Pay Rise for Teachers

After a long pay freeze teachers are to receive as much as a 3.5% raise

Ever since 2013 teachers have had to endure their pay increases being capped at 1% - and for the last 2 years their salaries have been completely frozen. Of course austerity measures have affected many different professions in the public sector - but many have felt the 1% cap, which showed little signs of ever being lifted, has been particularly harsh on the teaching profession. Recent analysis published by the Institute of Fiscal Studies has revealed that school funding has been cut by 8% since the Conservatives came to power.

The good news is that teachers are due a pay rise from September, as the public sector pay freeze has finally been lifted. The government has announced a 3.5% pay rise, with those on the main pay scale receiving the full 3.5% raise, and those already enjoying the upper ranges (mainly heads of departments) getting a 2% raise. `Leaders,` such as school heads can expect a 1.5% rise.

The Education secretary Damian Hinds expressed what this rise, the first in many years, would mean for teachers:

`This will mean that teaching continues to be a competitively rewarded career, and I will continue to work with the profession, Ofsted and the unions on issues like excessive workload, professional development and flexible working, to make sure teaching remains an attractive, fulfilling profession.`

Indications that teachers were in line for a pay increase were revelled some time ago, but teachers had to wait many weeks for the news to be confirmed, and the hard figures to be published. The costs for this increase will be £508 million, spread over 2 years, but will not actually be funded by any new money from the treasury.

It is understood that the schools themselves will not actually have to pay the full costs out of their budgets. The department for education is working under the assumption that the schools will have been budgeting for a one percent pay rise for some time, and will be in a position to cover the majority of the pay increase; the remainder will come from savings elsewhere in the budget of the DOE.

Teachers` unions have been fighting for a pay rise for many years, and have always been clear in their opinion that the long pay freeze has been contributory to the growing recruitment and retention issues in the profession.

There are many who say that the 1.5% raise is not sufficient, especially after such a prolonged period where wages have not risen at all. five major education unions, which represent teachers and school leaders throughout England and Wales, were asking for a 5% fully-funded pay rise.

This figure was calculated to provide a cost-of-living increase, along with acting a first step towards restoring `the real value of teaching salaries to 2010 levels`. One can only imagine the unions will be disappointed with the figures offered.

According to the Department for Education, established teachers will see their salaries rise by between £1,184 and £1,366, while the salaries for new teachers will grow by between £800 and £1,000. This all sounds like good news - who wouldn`t want a £1000 pay rise? Of course with inflation currently at around 2.4%, the real value of these pay increase are largely negated in real financial terms.