England teachers to get 3.5% pay rise in 2026 and 3% in 2027

Teachers in England will receive a pay increase of 3.5 percent starting in September 2026, followed by a further 3 percent rise in September 2027. The government announced the multi-year deal on July 1, accepting the recommendations of the independent School Teachers’ Review Body in full. The cumulative increase of 6.5 percent over two years is above the current inflation rate of 2.8 percent.

To support the pay rises, the Department for Education said it will provide an additional 1.8 billion pounds to schools over the two-year period. However, schools will be required to fund the first one percent of each annual award from their existing budgets. An additional 485 million pounds will be allocated to further education colleges to aid in recruiting and retaining staff.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson stated the deal, backed by significant investment, shows the immense value placed on teachers while providing budgetary certainty for schools. She also emphasized that classroom teachers should not see executive pay rise faster than their own.

Concurrent with the pay announcement, the government introduced new controls on academy trust executive compensation. Starting in...