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How to review your teachers' pay policy

Understand the requirements and know what questions to ask when reviewing your teachers' pay policy. Read our model policy to see what good looks like – choose the version that reflects whether your school is retaining or stopping performance-related pay.

Last reviewed on 28 November 2024See updates
School types: All•School phases: All•Ref: 35878
Contents
  1. Key facts
  2. Legislation and guidance
  3. What this policy needs to do
  4. Performance-based pay progression is no longer mandatory
  5. Key questions to challenge the policy
  6. Model policies from The Key
  7. Model policy from the DfE
  8. Examples from schools

Key facts

  • This policy is statutory for maintained schools, under the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) 
  • It's not statutory for academies. However, the provisions of the STPCD apply to staff in academies who had their employment transferred when their school converted into an academy
  • The full governing board must approve it
  • It should be reviewed at least annually
  • It's best practice to consult with the unions represented at your school about your policy

Legislation and guidance

What this policy needs to do

Clearly sets out how teachers' objectives will be set and their performance assessed and moderated*. Note that: Objectives shouldn't be based on teacher-generated data and predictions  Pay progression doesn't need to be linked to performance – see below for more details Sets out what evidence will be taken into account when making pay decisions, and the