Teacher pay in 2026 depends heavily on where they work, their role, and how long they've been teaching. While national pay awards have raised the minimum salaries, factors like London allowances, leadership roles, and school supplements mean teachers with similar experience might earn quite different amounts. Here’s a summary of the 2025–26 pay tables, showing pay by range and region, with useful figures for budgeting and recruitment.

Key figures at a glance (quick reference)

These figures reflect the national pay award agreed for 2025–26 and are used through early 2026 unless a new settlement is announced. Figures are annual gross pay and in pounds sterling (GBP).

  • STRB pay award for 2025–26: 4% increase across statutory pay points (applied to 2024–25 levels).
  • Main pay range (M1–M6) outside London: £31,000 (M1) to £42,000 (M6) in 2025–26.
  • Upper pay range (UPS 1–3): £44,000 (UPS1) to £51,000 (UPS3) in 2025–26.
  • Leadership pay range: roughly £46,000 (lower leadership minima) to £160,000+ for national leaders and large academy CEOs, depending on size and location.
  • Inner London M1 starting point: circa £40,000; Outer London M1: circa £37,000; Fringe M1: circa £34,000 (2025–26 pay tables).
  • Average full-time teacher pay: c. £43,000 (according to ONS series, year labelled 2024 in that dataset).
  • Supply teacher typical daily rates: £120–£220 per day, region-dependent (higher in London and for shortage subjects).
  • Teacher Pension Scheme contributions: employee contribution around 7.4%; employer contribution approximately 23.7% (published TPS employer rate).
  • Employer National Insurance: 13.8% on secondary earnings above the NIC threshold (affects total employer cost).
  • Pay award impact: a 4% uplift added to 2024–25 pay points to create the 2025–26 pay tables; that uplift equates to roughly £1,200 on a £30,000 salary and £2,040 on a £51,000 salary.

Detailed breakdown: pay by pay range and experience

Most state schools in England follow nationally recommended pay ranges set out in the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD). Local authorities, multi-academy trusts and independent schools can vary pay widely—often by adding market supplements, recruitment and retention payments, or enhanced London allowances.

Starting and early career (NQT to 3 years)

Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) in most of England start on the main pay range M1. In 2025–26 that point stands at about £31,000 outside London. In London there’s a clear uplift: fringe schools put M1 at around £34,000; outer London around £37,000; inner London roughly £40,000. After three years, teachers typically reach M3–M4 — roughly £33,800 to £37,500 outside London following the 4% uplift.

Established and mid-career (4–9 years)

That said, teachers who remain on the main pay range commonly move one point a year until M6. That means a teacher starting at £31,000 could reach £42,000 by year 6 on the main range. Many schools still allow one automatic point progression a year, though some require appraisal evidence. Cost-of-living and recruitment pressures have pushed many trusts to add annual market supplements of £1,000–£3,000 for shortage subjects like maths, physics and modern foreign languages.

Experienced teachers (UPS and advanced roles)

Mastheads

Teachers who qualify for the Upper Pay Range (by meeting the national criteria) move to UPS1, UPS2 or UPS3. In 2025–26 UPS1 is approximately £44,000, UPS2 £47,000 and UPS3 £51,000. Progression within UPS isn't automatic; it usually requires a successful application and evidence of sustained high-quality teaching. Many colleges and independent schools pay above these figures to attract senior practitioners.

Leadership pay

Leadership pay is set by group size, pupil numbers and region. As of 2025–26 the lower leadership minima start roughly at £46,000 for small leadership posts, with executive headteachers and large multi-academy trust CEOs seeing total packages from £80,000 up to around £160,000+ in the largest organisations and London contexts. Deputy and assistant heads often sit between £50,000 and £79,000 depending on responsibilities and school size.

Regional differences and examples

The biggest reason pay varies is due to regional differences. London allowances remain the largest single adjustment. But other regions also show targeted supplements for shortage areas.

  • Inner London: M1 £40,000; M6 c. £49,000; UPS3 c. £59,000.
  • Outer London: M1 £37,000; M6 c. £46,000.
  • Fringe: M1 £34,000; typical M6 c. £43,000.
  • South East (non-London): starting M1 around £31,500; M6 around £42,500; many trusts add £1,000–£2,500 market supplements in coastal or high-cost districts.
  • Midlands and North: M1 generally near £31,000; M6 nearer £42,000; supply day rates often lower—£120–£150 in many areas.
  • Wales and Scotland: both have separate negotiating arrangements and pay scales. Wales follows Welsh Government pay awards; Scotland negotiates through the SNCT. As a result, headline English figures don't apply north or west of the border.

So, a teacher on M3 in inner London (c. £44,500) will take home materially more than a colleague on M3 in the North East (c. £33,800) before pension and tax. That gap narrows when you look at total employer cost, because pensions and NICs are proportional to salary, but the cash salary gap remains a recruitment factor.

Other pay elements and employer costs

Pay is only part of total cost. Employer pension contributions (c. 23.7%) and National Insurance (13.8% above the secondary threshold) add roughly 37–40% to basic salary as a cost to the employer. For example:

  • Teacher on £37,000: employer pension c. £8,769; employer NI c. £4,770 (rough estimate) — total employer cost roughly £50,500.
  • Teacher on £51,000 (UPS3): employer pension c. £12,087; employer NI c. £6,500 — total employer cost roughly £69,587.

Supply teachers are usually paid daily and aren't always enrolled in TPS by the hiring body for short assignments. Typical supply day rates in 2026 run from £120 per day in lower-cost regions to £220 or more in London and for specialist or senior cover.

Progression, performance and market supplements

Many schools still operate automatic one-point progression on the main range, so a teacher can reasonably expect to move from M1 to M6 over five years with satisfactory appraisal. Movement to UPS requires application and demonstration of sustained high performance. Market supplements for hard-to-fill subjects typically range from £1,000 to £5,000 per year; in some acute shortage areas trusts have paid £7,000–£12,000 for targeted recruitment.

Forecast and what to watch in 2026–27

Pay pressure is set to remain a political and budgetary issue in 2026. Schools and trusts face higher running costs, so further national awards will depend on public finances and the next STRB recommendations. Economists and unions are watching CPI inflation and public-sector pay rounds; many expect another wage discussion in late 2026 for the 2026–27 cycle.

But short-term recruitment pressures will keep local market supplements in play, especially for maths, physics, chemistry, computing, modern languages and SEND specialists. And trusts in high-cost urban areas are likely to maintain or increase London weightings and recruitment payments.

Still, headline pay remains anchored to the STPCD rates: the 4% uplift for 2025–26 is the baseline. Any further change will be public and phased through pay tables and the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document.

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Salaries for teachers in 2026 use the 2025–26 pay tables with a 4% uplift as the baseline, but the real pay a teacher receives depends on region, role, experience and whether the employer adds market supplements or London weightings. For precise, school-level figures check the STPCD on Gov.uk or ask the trust’s HR team for the latest pay policy and published pay ranges.

This article was created with AI assistance.