Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Laura Clements

Wales' public sector rich list: The best paid officials in the nation

We've scoured the accounts published by public bodies across Wales to put together a list of the highest paid public sector officials in the nation.

There are a massive 432,500 people working in the public sector here, according to Stats Wales, and just 14 of them earn more than £200k a year.

For our list, we looked at public bodies including health boards, councils, universities, the Welsh Government, BBC Wales and quangos to compile a list of the best-paid bureaucrats in the nation. If we've missed anyone out, please let us know in the comments.

READ MORE: The latest breaking news for Wales.

Salaries are just one part of the total bill for the executives at the top of the tree. With some officials still benefiting from a final salary pension scheme, a promotion can mean a huge jump in the value of their pension pot - the cost of which will be met by the taxpayer.

The person in Wales whose total remuneration this year was the largest in Wales was not the highest salaried executive but a longstanding official at Swansea Bay health board whose promotion to interim finance director meant that he will now be entitled a major increase in his pension and lump sum at retirement.

The board's annual accounts show that it has had to account for a £427,000 increase in the value of his pension pot over the year. It's now worth more than £1m. This won't be paid out all at once but, in the words of the accounts, "reflects the increase in 'cash-equivalent transfer value' effectively funded by the employer", which it has had to book on its accounts this year.

Read more: What the UK Government's public sector pay rise and increase in Living Wage means if you live in Wales

Final salary pension schemes, now closed in most of the private sector, are only one area in which the public sector is more generous. The Office for National Statistics calculated in 2019 that on average public sector earnings are 7% higher than private sector wages for equivalent jobs.

But life is very different for a trainee nurse or a school cleaner than the people at the top of the other end of the income scale. The ranks of the highest paid officials are dominated by health board leaders and university vice chancellors.

For our report, we've included the list of the highest salaries drawn from all parts of the public sector at the top. And further down in the article we've compiled more detailed reports for different sectors which also include other parts of the total remuneration including pension contributions.

These are the people with the highest basic salaries in public sector jobs in Wales for the 2020-21 financial year (or 2020 academic year).

Swansea University Vice Chancellor Professor Paul Boyle (Martin Ellard)
  1. Professor Paul Boyle, vice chancellor Swansea University: £293,000
  2. Colin Riordan, vice chancellor, Cardiff University: £271,000
  3. Professor Cara Aitchison, vice chancellor Cardiff Met University: £242,879
  4. Medwin Hughes, vice chancellor, University of Wales Trinity St David: £232,000
  5. Elizabeth Treasure, vice chancellor Aberystwyth University: £232,000
  6. Dr Stuart Walker, executive medical director, Cardiff and Vale health board: £225-230,000
  7. Julie Lydon, vice chancellor University of South Wales: £229,000
  8. Giles Thorley, chief executive of Development Bank of Wales: £216,264
  9. Rhodri Talfan Davies, director of BBC Wales and BBC Director of Nations, £210,000-£214,999
  10. Len Richards, chief executive, Cardiff and Vale health board: £210-215,000
    Dr Andrew Goodall was the chief executive of the Welsh NHS (Ben Evans/Huw Evans Agency)
  11. Dr Andrew Goodall, director general of Health and Social Services for NHS Wales: £205-210,000
  12. Judith Paget, chief executive, Aneurin Bevan health board: £205-210,000
  13. Dr Frank Atherton, chief medical officer, NHS Wales: £200-205,000
  14. Professor Maria Hinfelaar, vice chancellor, Wrexham Glyndŵr University: £203,600
  15. Professor Iwan Davies, vice chancellor Bangor University: £202,000
  16. Steve Moore, chief executive Hywel Dda health board: £195-200,000
  17. Nick Lyons, medical director and deputy/acting chief executive Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board: £190-195,000
  18. Paul Orders, chief executive Cardiff council: £185,385
  19. Steve Webster, director of finance Cwm Taf health board: £180-185,000

And these are the top earners broken down by sector, once basic salary, benefits and pension contributions are all taken into account.

Welsh councils

Here are the salaries of every chief executive of Wales' 22 unitary authorities (including basic salary, benefits and pension contributions) for 2020-21 :

Local Authority

Basic salary/Pension contribution

Total remuneration

Denbighshire*

£145,485/£32,470

£280,189

Cardiff

£185,385/£38,375

£223,760

Pembrokeshire**

£193,575

£193,576

Rhondda Cynon Taf

£154,000/£33,000

£188,000

Carmarthenshire

£151,967/£27,810

£179,777

Powys

£142,000/£37,000

£179,000

Flintshire

£144,585/£34,122

£178,707

Caerphilly

£144,031/£28,908

£172,939

Vale of Glamorgan

£138,641/£29,392 (managing director)

£168,033

Bridgend

£139,768/£27,674

£167,442

Wrexham

£127,588/£29,958

£157,546

Swansea

£152,671

£152,671

Merthyr Tydfil

£121,155/£30,652 (interim chief exec)

£151,807

Conwy

£124,791/£27,709

£149,500

Monmouthshire

£119,955/£27,710

£147,665

Anglesey

£120,526/£25,793

£146,336

Torfaen

£115,081/£27,898

£142,979

Gwynedd

£118,063/£24,085

£142,148

Ceredigion

£117,866/£18,623

£136,489

Blaenau Gwent

£109,414/£25,712 (managing director)

£135,126

Neath Port Talbot

£109,802/£22,290 (appointed Jan 2021)

£132,092

Newport

£86,068/£18,246 (appointed July 2020)

£104,839

*Denbighshire chief executive left the council on April 6, 2021. An exit payment of £102,234 was paid which included payment for loss of office and contractual entitlements such as pay in lieu of notice.

**Pembrokeshire's chief executive/returning officer left on November 30, 2020 and was paid a £95,000 settlement. There is an ongoing review by Audit Wales into the lawfulness of the settlement agreement payment. Read more on that here.

Welsh Government/Quangos

1. Giles Thorley

Job: Chief executive of Development Bank of Wales

Basic salary: £216,264

Before joining the Development Bank of Wales, Mr Thorley was a partner at private equity firm TDR Capital LLP focusing on deal origination activities. Prior to this he spent nine years with Punch Taverns plc – the first year as chair, and then as chief executive, where he enjoyed a basic salary of £410,000.

2. Dr Andrew Goodall

Job: Director general of Health and Social Services for NHS Wales

Basic salary: £205-210,000

Dr Andrew Goodall was appointed to the role of director general of health and social services/chief executive NHS Wales in June 2014. His role includes both supporting ministerial priorities for health and social care within the civil service structures, and the leadership and oversight of NHS Wales.

He has since been appointed the new permanent secretary of the Welsh Government but his salary listed here relates to his previous job.

3. Dr Frank Atherton

Job: Chief medical officer, NHS Wales

Basic salary: £200-205,000

Dr Atherton took up post of chief medical officer, medical director NHS Wales in August 2016. He graduated in medicine from Leeds University and worked in hospital and primary care posts around the North of England for a number of years and in 2012 moved to Canada to take up post as the deputy chief medical officer of health in the Department of Health and Wellness, Nova Scotia.

4. Dr Tracey Cooper

Job: Chief executive of Public Health Wales

Basic salary: £160-165,000 Pension contribution: £41,000

Total remuneration: £200-205,000

Dr Cooper qualified as a doctor at Southampton University in 1990 and her role with PHW is to oversee work to protect and improve the health and wellbeing of the people of Wales and to reduce health inequalities.

5. Nick Bennett

Nick Bennett, Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (Daily Post Wales)

Job: Public Services Ombudsman for Wales

Basic salary: £150-155,000 Pension contribution: £59,000

Total remuneration: £210-215,000

Mr Bennett left the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales in after seven years in the job. His role comes with legal powers to look into complaints about public services and independent care providers in Wales. He is currently acting as Public Services Ombudsman while his successor is found.

6. Manon Antoniazzi

Job: Chief executive and clerk of the Senedd

Basic salary: £145-150,000 Pension contribution: £57,000

Total remuneration: £200-205,000

Appointed in April 2017, she is responsible for ensuring that the Senedd, and the sixty Members of the Senedd, are provided with the property, staff and services so that the Senedd inspires confidence and has a reputation for accessible and efficient democracy.

7. Claire Pillman

Claire Pillman (Natural Resources Wales)

Job: Chief executive of Natural Resources Wales

Basic salary: £140-145,000 Pension contribution: £49,000

Total remuneration: £185-190,000

Appointed in 2018, Ms Pillman heads up Wales' largest Welsh Government sponsored body which has a budget of £180m and employs 1,900 staff.

8. David Blaney

Job: Chief executive of Higher Education Funding Council Wales

Basic salary: £130-135,000 Pension contribution: £68,000

Total remuneration: £200-205,000

Mr Blaney was appointed to the top job at the HEFCW, which regulates higher education providers in Wales, in 2012.

9. Philip Baker

Job: Chief executive Qualifications Wales

Basic salary: £130-135,000 Pension contribution: £48,000

Total remuneration: £180-185,000

Qualifications Wales regulates qualifications, other than degrees, in Wales and regulates qualifications that are developed and delivered by the awarding bodies that it recognises

10. Huw George

Job: Deputy chief executive and executive director of operations and finance for Public Health Wales

Basic salary: £130-135,000 Pension contribution: £39,000

Total remuneration: £170-175,000

Mr George joined PHW in 2010 as the director of finance having trained as a chartered accountant, working in London, Cardiff and Brazil, before joining the NHS in 1994.

11. Meilyr Rowlands

Chief Inspector for Schools, Meilyr Rowlands (Richard Williams/WalesOnline)

Job: Chief inspector of education and training in Wales, Estyn

Basic salary: £115-120,000 Pension contribution: £52,000

Total remuneration: £165-170,000

Mr Rowlands was replaced by Owen Evans in 2022. While in charge of Estyn, he was responsible for the inspection of education and training in Wales, as well as the management, staffing and organisation of Estyn itself.

12. Sue Evans

Job: Chief executive of Social Care Wales

Basic salary: £118,500

Mrs Evans worked for the NHS before taking up her role at Social Care Wales. Her job is to oversee the development of the workforce, to improve care and support and to increase public confidence in care.

13. David Anderson

Job: Director general, National Museum Wales

Basic salary: £105-110,000 Pension contribution: £21,000

Total remuneration: £125-130,000

Mr Anderson joined Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales as Director General in 2010 and has overseen the transformation of St Fagans Museum to become the National Museum of History for Wales.

14. Hayden Llewellyn

Job: Chief executive of Education Workforce Council

Basic salary: £95-100,000 Pension contribution: £51,000

Total remuneration: £150-155,000

Mr Llewellyn joined the Council at its inception in 2000, working initially as deputy chief executive, before assuming the role of chief executive in 2014. The Council is the independent regulator for the education workforce in Wales, covering teachers and learning support staff in school and further education settings, qualified youth/youth support workers and work-based learning practitioners.

15. Aled Roberts

Job: Welsh Language Commissioner

Basic salary: £95-100,000 Pension contribution: £54,000

Total remuneration: £145-150,000

Mr Robert oversees the promotion of the Welsh language by raising awareness of the official status of the Welsh language in Wales and imposing standards on organisations.

16. Dyfed Alsop

Job: Chief executive of Welsh Revenue Authority

Basic salary: £95-100,000 Pension contribution: £48,000

Total remuneration: £145-150,000

Mr Alsop is the first chief executive of the Welsh Revenue Authority and he started his career in the private sector working for HSBC in Wales and internationally in Spain, Argentina and Brazil.

17. Sarah Powell

Job: Chief executive at Sport Wales

Basic salary: £95-100,000 Pension contribution: £35,000

Total remuneration: £125-130,000

Ms Powell was appointed in 2013 having previously been a corporate director at Sport Wales. She left the organisation in October 2021 to take up the role of chief executive of British Gymnastics.

Health

1. Dr Stuart Walker

Job: Executive medical director at Cardiff and Vale health board

Basic salary: £225-230,000 Pension contribution: £85,000

Total remuneration: £310-315,000

2. Leonard Richards

Len Richards (WalesOnline/Rob Browne)

Job: Chief executive of Cardiff and Vale health board

Basic salary: £210-215,000 Pension contribution: £54,000

Total remuneration: £265-270,000

3. Judith Paget

Job: Chief executive of Aneurin Bevan health board

Basic salary: £205-210,000 Pension contribution: £37,000

Total remuneration: £245-250,000

4. Steve Moore

Job: Chief executive of Hywel Dda health board

Basic salary: £195-200,000 Pension contribution: £10,000

Total remuneration: £205-210,000

5. Phil Kloer

Job: Executive medical director/ deputy chief executive of Hywel Dda health board

Basic salary: £175-180,000 Pension contribution: £51,000

Total remuneration: £225-230,000

6. Richard Evans

Job: Swansea Bay health board medical director

Basic salary: £175-180,000 Pension contribution: £125,000

Total remuneration: £300-305,000

7. Carol Shillabeer

Job: Chief executive of Powys health board

Basic salary: £170-175,000 Pension contribution: £48,000

Total remuneration: £215-220,000

8. Push Mangat

Job: Medical director at Health Education and Improvement Wales (seconded from Swansea Bay)

Basic salary: £165-170,000 Pension contribution: £60,000

Total remuneration: £225-230,000

9. Jason Killens

Jason Killens (Western Mail)

Job: Chief executive of Welsh Ambulance Service

Basic salary: £160-165,000 Pension contribution: £41,000

Total remuneration: £210-215,000

10. Dr Sarah Aitken

Job: Director of Public Health & Strategic Partnerships at Aneurin Bevan health board

Basic salary: £155-160,000 Pension contribution: £48,000

Total remuneration: £205-210,000

11. Darren Griffiths

Darren Griffiths, the interim finance director for Swansea Bay University health board (Swansea Bay University health board)

Job: Interim director of Swansea Bay health board

Basic salary: £140-145,000 Pension contribution: £476,000*

Total remuneration: £620-625,000

12. Rhiannon Jones

Job: Director of nursing at Aneurin Bevan health board

Basic salary: £130-135,000 Pension contribution: £84,000

Total remuneration: £215-220,000

13. Gregory Dix

Job: Director of nursing, midwifery and patient care at Cwm Taf health board,

Basic salary: £130-135,000 Pension contribution: £166,000

Total remuneration: £335-340,000

14. Alison Davies

Job: Director of nursing and midwifery at Powys health board

Basic salary: £110-115,000 Pension contribution: £300,000

Total remuneration: £410-415,000

15. Claire Roche

Job: executive director of quality and nursing at Welsh Ambulance Service

Basic salary: £105-110,000 Pension contribution: £214,000

Total remuneration: £325-330,000

Higher Education

Welsh university vice chancellors ranked by total remuneration. Not all are members of the final pension scheme and some alos receive benefits in kind such as a car and driver and accommodation.

Vice chancellor University Basic salary Pension contribution Total remuneration
Medwin Hughes University of Wales Trinity St David £271,000 £52,000 £298,000
Colin Riordan Cardiff University £232,000 £5,000 £298,000
Professor Paul Boyle Swansea University £292,000
£293,000
Professor Cara Aitchison Cardiff Met University £242,879 £34,000 £277,000
Elizabeth Treasure Aberystwyth University £232,000 £5,000 £260,000
Professor Maria Hinfelaar Wrexham Glyndŵr University £203,600 £47,000 £250,600
Professor Dame Julie Lydon* University of South Wales £229,000
£233,000
Professor Iwan Davies Bangor University £202,000
£202,000

*Dr Ben Calvert replaced Professor Dame Lydon in April 2021

Emergency Services/Local Government

1. Jeremy Vaughan

Job: Chief constable, South Wales Police

Matt Jukes stepped down as chief constable in September 2020 and was replaced by Jeremy Vaughan.

Jeremy Vaughan Basic salary: £65,837 Pension contribution: £20,410

Total remuneration: £86,247 (Annualised salary: £165,215)

2. Chris Davies

Job: Chief fire officer, Mid and West Wales Fire Service

Total remuneration: £156,180

3. Carl Foulkes

Carl Foulkes (Ian Cooper/North Wales Live)

Job: Chief constable, North Wales Police

Basic salary: £155,809 Pension contribution: £48,301

Total remuneration: £222,687

4. Pam Kelly

Job: Chief constable, Gwent Police

Basic salary: £148,389 Pension contribution: £46,001

Total remuneration: £205,212

5. Dr Richard Lewis

Job: Chief constable, Dyfed-Powys Police

Basic salary: £146,469 Pension contribution: £44,089

Total remuneration: £189,623

6. Huw Jakeway

Huw Jakeway (Western Mail)

Job: Chief fire officer, South Wales Fire Service

Basic salary: £138,000 Pension contribution: £38,000

Total remuneration: £176,000

7. Simon Smith

Job: Chief fire officer, North Wales Fire Service

Basic salary: £131,392 Pension contribution: £42,224

Total remuneration: £173,762

Dawn Docx replaced Mr Smith in July 2021.

8. Emyr Williams

Job: Chief executive, Snowdonia National Park Authority

Basic salary: £91,000 Pension contribution: £18,000

Total remuneration: £109,000

9. Tegryn Jones

Job: Chief executive, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority

Basic salary: £84,000 Pension contribution: £11,000

Total remuneration: £96,000

10. Julian Atkins

Job: Chief executive, Brecon Beacons National Park Authority

Basic salary: £84,000 Pension contribution: £17,000

Total remuneration: £186,000

Julian Atkins left the Authority on March 31, 2021 with a termination benefit of £85,000 and was replaced by Catherine Mealing-Jones.

To get the latest email updates from WalesOnline click here.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.