ACEVO’s latest survey of charity leaders has found persistent inequalities in pay equity and career developments as well as challenges in diversity and wellbeing.
The latest annual Pay and Equalities Survey, published today, gathered responses from 703 charity CEOs whose median salaries were £59,850, a decline on the previous year, reflecting a larger proportion of small charities in the sample.
Over three-quarters (76%) of respondents reported receiving a salary increase in their current role, up from 68% in 2024, while the gender pay gap between male and female CEOs narrowed year-on-year.
Meanwhile, the proportion of CEO respondents who were people of colour declined to 6%, down from 7% the year before, with no responses from any Black CEOs in 2025.
Women leading smaller charities
The overall pay gap between male and female CEOs was 10.6% in ACEVO’s 2025 survey, dropping from 14.4% the previous year, but up from 8.3% the year before.
In the latest survey, male CEOs reported earning a median salary of £64,067 while female CEOs earned £57,250.
The disparity was driven by women continuing to be overrepresented in the leadership of smaller charities, with a larger proportion of male CEOs leading larger organisations.
Some 63% of women in the sample were leading small organisations with an income under £1m, compared with 51% of male respondents.
Meanwhile, 19% of male respondents were leading large charities, compared with 11% of female respondents.
Lack of diversity progress
The proportion of leaders who identified themselves as having a disability, learning difference or health condition dropped to 17% from 20% in 2024. Disability also remains the area where CEOs are least likely to say they are satisfied with the diversity of their boards (31%).
Almost four out of five CEO respondents (79%) attended state-run or state-funded schools during their secondary education, with 12% attending independent or fee-paying schools, compared to around 7% of the population more broadly.
Some 30% of respondents said they have experienced barriers or discrimination during their time in the voluntary sector, the same as the year before.
Also similar to the previous year, a third of female CEOs said they had experienced such barriers, compared with a fifth of their male peers.
Meanwhile, one-third of CEOs responded that they were currently satisfied with their board’s ethnic diversity.
CEO wellbeing
Less than half of respondents (49%) said they were satisfied with board support for their wellbeing while 53% reported satisfaction with their work-life balance.
Across both measures, lower satisfaction was reported among CEOs of small charities but rose with larger organisations.
Flexible working was reported as the most common benefit, by 71% of charity leaders, but access to mental health support (38%) and wellness programmes (25%) was lower than the year before.
Three-quarters of CEOs’ time is spent on solving day-to-day, immediate problems, according to the survey, with the rest spent on more strategic thinking and planning. Some 31% of respondents were satisfied with this balance.
Despite these findings, overall job satisfaction remained high (79%) and most CEOs said that they felt empowered to make important decisions without being second-guessed (82%).
Meanwhile, 69% of CEOs felt that it is likely they will still be working in the charity sector in five years’ time.
‘A lack of real shift in the areas that matter most’
Jane Ide, chief executive of ACEVO, said: “Each year I make no secret of the fact that I find the lack of real shift in the areas that matter most deeply frustrating, and sadly this year is no different.
“At ACEVO, we see it as our responsibility to act on these insights. This means working with boards, policymakers and funders to close the gaps in pay, equity, diversity, development and wellbeing.
“It means challenging the assumption that leaders of small charities should have fewer opportunities than their peers at larger organisations. It means holding ourselves collectively accountable for building the conditions in which leadership can truly thrive.
“Our sector is built on the conviction that we achieve more together than alone. The findings in this year’s report make clear that if we want charities to remain strong, effective and transformative, we must do better at supporting those who lead them.
“We cannot afford to ignore the evidence and it is long overdue that we see real shifts in the right direction. If we fail to act, we risk weakening the very fabric of civil society. But if we succeed, we will unleash the full potential of our sector’s leaders.”
