Resetting the relationship between local and national government. Read our Local Government White Paper

Local government workforce summary data - the latest figures

August 2024

PDF version

This summary of local government workforce data looks primarily at the directly employed workforce. The data comes from multiple sources, therefore dates will vary. Additional data on teachers and the mainly-commissioned social care workforce are also summarised for convenience.

Overview and summary

The local government workforce system is vast, varied and often complex, and covered by a wide variety of data collections. This collection of infographics brings the key sources together to shed light on the sector.

Key facts

  • ONS Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey, Q4 2023:
    • Headcount of council staff, England: 1.18 million
    • Full-time equivalent council staff: 0.91 million
    • A drop in headcount of 383,400 or 24 per cent since Q4 2013
    • Proportion that are female: 74 per cent
  • National Employers, Local Government Sector Pay Offer for England and Wales, 2023/24:
    • Total gross council pay bill: £18.6 billion
  • LGA Earnings Survey, 2019/20:
    • Average full-time salary: £28,900
    • Proportion that are White: 90 per cent
  • Government Equalities Office, Statutory Return, 2022/23:
    • Average median council gender pay gap: 2.6 per cent
  • LGA Workforce Survey, 2022:
    • Councils with recruitment and retention difficulties: 94 per cent
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Adult social care staff FTE: 1.1 million
    • Including 94,000 employed directly by councils
  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Council-funded teachers FTE: 468,000
  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Firefighters FTE: 31,000
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff FTE (excluding police officers): 67,500

The size of the workforce

  • ONS Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey, Q4 2023:
    • Council staff FTE: 912,700
    • Council staff headcount: 1.18 million
  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Council-funded teachers FTE: 468,000
    • Council-funded teachers headcount: 514,000
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Adult social care staff FTE: 1.1 million
    • Adult social care staff headcount: 1.64 million
    • FTE employed directly by councils: 94,000
    • FTE not employed by councils: 974,000
  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Fire and rescue service staff FTE: 39,500
    • Fire and rescue service staff FTE: 44,600
    • Firefighters FTE: 30,700
    • Firefighters headcount: 34,900
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff FTE (excluding police officers): 67,500
    • Police staff headcount (excluding police officers): 73,300

Changes over time

  • ONS Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey, Q4 2023:
    • From 2013 Q4 to 2023 Q4 local government headcount fell by 383,400 or 24 per cent from 1.6 million to 1.2 million
    • FTE fell by 205,200 or 18 per cent from 1.1 million to 0.9 million
  • Permanent employee headcount fell by 23 per cent, from 1,380,000 to 1,057,800
  • Temporary or casual headcount fell by 33 per cent, from 187,600 to 126,300

Skills, recruitment and retention

  • LGA Workforce Survey, 2022:
    • Recruitment and retention difficulties were experienced by 94 per cent of councils
    • Councils with at least one capability skills gap: 90 per cent
    • Councils with at least one capacity skills gap: 83 per cent
    • Actions taken to address workforce difficulties:
      • Increasing apprenticeships: 62 per cent
      • More staff in specialised roles: 39 per cent
      • Reducing contractors and agencies: 39 per cent
    • Among children’s social workers:
      • Councils with recruitment difficulties: 83 per cent
      • Councils with retention difficulties: 72 per cent
    • Among adult social workers:
      • Councils with recruitment difficulties: 71 per cent
      • Councils with retention difficulties: 57 per cent
    • Recruitment and retention actions considered the most effective:
      • Flexible working: 27 per cent
      • Market supplements: 21 per cent
      • Targeted recruitment: 14 per cent
      • Career frameworks: 12 per cent
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Vacant posts in the adult social care sector: 152,000
    • Vacancy rate in the sector: 9.9 per cent
    • Turnover rate: 28.3 per cent
    • Average of five years worked in the sector
    • Proportion with a relevant qualification: 46 per cent
    • Average of 5.9 sick days per person per year

Local government sector age profile

  • LGA Earnings Survey, 2019/20:
    • Most council staff are aged between 40 and 64:
      • Under 25: 4.6 per cent
      • Aged 25-39: 24.8 per cent
      • Aged 40-64: 66.9 per cent
      • Over 65: 3.5 per cent
  • LGA Chief executives and chief officers survey, 2018:
    • Senior officers are mostly over 50:
      • Under 40: 9 per cent
      • Aged 40 to 49: 31 per cent
      • Aged 50 to 59: 51 per cent
      • Aged 60 and over: 9 per cent
  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Teachers are younger, with most under 40:
      • Under 25: 5 per cent
      • Aged 25 to 29: 15 per cent
      • Aged 30 to 39: 33 per cent
      • Aged 40 to 49: 28 per cent
      • Aged 50 to 59: 17 per cent
      • Aged 60 and over: 3 per cent
  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Firefighters tend to be between 30 and 40:
      • Aged 16 to 24: 4 per cent
      • Aged 25 to 35: 27 per cent
      • Aged 36 to 45: 34 per cent
      • Aged 46 to 55: 29 per cent
      • Aged 56 and over: 5 per cent
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff (excluding police officers) aged 45 and over: 51 per cent
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • A significant number of adult social care staff are older:
      • Under 25: 8 per cent
      • Aged 25 to 54: 63 per cent
      • Aged 55 and over: 29 per cent

Representation by ethnicity

  • LGA Earnings Survey, 2019/20:
    • Local government staff are roughly comparable to the overall population:
      • White: 89.9 per cent
      • Asian: 3.8 per cent
      • Black: 4.3 per cent
      • Mixed: 1.5 per cent
      • Other: 0.5 per cent
  • LGA Chief executives and chief officers survey, 2018:
    • But senior staff are overwhelmingly White:
      • Chief executives: 97 per cent White, 3 per cent black and minority ethnic (BAME)
      • First tier managers: 94 per cent White, 6 per cent BAME
      • Second tier managers: 94 per cent White, 6 per cent BAME
      • Third tier managers: 88 per cent White, 12 per cent BAME
      • Other managers: 92 per cent White, 8 per cent BAME
  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Teachers with known ethnic background: 464,800
    • Teachers are somewhat more often White and Asian, and less often Black:
      • White teachers: 416,800 (90 per cent)
      • Asian teachers: 24,500 (5 per cent)
      • Black teachers: 11,700 (2 per cent)
      • Mixed ethnicity teachers: 7,800 (2 per cent)
      • Other ethnicity teachers: 4,000 (1 per cent)
  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Fire staff remain predominantly White:
      • White: 29,000 (83 per cent)
      • Asian: 200 (1 per cent)
      • Black: 500 (1 per cent)
      • Chinese or other: 1,000 (3 per cent)
      • Mixed: 800 (2 per cent)
      • Not stated: 3,300 (10 per cent)
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff (excluding officers) that are White: 95 per cent
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Adult social care staff are more diverse than the general population:
      • White: 74 per cent
      • Asian: 9 per cent
      • Black: 14 per cent
      • Mixed: 2 per cent
      • Other: 1 per cent

Disability in the sector

  • Office for National Statistics, 2021 Census:
    • Disabled people in England: 9.8 million
    • Proportion of the population: 17.7 per cent
  • LGA Earnings Survey, 2019/20:
    • A minority of local government employees are disabled:
      • Not disabled: 94.9 per cent (61.8 per cent of responses including ‘don’t know’)
      • Disabled: 5.1 per cent (3.3 per cent of responses including ‘don’t know’)
      • Don’t know: 35.0 per cent
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff (excluding police officers) that are disabled: 12 per cent
  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Disabled firefighters: 4.6 per cent
  • Department for Work and Pensions, The employment of disabled people, 2023:
    • Disabled people in employment, UK: 5.1 million
    • As a proportion of all in employment: 16.4 per cent
  • Not all disabilities are visible, or reflect mobility or physical impairments

Gender representation in the sector

  • ONS Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey, Q4 2023:
  • Overall, male headcount fell more slowly than female, but remains in the minority
    • Males as proportion of headcount:
      • 2013 Q4: 24 per cent
      • 2023 Q4: 26 per cent
    • Females as proportion of headcount:
      • 2013 Q4: 76 per cent
      • 2023 Q4: 74 per cent
  • LGA Chief executives and chief officers survey, 2018:
    • Despite this, men outnumber women in the higher tiers of management
      • Chief executives: 68 per cent male, 32 per cent female
      • First tier managers: 60 per cent male, 40 per cent female
      • Second tier managers: 55 per cent male, 45 per cent female
      • Third tier managers: 48 per cent male, 52 per cent female
      • Other managers: 39 per cent male, 61 per cent female
  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Female teachers: 388,900 (76 per cent)
    • Male teachers: 124,800 (24 per cent)
  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Male firefighters: 31,100 (91 per cent)
    • Female firefighters: 3,000 (9 per cent)
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff (excluding police officers) that are female: 63 per cent
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Male adult social care workers: 19 per cent
    • Female adult social care workers: 81 per cent

The gender pay gap (mean)

  • Government Equalities Office, Statutory Return, 2022/23:
  • Average mean local authority pay gap fell by 38 per cent from 2017/18 to 2022/23
  • Authority with highest pay gap favouring women:
    • 2017/18: 14.1 per cent
    • 2022/23: 18.1 per cent
  • Average authority:
    • 2017/18: 6.8 per cent
    • 2022/23: 4.2 per cent
  • Authority with highest pay gap favouring men:
    • 2017/18: 31.7 per cent
    • 2022/23: 24.3 per cent
  • In 2022/23:
    • Men were paid more than women in 77 per cent of councils
    • Men and women paid the same in 1 per cent of councils
    • Women were paid more than men in 22 per cent of councils
  • Mean averages are useful for an overall indication of the gender pay gap, but can be distorted by very large or small pay rates or bonuses, which the median pay gap avoids
  • To view data at a local authority level, visit our data benchmarking service LG Inform

The gender pay gap (median)

  • Government Equalities Office, Statutory Return, 2022/23:
  • Average mean local authority pay gap fell by 49 per cent from 2017/18 to 2022/23
  • Authority with highest pay gap favouring women:
    • 2017/18: 50.3 per cent
    • 2022/23: 36.9 per cent
  • Average authority:
    • 2017/18: 5.0 per cent
    • 2022/23: 2.6 per cent
  • Authority with highest pay gap favouring men:
    • 2017/18: 34.0 per cent
    • 2022/23: 29.9 per cent
  • In 2022/23:
    • Men were paid more than women in 57 per cent of councils
    • Men and women paid the same in 13 per cent of councils
    • Women were paid more than men in 31 per cent of councils
  • Median averages give a good indication of a “typical” situation, but might not pick up pay gap issues among the lowest or highest paid employees as effectively as the mean
  • To view data at a local authority level, visit our data benchmarking service LG Inform

Average pay and salaries

  • LGA Earnings Survey, 2019/20:
    • Median pay rates rose £3,400 or 13 per cent full time, and £2,900 or 17 per cent part-time, between 2014/15 and 2019/20
    • Full-time median pay:
      • 2014/15: £25,500
      • 2019/20: £28,900
    • Part-time median pay:
      • 2014/15: £17,300
      • 2019/20: £20,200
  • LGA Chief executives and chief officers survey, 2018:
    • Median salaries of senior officers:
      • Chief executives: £132,000
      • First tier managers: £95,000
      • Second tier managers: £81,000
      • Third tier managers: £62,000
      • Other managers: £54,000
  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Teachers’ median pay:
      • All teachers: £42,000
      • Head teachers: £71,000
      • Other leadership teachers: £57,000
      • Classroom teachers: £40,000
  • LGA Fire workforce survey, 2023:
    • Average basic annual salary for wholetime firefighters: £39,694
    • Gross annual pay: £44,050
    • Average annual retainer: £4,822
    • Gross annual pay (retained staff): £9,823
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Average annual basic police salary: £30,000
    • Full-time: £30,600
    • Part-time: £27,500
  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Average FTE annual pay for independent sector adult social care staff: £21,300

Overall pay bills

  • National Employers, local government sector pay offer, England and Wales, 2023/24:
    • Total gross council pay bill: £18.6 billion
    • Including additional elements (e.g. overtime, shift premium, bonuses and incentives): £0.5 billion
    • Basic pay bill excluding additional elements: £18.1 billion
    • This has decreased by 24 per cent or £5.9 billion from £24.5 billion in 2014/15
  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Total gross pay bill for police staff (excluding police officers): £2.3 billion
    • Including additional pay of £258 million
    • Basic pay bill, excluding additional pay: £2 billion
  • LGA estimate of fire pay bill, based on latest National Joint Council survey plus subsequent pay awards, 2023:
    • Total fire pay bill: £1.1 billion
    • Full-time: £1 billion
    • Part-time: £101 million

Local Government Pension Scheme

  • Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, local government pension scheme statistics, 2022/23:
    • Among the largest pension schemes in the UK, the LGPS is administered by 86 local pension funds across England and Wales
    • Market value: £359.1 billion
    • Total income: £17.3 billion
    • Total expenditure: £15.2 billion
    • Net income: £2.1 billion
    • Employers’ contribution: £8.4 billion
    • Employees’ contribution: £2.8 billion
    • Retirements in the financial year: 93,580
    • Total members: 6,569,000
    • Current employees: 2,103,000 (32.0 per cent)
    • Former employees: 2,432,000 (36.9 per cent)
    • Flexible retirees: 21,000 (0.3 per cent)
    • Pensioners: 2,022,000 (30.8 per cent)
    • Note: these figures do not separate local government employees from other kinds of employees who belong to the scheme.

Council-funded schools

Schools and teachers have increased whilst many local government posts have fallen, but vacancies and temporary posts are an increasing issue.

  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • State-funded schools: 21,907 (up 51 from 2012/13)
    • Teachers at state-funded schools: 513,900 (up 23,800 from 2012/13)
    • Total schools workforce FTE: 973,900
    • Teachers FTE: 468,400 (48 per cent)
    • Teaching assistants FTE: 281,100 (29 per cent)
    • Pupils per teacher: 18.0 (from 17.2 in 2012/13)
    • Hours of teaching per week in state-funded secondary schools: 3.8 million
    • Temporary filled posts for teachers: 3,308 (up 48 per cent from 2012/13)
    • Teacher vacancies: 2,334 (up 333 per cent from 2012/13)

Teacher workforce profile

  • Department for Education, school workforce statistics, 2022/23:
    • Breakdown by teaching setting:
      • Nursery and primary: 249,000 (48 per cent)
      • Secondary: 231,000 (45 per cent)
      • Special or Pupil Referral Unit: 29,000 (6 per cent)
      • Centrally employed: 5,000 (1 per cent)
    • Breakdown by working pattern:
      • Full-time: 391,000 (76 per cent)
      • Part-time: 123,000 (24 per cent)
    • Females: 76 per cent
    • White: 90 per cent
    • Under 40: 53 per cent
    • Median teacher pay: £41,600
    • A large majority of teachers are frontline educators at primary and secondary schools:
      • Classroom teachers: 440,109 (86 per cent)
      • Assistant head teachers: 32,439 (6 per cent)
      • Deputy head teachers: 18,816 (4 per cent)
      • Head teachers: 22,543 (4 per cent)

Fire and rescue workers

Firefighters face a hard job to protect others, but are less diverse than the rest of the sector.

  • Home Office, Fire and rescue workforce and pensions statistics, 2023:
    • Total fire and rescue staff: 39,500
    • Wholetime firefighters: 22,600
    • On-call firefighters: 8,100
    • Fire control staff: 1,100
    • Fire support staff: 7,700
    • Male: 91 per cent
    • White (excluding not stated): 92 per cent
    • Aged 25-55: 91 per cent
    • Not disabled: 95 per cent
    • Total headcount: 44,600
    • Firefighters headcount: 34,900
    • Personnel injured: 2,424
    • Attacks by firefighters on duty: 1,030
  • LGA Fire workforce survey, 2023:
    • Average basic annual salary for wholetime firefighters: £39,700

Police officers and staff

Police staff provide a vital role in supporting the nation’s police officers.

  • LGA Police staff survey, 2023:
    • Police staff headcount (excluding officers): 73,300
    • Full-time: 55,700
    • Part-time: 17,600
    • Police staff FTE (excluding officers): 67,500
    • Average annual basic police salary: £30,000
    • Female: 63 per cent
    • White: 95 per cent
    • Aged 45 and over: 51 per cent
    • Disabled: 12 per cent

Note: these figures exclude police officers, as officers have different pay arrangements outside the purview of local government. To access reliable statistics on the police workforce including officers, see the Home Office’s police workforce England and Wales statistics

The adult social care sector

By far the biggest employer funded by local government, the social care sector needs even more staff in future to keep pace with skyrocketing demands.

  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Headcount figures:
      • Local authority: 104,900
      • Independent: 1,115,000
      • Direct payments employees: 130,000
    • FTE figures:
      • Local authority: 93,900
      • Independent: 945,000
      • Direct payments employees: 29,000
    • Direct payments employers: 69,000
    • Registered nurses: 29,000 (27,000 FTE)
    • Care organisations: 18,000
    • Care establishments: 39,000
    • Total posts needed by 2035: 2.23 million
    • Contribution of adult social care to the economy: £55.7 billion
    • Vacant posts: 152,000
    • Vacancy rate: 9.9 per cent
    • Turnover rate: 28.3 per cent

Profile of adult social care workers

Social care staff are largely female, diverse in age and ethnicity, experienced and qualified, and use a range of working patterns.

  • Skills for Care, the state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England, 2022/23:
    • Gender balance:
      • Female: 81 per cent
      • Male: 19 per cent
    • With a relevant social care qualification: 46 per cent
    • Age breakdown:
      • Under 25: 8 per cent
      • Aged 25-54: 63 per cent
      • Aged 55 and above: 29 per cent
    • Working pattern breakdown:
      • Full-time: 48 per cent
      • Part-time: 52 per cent
    • Average of 5.9 sick days per person per year
    • Average of 5.0 years in the sector
    • Ethnic breakdown:
      • White: 74 per cent
      • Black: 14 per cent
      • Asian: 9 per cent
      • Mixed ethnicity: 2 per cent
      • Other ethnicity: 1 per cent