Full Report
Bridewell’s analysis of advertised UK cybersecurity roles revealed that the public sector offers one the lowest average salaries across all industries
Analysis Summary
# Industry News: UK Public Sector Cyber Salaries Lagging Significantly Behind Private Sector
## Summary
A recent study by Bridwell reveals that average salaries for cybersecurity roles in the UK public sector, including government departments, hover around £44,739, significantly trailing the private sector sectors like insurance (£79,167) and finance (£75k). This data confirms ongoing concerns, as voiced by senior civil servants, about the government's shrinking ability to effectively recruit and retain necessary cyber talent due to uncompetitive compensation packages.
## Key Details
- Date: Announced around June 20, 2025 (based on article publication date context)
- Companies Involved: Bridwell (study author), HM Treasury, UK Public Accounts Committee (PAC)
- Category: Market Analysis / Labor Study
## The Story
Bridwell analyzed 768 UK cybersecurity job listings and found the public sector's average salary lags far behind the private sector counterparts. Government and public administration roles offered an average of £44,739, placing them just above non-profits. This contrasts sharply with high-paying sectors such as insurance and finance. The findings validate previous public criticism, such as the low salary range offered for a head of cybersecurity role at HM Treasury in 2023. Furthermore, the findings align with testimony from Civil Service COO Cat Little to the PAC in March 2025, who acknowledged the necessity for substantial pay increases to compete for talent.
## Business Impact
### For the Companies Involved
- **For UK Government Agencies:** The low salary structure acts as a severe bottleneck for capability building, forcing reliance on contractors or suboptimal retention strategies, increasing operational risk exposure due to understaffing or inexperience.
- **For Bridwell and other Recruitment Firms:** This data underscores the ongoing, structural demand-supply imbalance, potentially driving up consultancy rates where private sector expertise is temporarily leased into the public sector.
### For Competitors
- **Private Sector Cyber Firms:** They benefit directly from the talent pool drain from the public sector, enabling them to attract experienced professionals with higher compensation packages, solidifying a competitive advantage in skill acquisition.
### For Customers
- **UK Citizens and Businesses:** Lower public sector cybersecurity compensation can translate to slower government response times to cyber incidents, less robust national infrastructure defenses, and potential data breaches affecting public services.
### For the Market
- **UK Labor Market:** Intensifies salary inflation pressure at the mid-to-senior levels across the broader UK cybersecurity market, as government roles set a low anchor, forcing private firms to pay a significant premium to secure talent.
## Technical Implications
While the analysis is focused on economics, the underlying technical implication is that public sector projects may be staffed by less experienced personnel or rely more heavily on legacy systems due to a lack of funding for high-end, specialized roles who are drawn to newer technologies prevalent in the high-paying private sector.
## Strategic Analysis
- **Market Positioning:** The UK public sector is strategically positioned as the low-cost provider in the cyber talent marketplace, a position that is increasingly untenable given rising threat levels.
- **Competitive Advantage:** The private sector maintains a clear competitive advantage in talent acquisition, allowing them to staff advanced security operations centers (SOCs) and innovation teams more readily.
- **Challenges:** The primary challenge for the government is correcting decades of pay compression without causing significant internal budgetary crises or political friction related to public sector wage policy.
## Industry Reactions
- **Analyst Opinions:** Analysts likely view this as an unsustainable structural failure, predicting an ongoing "brain drain" from government unless a significant, long-term compensation correction occurs.
- **Expert Commentary:** Experts consistently emphasize that cyber defense is a national priority, suggesting that current compensation levels fail to reflect the criticality of the roles being filled.
- **Market Response:** High-paying sectors will continue to absorb the best talent, further widening capability gaps.
## Future Outlook
- **Predictions and Expectations:** Further studies are expected to confirm the gap, potentially leading to increased political pressure on the Treasury. Expect government agencies to lobby for special pay bands or external recruitment allowances to address critical shortages.
- **What to Watch For:** Watch for any movement or successful implementation of flexible, market-rate government pay scales for specific, high-demand cyber roles, which would signal a major policy shift.
## For Security Professionals
Cybersecurity professionals working in the private sector can expect continued high demand and strong earning potential. Those in the public sector may view this data as justification for seeking private sector roles or demanding significantly higher progression/retention bonuses within the government structure.