North rivals South for 'elite' contractor pay

North West England is home to as many of the UK’s highest-paid contractors as London, an umbrella company has found.

According to Parasol, 13 of its current 50 top earning contractors are based in the North West, making the region the main hotspot for “elite flexible workers” outside the UK capital.

The company added that London also has 13 of its highest-paid contractors, ahead of the Midlands which is home to eight of the ‘elite’ 50.

“These figures are evidence of the North West’s impressive skills base,”  said Parasol’s Derek Kelly. “Long-held concerns over top talent migrating south could, on this evidence, soon become a thing of the past.”

Elsewhere in the breakdown of temporary workers it places, the umbrella said that contractors aged between 45 and 54 seemed to be the most likely to command a high rate.

In fact,  40% of the elite 50 were in this age bracket – more than any other. Kelly reflected: “Contractors’ earning power follows a similar pattern to that of permanent workers. In both cases, most professionals reach the peak of their earning power in their late 40s.”