PDSA Executive Pay Statement
PDSA’s vision is a lifetime of wellbeing for every pet. We don’t believe pets should suffer as a result of financial hardship and we do all that we can to both protect the wellbeing of pets in need and preserve the precious bond between pet and owner. For the last century, we have provided a lifeline of veterinary care for vulnerable pets and their owners across the UK when they have nowhere else to turn. Last year alone, PDSA supported more than two million pet owners via our national network of 48 Pet Hospitals as well as through online and community outreach activities. All of this is achieved thanks to public support – we don’t receive any government funding. Delivering our annual service last year cost in excess of £70 million.
As a charity that supports pets and people in need, there is a looming poverty crisis on the horizon due to COVID-19. Demand on PDSA is growing as more and more people are forced into poverty through no fault of their own due to the economic impact of the pandemic. Ensuring we have the right senior leaders in place to navigate through these uncertain times has never been more important.
Supporting 2.7 million people each year and providing 2.7 million veterinary treatments to prevent the suffering of animals and to relieve the effects of poverty on families and communities nationwide, requires a senior team with a wide range strategic capabilities and experience.
Combined with legal, corporate and charity governance responsibilities, and commercial expertise, it is important we have a committed and quality leadership team to carry out our work and maximise our charitable impact to deliver the best possible outcomes for our beneficiaries.
Having a competitive reward offering is one of the many ways in which PDSA can secure the very best people to deliver our ambitious targets and continue to be there for owners and pets when there is nowhere else to turn.
The Board of Trustees is responsible for defining PDSA’s Executive Pay Policy and deciding on the salaries of senior leaders and the Director General. The Board delegates this responsibility to the Governance and Remuneration Committee. In the financial year 2019, our Director General’s basic salary was £154,209. More information about our pay ranges for senior staff is on our Annual Report and Accounts.
Our Executive Pay Principles
PDSA recognises that having a fair and competitive reward offering is important to secure talented senior leaders to deliver our ambitious plans. Salaries and benefits should be competitive within the charity sector, proportionate to the complexity and responsibilities of each role and in line with our charitable objectives. To achieve this our Senior Executive Remuneration Policy aims to:
- Benchmark senior executive pay and benefits against charity and other relevant market sector trends and surveys
- Ensure that performance is reviewed, reported to the Governance and Remuneration Committee annually and reflected in pay decisions
- Only apply variable pay arrangements where clear market sector evidence and rationale exists
Page last updated: 22 September 2020