Council pay: Westminster tops ‘town hall rich list’ with 73 staff on over £100k
Westminster City Council has topped a national ‘town hall rich list’ with 73 staff rewarded with over £100,000 last year.
The central London borough council also had the most employees nationwide – at eight – receiving more than £200,000 in total remuneration, in 2023-24, according to the Taxpayers’ Alliance (TPA).
While 13 more Westminster staff than last year hit the £100,000 mark for their overall package – which could include their salary, expenses or benefits, bonus payments, lost office compensation, and pension contributions.
Across London’s 33 boroughs, the TPA found, some 821 were remunerated by more than £100,000, with Greenwich Council in second place on 62 staff members paid above that.
The top five was completed by Hackney, with 52 employees; Newham, on 46; and Southwark on 41.
In contrast, Croydon Council reported having zero staff members on more than £100,000, while Richmond-upon-Thames Council had just one, and Haringey Council employed six.
The biggest individual remuneration package – both within London and nationally – went to Sutton Council’s strategic director of development, growth and regeneration, Carolyn Dwyer, at £321,097.
National data
Nationally, the TPA found a record number of 3,906 council officials received more than £100,000 last year, since the data was first gathered in 2007, while a record-breaking 1,092 received over £150,000 in 2023-24.
And the number of council staff receiving over £200,000 increased from 175 to 262, compared to the previous year.
But the TPA suggested the rise was “partially driven by a significant increase in the number of councils who have published accounts”, given that the number who failed to publish their data on time dropped from 59 to 15 compared to the 2024 rich list.
However, John O’Connell, TPA chief executive, stressed: “It’s a record breaking year in many respects for taxpayers as the country hurtles towards a record tax burden, all while the public sector continues to feather its nest.
“The number of council staff with six-figure remuneration packages has surged at the same time that services are being slashed and council tax is being hiked above inflation.”
He added: “Local residents can look up their own authority in our list and judge the quality of services and their council tax bill against the pay packets of their council bosses.”
Council response
A Westminster City Council spokesperson told City PM the organisation was “a high-profile local authority with unique responsibilities at the heart of the capital”.
They added: “As such, we need to recruit the best talent for managing within a complex organisation whose work involves partnership with central government, the multi-billion economy of the West End and supporting around a quarter of a million residents.
“The salaries paid reflect the skills needed to lead the authority.”
A spokesperson for the London Borough of Sutton said: “This figure relates to the year in which the post of strategic director of development, growth and regeneration was deleted by the Council and the post holder was made redundant.”
They added: “The figure quoted includes the employee’s annual salary [£150,382] and the annual contractual pension contributions [£33,497], along with the redundancy payment which were due contractually when the post ceased to exist [£58,490].
“Due to the age of the employee, contractual pension costs associated with the redundancy of £78,728 were also triggered. It should be noted the pension costs quoted are payment from the council to the pension fund and not payments to an individual.
“The council takes a very careful approach to remuneration and senior level salaries in the Council are amongst the lowest of London councils.”