The 30 best and worst paid jobs in the UK

The best paid jobs include professions like law, teaching and medicine and those in managerial roles, from HR to PR

Cleaners are among the worst paid jobs in the UK (AFP)

The Office for National Statistics has published its annual data on wages, which reveal that UK employees are on average better off this year than at any time since the financial crisis - though they still earn less than they did in 2003.

Average weekly earnings for full-time employees are £528, up 1.8 per cent on £518 in 2014, but less than the average £534 weekly wage in 2003.

Women still earn about £100 less than men a week in a gender gap that just refuses to disappear. Public sector workers earn much more than those in the private sector.

So what can you do to improve your salary? Aside from working in the public sector, or not being a woman, you could also choose one of these 30 jobs that pay far more than the average - and steer clear of the 30 worst paid.

The best paid full time workers are all in the City of London, where average earnings were £921 a week. That's nearly two and half times more than the lowest average UK wage of £389 in Derbyshire.

The best paid jobs include professions like law, teaching and medicine and those in managerial roles, from HR to PR. Meanwhile the lowest paid jobs include waiters, cleaners and carers - jobs that are also less likely to offer long-term security or employee benefits.

In April, the lowest paid jobs will benefit from the National Living Wage, which increases the minimum wage to £7.20 for full time employees over the age of 25 come April.

"The hard work of the healthcare sector still lies largely unrewarded. As the care industry is put under increasing pressure, the sector still has the highest number of low-paid jobs. Education too contains a high proportion of workers paid below-average wages. But clearly these sectors are vitally important to our society, and are clearly deserving of more support," said Doug Monro, co-founder of Adzuna.