January 2024 Update:
Most teachers should have had their pay rises implemented by now, with the timelines often coinciding with performance management processes. The pay award will be backdated to September 2023.
2023 Teacher Pay Award
Well-publicised strike action by teaching unions has been called off following the acceptance of a 6.5% pay increase offered by the government. We’ll explain what this means for those who currently work in schools, or those who are looking for jobs in teaching.
What is the Teachers’ Pay Award?
Throughout the 2022-23 academic year, teaching unions across the country went on strike in a dispute over teacher pay. The initial offer of 3.5% was rejected and sparked walkouts across the country.
However, in July 2023 a pay award of 6.5% was announced by the government, with all teaching unions voting in favour of accepting the award and ending further strike action.
What Is Teachers’ Pay in 2023?
The new pay award is set to come in from September 2023, the start of the new academic year.
It increases the minimum starting salary for an Early Career’s Teacher in the first year of their career (formerly known as a Newly Qualified Teacher) to £30,000, or an increase of 7.1%. Those working in the London Fringe area will see their pay increase by 6.8% to £31,350.
All other qualified teachers will see a pay increase of 6.5% on all pay spines, from M2 to UPS3, with the minimum and maximum TLR payments also benefitting from the increase.
You can see an overview on the table below:
Main and Upper Pay Scales
| England (excl. London) | London Fringe | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 2023/24 | Increase | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | Increase | |
| M1 | £28,000 | £30,000 | 7.1% | £29,344 | £31,350 | 6.8% |
| M2 | £29,800 | £31,737 | 6.5% | £31,126 | £33,150 | 6.5% |
| M3 | £31,750 | £33,814 | 6.5% | £33,055 | £35,204 | 6.5% |
| M4 | £33,850 | £36,051 | 6.5% | £35,151 | £37,436 | 6.5% |
| M5 | £35,990 | £38,330 | 6.5% | £37,264 | £39,687 | 6.5% |
| M6 | £38,810 | £41,333 | 6.5% | £40,083 | £42,689 | 6.5% |
| U1 | £40,625 | £43,266 | 6.5% | £41,858 | £44,579 | 6.5% |
| U2 | £42,131 | £44,870 | 6.5% | £43,360 | £46,179 | 6.5% |
| U3 | £43,685 | £46,525 | 6.5% | £44,919 | £47,839 | 6.5% |
Leadership Scale
| England excluding London/Fringe | London Fringe | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 Salaries | 2023/24 Salaries | Increase | 2022/23 Salaries | 2023/24 Salaries | Increase | |
| L1 | £44,305 | £47,185 | 6.5% | £45,524 | £48,484 | 6.5% |
| L2 | £45,414 | £48,366 | 6.5% | £46,636 | £49,668 | 6.5% |
| L3 | £46,548 | £49,574 | 6.5% | £47,770 | £50,876 | 6.5% |
| L4 | £47,706 | £50,807 | 6.5% | £48,935 | £52,116 | 6.5% |
| L5 | £48,895 | £52,074 | 6.5% | £50,124 | £53,383 | 6.5% |
| L6 | £50,122 | £53,380 | 6.5% | £51,347 | £54,685 | 6.5% |
| L7 | £51,470 | £54,816 | 6.5% | £52,700 | £56,126 | 6.5% |
| L8 | £52,659 | £56,082 | 6.5% | £53,880 | £57,383 | 6.5% |
| L9 | £53,973 | £57,482 | 6.5% | £55,197 | £58,785 | 6.5% |
| L10 | £55,360 | £58,959 | 6.5% | £56,583 | £60,261 | 6.5% |
| L11 | £56,796 | £60,488 | 6.5% | £58,017 | £61,789 | 6.5% |
| L12 | £58,105 | £61,882 | 6.5% | £59,332 | £63,189 | 6.5% |
| L13 | £59,558 | £63,430 | 6.5% | £60,785 | £64,737 | 6.5% |
| L14 | £61,042 | £65,010 | 6.5% | £62,268 | £66,316 | 6.5% |
| L15 | £62,561 | £66,628 | 6.5% | £63,782 | £67,928 | 6.5% |
| L16 | £64,225 | £68,400 | 6.5% | £65,450 | £69,705 | 6.5% |
| L17 | £65,699 | £69,970 | 6.5% | £66,934 | £71,285 | 6.5% |
| L18 | £67,351 | £71,729 | 6.5% | £68,576 | £73,034 | 6.5% |
| L19 | £69,022 | £73,509 | 6.5% | £70,245 | £74,811 | 6.5% |
| L20 | £70,733 | £75,331 | 6.5% | £72,067 | £76,752 | 6.5% |
| L21 | £72,483 | £77,195 | 6.5% | £73,715 | £78,507 | 6.5% |
| L22 | £74,283 | £79,112 | 6.5% | £75,510 | £80,419 | 6.5% |
| L23 | £76,122 | £81,070 | 6.5% | £77,345 | £82,373 | 6.5% |
| L24 | £78,010 | £83,081 | 6.5% | £79,240 | £84,391 | 6.5% |
| L25 | £79,949 | £85,146 | 6.5% | £81,173 | £86,450 | 6.5% |
| L26 | £81,927 | £87,253 | 6.5% | £83,155 | £88,561 | 6.5% |
| L27 | £83,956 | £89,414 | 6.5% | £85,181 | £90,718 | 6.5% |
| L28 | £86,040 | £91,633 | 6.5% | £87,261 | £92,933 | 6.5% |
| L29 | £88,170 | £93,902 | 6.5% | £89,396 | £95,207 | 6.5% |
| L30 | £90,365 | £96,239 | 6.5% | £91,583 | £97,536 | 6.5% |
| L31 | £92,597 | £98,616 | 6.5% | £93,825 | £99,924 | 6.5% |
| L32 | £94,898 | £101,067 | 6.5% | £96,127 | £102,376 | 6.5% |
| L33 | £97,256 | £103,578 | 6.5% | £98,485 | £104,887 | 6.5% |
| L34 | £99,660 | £106,138 | 6.5% | £100,888 | £107,446 | 6.5% |
| L35 | £102,137 | £108,776 | 6.5% | £103,366 | £110,085 | 6.5% |
| L36 | £104,666 | £111,470 | 6.5% | £105,891 | £112,774 | 6.5% |
| L37 | £107,267 | £114,240 | 6.5% | £108,494 | £115,547 | 6.5% |
| L38 | £109,922 | £117,067 | 6.5% | £111,148 | £118,373 | 6.5% |
| L39 | £112,601 | £119,921 | 6.5% | £113,823 | £121,222 | 6.5% |
| L40 | £115,410 | £122,912 | 6.5% | £116,641 | £124,223 | 6.5% |
| L41 | £118,293 | £125,983 | 6.5% | £119,520 | £127,289 | 6.5% |
| L42 | £121,258 | £129,140 | 6.5% | £122,486 | £130,448 | 6.5% |
| L43 | £123,057 | £131,056 | 6.5% | £124,274 | £132,352 | 6.5% |
Are Support Staff Included in the Pay Award?
School support staff, including teaching assistants, are not part of the Teaching Pay Scale and are instead paid through local government processes. School support staff were offered a pay rise of £1,925 earlier this year, which was rejected by the major school support staff unions Unison, GMB and Unite.
These unions are currently balloting their members over industrial action from September 2023 onwards. We will update this page when there is more news on this.
What Does This Mean For Me?
If you are currently a teacher, are thinking about starting a teaching career, or a qualified teacher who wants to return to the classroom then you will benefit from higher pay in September 2023 and beyond.
If you’re thinking of starting a new teaching role, contact us today. We have jobs available across the UK on short-term, permanent, and long-term contracts.
