building a positive working environment through our Dignity and Respect at Work policy. Over the last year we have introduced mandatory action plans in areas with high bullying, harassment and discrimination (BHD) scores in the annual People Survey.
The aim is for leaders to understand what is driving the scores, take steps to address them and to ensure accountability. This work goes hand in hand with our clear commitments on safeguarding against sexual exploitation and abuse and harassment (SEAH), both in our development and diplomacy work, but also to our staff.
Evidence shows that SEAH and BHD impact women disproportionately. Therefore, the more all staff feel comfortable and welcome in the FCDO, the more we can help women to progress in the organisation which will close the gender pay gap.
Trade unions and staff networks
The FCDO’s Trade Union Side and Staff Networks are valuable assets. They provide a strong community of support to their members and amplify the experiences of their members from a diverse range of groups to ensure senior leaders and HR hear their voice. Strong employee voice helps ensure FCDO’s people policies and systems are informed by insights on how different groups of staff are affected and where solutions can be found for challenges.
We are working to implement the Civil Service Staff Network model policy in the FCDO, with a key goal of ensuring all Staff Network activity is proportionate and aligns with FCDO diversity and inclusion objectives, including closing the gender pay gap.
Declaration
I confirm that data reported by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is accurate and has been calculated according to the requirements and methodology set out in the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017.
Mark Power, Chief People Officer