How it works
Teacher pay scales in England: how the system works
Qualified teachers in maintained schools in England are paid on two national ranges set by the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD): the main pay range (M1–M6) for most classroom teachers and the upper pay range (U1–U3) for those who have successfully applied to cross the threshold. Four geographic bands apply — the rest of England, the fringe (a ring around London), Outer London and Inner London — with London rates substantially higher to reflect living costs.
The scales below are the 2025/26 rates, in force from 1 September 2025, after the government accepted the School Teachers' Review Body's 4% award in full. A newly qualified teacher (ECT) starts on M1 — £32,916 outside London, £40,317 in Inner London — and the top of the upper range reaches £51,048 nationally and £62,496 in Inner London.
One important caveat: since 2013 the spine points are technically advisory rather than mandatory, and academies are not bound by the STPCD at all — though in practice the vast majority mirror it. Always check your own school's pay policy. To see what any of these gross figures means in your bank account, run it through the take-home pay calculator.
| Spine point | England (excl. London) | Inner London |
|---|---|---|
| M1 (starting salary) | £32,916 | £40,317 |
| M2 | £34,823 | £42,234 |
| M3 | £37,101 | £44,238 |
| M4 | £39,556 | £46,339 |
| M5 | £42,057 | £48,952 |
| M6 | £45,352 | £52,300 |
| U1 | £47,472 | £57,632 |
| U2 | £49,232 | £60,464 |
| U3 | £51,048 | £62,496 |
How pay progression works from M1 to U3
Progression up the main range is performance-based, reviewed annually against your appraisal objectives and the Teachers' Standards — there has been no automatic annual increment since 2014, though in most schools a satisfactory appraisal still moves you up one point each September. A teacher progressing a point a year reaches M6 five years after qualifying.
Moving from M6 to the upper pay range requires a formal application showing you are "highly competent" and that your achievements are "substantial and sustained". Schools typically expect two consecutive strong appraisal cycles. Once across the threshold, progression from U1 to U3 normally happens no faster than every two years.
Each September also brings the national award on top of any progression. The government has accepted a multi-year deal: 3.5% from September 2026 and 3% from September 2027 — so the M1 starting salary rises to roughly £34,070 outside London from September 2026, and a teacher moving up a point *and* receiving the award can see a 9–10% cash increase in a single year.
Take-home pay: an M3 teacher, worked through line by line
Here is the full 2026/27 payslip arithmetic for an M3 teacher outside London on £37,101, in the Teachers' Pension Scheme, with a Plan 2 student loan. The TPS contribution comes first: £37,101 falls in the 8.9% tier (salaries £36,199–£48,728), costing £3,301.99 a year. Because TPS uses a net pay arrangement, that contribution is deducted before Income Tax — so its true cost is only £2,641.59 after 20% tax relief.
Income Tax is then 20% of what remains above the £12,570 Personal Allowance: (£37,101 − £3,301.99 − £12,570) × 20% = £4,245.80. National Insurance ignores the pension deduction and charges 8% on gross pay above £12,570: 8% × £24,531 = £1,962.48. The Plan 2 student loan takes 9% of gross above £29,385: 9% × £7,716 = £694.44. Check your own plan on the student loan calculator.
Net result: £26,896.29 a year — £2,241.36 a month. Without a student loan it is £2,299.23 a month. Note the quiet win in the middle of the payslip: £275 a month goes into the pension, but take-home only falls by £220 because of the tax relief — and the employer adds 28.68% on top. Verify each deduction separately with the income tax calculator and the national insurance calculator.
| Payslip line | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Gross salary (M3, England) | £37,101.00 | £3,091.75 |
| Teachers' Pension (8.9% tier) | −£3,301.99 | −£275.17 |
| Income Tax (20% after pension relief) | −£4,245.80 | −£353.82 |
| National Insurance (8% above £12,570) | −£1,962.48 | −£163.54 |
| Student loan Plan 2 (9% above £29,385) | −£694.44 | −£57.87 |
| Take-home pay | £26,896.29 | £2,241.36 |
The Teachers' Pension Scheme: what you pay and what you get
The TPS is a career average (CARE) defined-benefit scheme: every year you bank a pension of 1/57th of that year's pensionable pay, revalued annually with inflation plus 1.6% while you teach. An M3 teacher banks about £651 of *annual pension income* each year — guaranteed for life from state pension age, with no investment risk. Defined-benefit accrual like this is close to irreplaceable in the private sector.
Member contributions are tiered by salary. From April 2026 the tiers run from 7.4% (up to £36,199) through 8.9%, 9.9%, 10.5% and 11.6% to 12% above £104,414 — and the rate applies to your *whole* salary, not just the slice in the band, so a pay rise across a tier boundary raises the rate on everything. Employers contribute 28.68% (including the 0.08% administration levy), a rate locked until March 2027.
Because contributions are deducted before tax, a 20% taxpayer's 8.9% contribution really costs about 7.1% of gross. Opting out — as some ECTs are tempted to do — surrenders the 28.68% employer contribution and the tax relief in exchange for a small cash-flow gain; run the numbers on the pension contribution calculator before deciding.
| Annual salary (from April 2026) | Member rate |
|---|---|
| Up to £36,198 | 7.4% |
| £36,199 – £48,727 | 8.9% |
| £48,728 – £57,776 | 9.9% |
| £57,777 – £76,572 | 10.5% |
| £76,573 – £104,413 | 11.6% |
| £104,414 and above | 12.0% |
London weighting: what the capital actually pays
London teacher pay is not a bolt-on allowance but a set of separate, higher pay ranges. In 2025/26 an Inner London M1 earns £40,317 — £7,401 (22%) more than the same job outside London; at M6 the gap is £6,948 and at U3 it is £11,448. Outer London sits roughly £4,000–£5,000 above the national scale, and the fringe adds around £1,500.
Whether the premium beats London costs is a genuine calculation, not a given: the extra ~£7,400 at M1 is about £4,700 after tax, NI and pension — set against the difference between London and regional rent it can go either way. Inner London covers the inner boroughs and the City; classification follows the school's location, not where you live, so teaching in an Outer London borough while living in a cheaper commuter town is a common arbitrage.
Part-time teachers: pro-rata by timetable, not by days
Part-time teacher pay is pro-rated by your timetabled teaching time as a fraction of the school's full-time timetable — not by days worked. If the full-time timetable is 25 hours of sessions and you teach 15, you are paid 60% of the full-time salary for your spine point: 0.6 × £37,101 = £22,261 for a part-time M3.
Everything else follows the same fraction: directed time (including a pro-rata share of INSET days), TLR payments and allowances. Pension accrual uses your actual earnings, so part-time years bank proportionately smaller — but still guaranteed — amounts. The tax system, however, is not pro-rated: a 60% M3 sits below the £29,385 Plan 2 threshold (no student loan repayment) and in the 7.4% TPS tier, so take-home falls by less than 40%.
TLRs, SEN allowances and other additions
Extra responsibility attracts extra pay on top of the spine. Teaching and Learning Responsibility payments for 2025/26 run £3,527–£8,611 for a TLR2 (e.g. subject lead) and £10,174–£17,216 for a TLR1 (significant line management, typically a head of department or key stage). A time-limited TLR3 exists for fixed-term projects. The SEN allowance ranges from £2,787 to £5,497 for qualifying special educational needs roles.
All of these are pensionable and taxable — a £5,000 TLR2 for an M6 teacher on £45,352 is taxed at the 28% marginal rate plus the 8.9% pension tier, so it adds roughly £3,150 a year to take-home. From September 2026 allowances rise with the 3.5% award, and TLR payments for part-time staff must reflect the responsibility actually carried rather than simply following the timetable fraction.