Keltbray is a specialist construction engineering and major civils solutions group
Our purpose is to redefine the way sustainable development is delivered. Based on our collective experience, we collaborate at the earliest stage to design and self-deliver innovative customer solutions across technically demanding built environment and major civils sectors. Working in partnership with our stakeholders, we are actively contributing to economic growth, social advancement and environmental protection.
We are deeply committed to our company values, ensuring that every project we deliver reflects and upholds the principles that define our company
OUR PURPOSE
To redefine the way sustainable development is delivered
Care for everyone and work with respect
Put the customer at the heart of everything
Keep our promises, aim to exceed
Nurture winning teams
About Gender Pay Gap
In the UK, employers with 250 or more employees must report on their gender pay gap, this applies to all private sector companies. Charities and other nonpublic organisations.
The following metrics must be reported:
– Mean and median gender pay gap
– Proportion of male and female employees in different pay banks, gender bonus gap and the proportion of male and female employees receiving bonuses
Keltbray believes passionately in the value of equal opportunity and diversity. Our people strategy aims to make Keltbray a place where people thrive and the business succeeds.
EQUAL PAY V GENDER PAY GAP
Equal pay is whereby men and women doing the same job should be paid the same amount. The gender pay gap looks at the average difference in pay between all men and all women within an organisation or sector. It’s a broad comparison that reflects overall disparities in pay, not necessarily for the same work.
Construction Sector Gender pay Gap Comparisons
Keltbray 2024 v Industry wide submissions 2023
MEAN AND MEDIAN
Both measures are important for understanding the gender pay gap. The mean is the average of all pay figures and is calculated by adding up all the individual hourly pay rate for men and women and then dividing the total by the number of people in that group. The median is the middle value in a set of pay figures when they are ordered from lowest to highest.
The number of men and women in Keltbray
Quartile Breakdown
What is our data showing us?
The number of women working for the company increased by 10%. There was great improvement in the average gender pay gap which decreased by 2.2% to 26.87% when compared to 2023, driven primarily by a 6.8% increase in average female pay, which outpaced the 3.6% increase in average male pay.
Addressing the Gap
Attracting Females to work at Keltbray
RECRUITMENT
Attracting women to the construction industry remains a challenge, and we are committed to overcoming this by ensuring that our job vacancy adverts and descriptions use gender-neutral and inclusive language. In 2024, we launched a new recruitment platform that not only showcases our comprehensive benefit packages, including family-friendly policies, but also emphasises the professional development opportunities available to all employees. This platform has significantly improved our ability to capture robust data, allowing us to better measure and monitor workforce demographics.
Additionally, we continuously review and update our recruitment policies to ensure that we are creating an inclusive environment and identifying areas where we can focus more on attracting and selecting candidates from underrepresented groups. We have implemented targeted outreach initiatives, such as partnerships with organisations that promote women in construction, to build a stronger pipeline of female candidates. This includes job fairs, apprenticeships, and initiatives designed specifically for women looking to enter the sector.
Our recruitment process includes unconscious bias training for hiring managers, ensuring that our selection process remains fair and equitable. Diverse hiring panels are also actively encouraged to reduce bias and enhance objectivity. This holistic approach aims to not only increase gender diversity in our workforce but also to create an environment where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive.
SOCIAL VALUE & THE COMMUNITY
Our social value impact report demonstrates our commitment to local community and continuous education and community engagement. This includes several key initiatives to ensure we have a diverse talent pipeline entering the business. This included supporting initiatives in association with Build UK such as ‘Open Doors’ and continued partnerships with local colleges. We encourage females to take part in our work experience programmes and in the last year all the work experience cohorts were mixed. When delivering our work experience programmes, we ensure that we involve females across a range of roles at Keltbray, so they are represented.
EARLY CAREERS
Over the past five years, we have made significant effort to attract and develop female talent within our early career’s programmes. This includes targeted outreach, partnerships with schools, colleges, and industry bodies, and ensuring that our apprenticeships, graduate schemes, and work experience placements are accessible and appealing to women. As a result, one in three of our apprentices are female, a significant step towards improving gender diversity in traditionally male-dominated professions.
Over the last five years 1 in 3 apprentices were female
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In the last year we hosted two female only site tours through Transport for London’s Places for People at 10 King William Street site. The groups were previously set a design task for an overhead station development that we brought to life on site. The highlight of the session was a talk from myself and Sophia, our Project Engineer, we spoke to them about opportunities in construction and females in our industry, hopefully breaking the myths and inspiring their career choices.
Caroline Hudson Sustainability ManagerSocial Value
I chose a career in construction because I've always been fascinated by how things are built. It's not always easy to be a woman in a male-dominated field. However, the culture is changing, and companies like Keltbray are pushing for change and diversity.
Emily Woodhouse Trainee Quantity Surveyor
Addressing the Gap
Continuing to support Women to progress at Keltbray so we have greater representation of women at all levels
DEVELOPMENT
We recognise that retaining and progressing female talent is equally as important as attracting female talent. To support this, we provide structured development pathways, mentorship, and leadership training to ensure women have the tools and opportunities to build long-term careers at Keltbray. Our approach includes tailored support through coaching, sponsorship, and skills development, enabling women to move into more senior positions over time.
We are committed to creating an inclusive culture where women can thrive and progress, ensuring greater representation in leadership roles and across all areas of our business. Through ongoing investment in learning and development, targeted career support, and internal progression opportunities, we aim to build a stronger, more diverse workforce that reflects the communities we work in. We pride ourselves in offering a wide range of opportunities to reskill with internal progression and provide the tools to achieve with tailored training.
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MENTORING & EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP PROGRAMME
Some of the key development programmes we have introduced include an ILM mentoring & Coaching scheme in 2025 to support people to progress. In 2024 we launched an Executive Leadership Development programme to provide training to our collegues at a senior level at Keltbray. This initiative focuses on strategic thinking, decision-making, and leadership capabilities, preparing participants for executive board level roles at Keltbray.
HIGHLIGHTS
A quarter of participants across our leadership programmes are female
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Holly Price Sustainability Director on the Executive Leadership Programme
The Executive Leadership Development programme has given our senior team the opportunity to participate in setting the Keltbray strategy and further developing our desired organisational culture. The programme has given us the space and time to reflect, a commodity often lacking in our fast-paced world, and I am excited to see how this further contributes to the development of our people as the next cohorts embark on this journey. An exciting programme arriving at an exciting time in the Built Environment sector.
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Candis Duham HR Coordinator
Before joining the Human Resources department, I was working under plant as an administrator. I moved over to Human Resources when an internal progression opportunity arose and I applied for it, since moving over I have completed my CIPD Level 5 through the apprenticeship route and promoted into my current role of HR Coordinator.
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Addressing the Gap
Retaining our Female talent
IMPROVED FAMILYFRIENDLY POLICIES
In 2024 we updated our family matters procedure to include five days of paid leave for carers to use on planned appointments to enable our employees to fulfil their caring duties while maintaining a work life balance.
EMPLOYEE VOICE
We are focused on providing the right tools and support that enable our people to thrive and grow at Keltbray. Employee Voice, Wellbeing, and Diversity and Inclusion remain strategic priorities for the company throughout 2024 and beyond. As part of our Performance Review process (GPS) we ask our collegues to share ideas. In 2024 75% of females shared ideas which demonstrated that Keltbray fosters a culture that is open and transparent which provides employees with a voice to have a say on their own role and that of their teams.
Claire Peal Assistant Finance Director
RAISING AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS
We have focused campaigns throughout the year which celebrate and recognise the females within our workforce on International Women’s Day in March. To raising awareness around the Menopause in October through providing training and tools to support individuals and their line managers.
INCLUSIVE PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE)
It is important to us that our collegues feel comfortable in their PPE when working on our construction sites and that it meets their needs. We have a catalogue with PPE options for females, and we are always looking at how we can develop the PPE offering.
HIGHLIGHTS
75% of females shared new ideas in their performance review
“I have worked at Keltbray for just under 20 years, starting as a university student and progressing through to my current role with great support, exposure and direction. While the company operates in a male-dominated industry, my department has maintained a broad gender balance, creating an environment where I’ve been able to grow and succeed.
I have had the opportunity to study, develop my skills and take on new challenges. During my career, I have also taken two periods of maternity leave and felt supported while navigating and phasing my return so that I could be successful in my role and balance family life.
My journey has been one of continuous learning, progression and encouragement. I hope to see even more opportunities for women in our industry.
