Teachers in England to Get 6.6% Pay Rise Over Two Years
Teachers in England will receive a 3.5% pay increase starting September, followed by an additional 3% rise next year. The government announced that extra funding will cover most, but not all, of the increased wage bill for schools.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson confirmed that the government would accept the pay recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB), which were significantly higher than the government’s initial proposals.
The Department for Education (DfE) stated that state schools will receive an additional £1.8 billion over two years to partially fund the pay rises for teachers and support staff. Support staff have been offered a 3.3% pay rise, backdated to April.
Phillipson said: “This multi-year deal, backed by significant additional investment, shows the immense value we place in our teachers, while giving schools and colleges certainty over pay and their budgets.”
Phillipson had initially requested the STRB to recommend a 6.5% pay award spread over three years, from 2026-27 to 2028-29. However, the independent committee recommended a 6.6% increase over two years instead.
Union Reactions and Concerns Over Funding
Education unions welcomed the pay rise exceeding inflation forecasts but expressed concern that nearly a third of the wage increases would need to be funded from existing school budgets.
Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), stated: “Schools are being asked to find £460m from budgets already at breaking point. This is the equivalent of 8,300 school staff – 3,900 teachers and 4,400 support staff. Ministers cannot claim to want more teachers while overseeing such a drastic reduction in numbers next year.”
The NEU is considering options for industrial action. In May, the union voted to hold a strike ballot in the autumn unless the government commits to a fully funded, above-inflation pay award.
Government Funding and Salary Details
The DfE highlighted that school teachers will have received a cumulative 17% pay increase since the last election. The average school teacher salary is set to rise to more than £52,800 from September, increasing further to over £54,400 by September 2027.
Additionally, the government announced an extra £485 million in funding over two years for colleges and other further education providers to support staff retention.
David Hughes, chief executive of the Association of Colleges, commented: “We had feared that we were heading towards a potentially very low or even zero pay award recommendation. It shows that the government has been listening to the case we made as a sector and recognises that its funding decisions are critical for ensuring colleges can address the cost of living crisis their staff face.”
Academy Executive Pay Cap and Reactions
The DfE confirmed that academy executive pay will be capped, including a maximum salary of £174,000, with any higher salaries requiring government approval. Currently, about 1,000 multi-academy trusts pay senior staff salaries exceeding £200,000.
The Confederation of School Trusts (CST) criticized the pay cap, warning it would introduce a “slow, bureaucratic process to recruitment, harming the ability of trusts to recruit and retain strong leaders.”
Leora Cruddas, CST chief executive, said: “We should be empowering trusts and local leaders to do what their communities need, not assuming the Department for Education knows best.”
