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How to review your teachers' pay policy

Last reviewed on 8 October 2021
Ref: 35878
School types: All · School phases: All

Know what questions to ask to make sure your teachers' pay policy is compliant and robust, so you can be confident when approving it.

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Contents

  1. Key facts
  2. Statutes, guidance and documents
  3. What this policy needs to do
  4. Key questions to challenge the policy
  5. Model policy from The Key
  6. Examples from schools

What this policy needs to do

When you're reading your school's teacher pay policy, make sure it: 

  • Consistently links pay to performance
  • 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 shouldn't be dependent on the assessment data for a single group of pupils – these 2 points are based on the Teacher Workload Advisory Group's report, Making Data Work 
  • Sets out what evidence will be taken into account when making pay decisions
  • Sets out objective criteria for pay decisions so there's no discriminatory effect on any teacher with a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010
  • Has scope for most able teachers to progress rapidly where justified by consistently excellent performance
  • Details how teachers' applications for moving to the upper pay range will be assessed, as well as:
    • The process of applying
    • Application deadlines
  • Includes a formal pay appeals procedure

Key questions to challenge the policy

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