The good folk over at Accountancy Age have been busy lately preparing some interesting statistics on UK accounting employment and salary trends.
Their latest effort looks at regional salary differences in the profession and, from where I’m sitting, it uncovers one or two surprises.
Not so much that London and south-east England are at the top of the pay table. Even that Yorkshire and Humberside are among the highest UK payers (well maybe a little bit).
Shocking aspect of the survey
But the most shocking aspect as far as I can work out is the difference between the highest paying area and the lowest.
So that would be the average accountant salary in London is £79k-plus. Whereas in Wales that’s a relatively meagre £41k. That’s 63 per cent! Below is the Accountancy Age regional survey table:
So what does it all mean? In a nutshell, it’s a pretty big gap that shows Londoners are getting a much better deal. But is it worth sharpening up the LinkedIn profile and scouring the job ads? Not necessarily.
For a start, commuting … Take Southern Railway (aargh!). And property prices for London in particular and the south-east in general are stupidly high.
Perhaps you absolutely love your job
As the Age points out: “Your own individual experiences and preferences are also important. The salaries in the table are simply an average, and may not be reflective of how well you are doing or have the potential to do with your current company.
“Perhaps you absolutely love your job now, and wouldn’t change it for anything, whether more money is involved or not.”
From my own personal point of view… I worked in London for about 20 years. And my advice would be: Don’t do it!
Hurray for Accountex Summit North!
And while we’re on the subject of regional differences. Here’s a great piece of news for Accountex Summit North, which held its first conference at Manchester Central in March.
The hundreds who attended are not the only ones who thought it was a great event. The north’s No 1 event for accounting and finance professionals has been nominated for three AEO Awards (events industry gongs) for Best launch, Best Conference and Best Innovation.
Event director Zoe Lacey-Cooper says: “The team couldn’t be happier!”
Date for the diary. Accountex Summit North will return to Manchester Central Conference Centre next year on 10 September. You can register your interest here.