It’s critical that we understand what drives our gender pay gap.
The gender pay gap shows the difference in average earnings between women and men. It is not the same as equal pay for comparable jobs, which is a legal obligation.
We welcome applications from women and non-binary people. For our latest vacancies, please visit our careers page.
You can read our Gender Pay Gap Report 2025 here.
What changes have there been in our gender pay gap in the last year?
In 2024 we had seen positive improvements from the previous year having reduced the gap in our hourly pay. In 2025 we continued to see improvement but at a more significant level than before.
The median gender pay gap has improved by 8.2% from 2024 to 2025 and by 11.3% since we started our reporting in 2023.
Our 2023 gender pay gap analysis highlighted that overall, we had more men in senior and therefore higher paid positions across the business. That drove the 18.1% median gender pay gap.
Following the gender pay gap analysis in 2023, we put in place a series of initiatives to support improving the gap. In 2024, the median gender pay gap reduced to 15% and now in 2025 it has further reduced to 7%. This compares positively to both the tech industry at 17.5%* and in the UK economy overall at 10% (same source).
29%* of the workforce in tech are women or non-binary, compared to 41% at Hippo. We need to work harder to attract and retain more senior women into the engineering and data portfolios, but we also recognise that the industry as a whole faces a diversity challenge that cannot be overcome overnight.
What actions have we taken so far?
We continue to work towards improving our gender pay gap, whilst also continuing to grow the business and increase our headcount. Our recruitment process is key and as part of being inclusive we ensure:
- Software checks that our job adverts have no unconscious gender bias
- Our career site content remains inclusive, unambiguous and uses open and clear language
- Adaptive processes are in place during recruitment to help remove barriers for applicants through a dedicated candidate support page
- Roles are advertised on our website and job boards including diversejobsmatter.co.uk and gov.uk/find-a-job
- Feedback is obtained and DI&B data is captured anonymously during the recruitment process
Here we map out key activities undertaken over the last few years.
This year
Recognising that attracting female talent into the sector is important, in August 2025 in partnership with Shine Workspace (Leeds) and Code Camp, Hippo hosted a free Minecraft Engineers camp for girls aged 7 to 12. It was designed to make programming accessible, engaging and fun. Over the two days 13 girls learned how to design and build their own Minecraft rollercoasters using logic and command-based programming to bring their ideas to life. Shine provided the perfect venue with shared lunches and snacks, adding to the friendly, collaborative atmosphere.
Early experiences like this can help girls see themselves in spaces where tech has not always been as open or representative as it should be. Building skills and confidence now helps create a more inclusive future for the industry.
We employed 4 apprentices and placed 2 T-level students this year following our ambition of achieving a 50/50 gender split. We also introduced unconscious bias training to all employees as part of our wider ongoing diversity and inclusion training.
As part of our wider communities of belonging, there is a continued focus on our employee-led women in tech community of belonging which has 84 members.
In April 2025 we donated office space to WILD Digital, who are a community-led initiative dedicated to empowering women and minority groups to be inspired and advance their careers in the digital. We have also supported a number of events for Ladies that UX e.g. in Manchester.
In October 2025 we supported Leeds City Colleges Ada Lovelace Day – Girls in Tech Showcase which brought together girls from schools across Leeds to explore opportunities in the tech sector through workshops and master classes delivered by local employers.
Previous years
In 2024, we completed an inclusivity audit of our end-to-end recruitment process to ensure that it’s as robust as it can be from a diversity and inclusion perspective. The audit summarised that we have a “very strong foundation rooted in rigour and professionalism” and many recommended changes have already been implemented.
We also introduced “talking talent” which is focused on regularly assessing the progress of staff to that all Hippos are considered equally for:
- opportunities
- support
- promotion
- progression of pay
What near-term initiatives are we working on?
Working patterns and hours
It can be a challenge to offer alternative working arrangements across all roles. To do so relies on our clients supporting a more flexible approach in their procurement policies and contractual arrangements. This includes remote working, part-time roles on projects and a focus on outcomes rather than a 9-5 working hours principle.
We will continue to work with our clients to highlight the positive impact they can have on the gender pay gap by introducing these types of changes.
8% of our employees worked on a part time basis in 2025 compared to 7.5% in 2024 and employees and 7% in 2023.
Pay and Promotion Decisions
We have continued to improve the transparency of our performance, pay and promotion process (which takes place every 6 months). In 2025, 52% of our promotions were female.
As part of each cycle, the People team will complete an analysis of the decisions made and look for any unconscious bias.
Recruitment
We are working on the following recruitment initiatives in 2026:
- Introduce DI&B criteria into our PSL (Preferred Supplier List) reviews and include this evaluation in their performance
- Encourage head-hunting focus on female candidates to increase number of females in the business, particularly in senior roles
- Have female candidates meet female Hippos during the recruitment process (where possible)
- Ensure offer salaries are evaluated fairly and ensure we do not further perpetuate pay gaps
- Continuously monitor the effectiveness of our processes in order to drive improvements. In 2025, 44% of our new Hippos were female.
How do we support closing the gender pay gap in the longer term?
The tech industry has a wider gender pay gap than average in the UK at 17.5% in 2025* https://www.uktech.news/news/gender-pay-gap-in-tech-narrows-to-fresh-low-20250408.
This is a broader challenge that needs to be tackled across various aspects of society from education through to employment.
We will support the industry pipeline in terms of gender talent over this coming year by:
- proactively looking for opportunities for volunteering days to be focused on organisations that support females or non-binary people access roles in tech, for example using partners like Code Camp and Code First Girls to deliver specific initiatives to support females and non-binary people into tech.
- Continuing to work with our educational partners to specifically work with and encourage girls and non-binary people to consider careers in tech. We will do this by engaging with specific events centred around women in tech, including Ada Lovelace day.
- ensuring equal representation from Hippo when running career talks and events.
- having a minimum target of a 50/50 split in male and female or non-binary people where candidates and suitability allow in all internships and t-level placements growing our external mentoring support to women and non-binary people interested in a career in STEM and we will focus on growing this number over the next year whilst growing the proportion of mentors that are female or non binary.
- Supporting our charitable partner, Nurture Me’s event around International Women’s Day, supporting female talent into tech.
We recognise that these initiatives do not directly bring women into the upper quartiles immediately. However by bringing in more women at all levels, this will impact on the positive progression of women into more senior roles not just in Hippo but in the tech sector as a whole.
Gender pay gap reports
To read our previous Gender Pay Gap Reports please follow the links below:
