Pay Rates from 2018
Agenda for Change Pay Rates
View the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook known as Agenda for Change for the full terms and conditions of NHS employment.
From 2018/19 onwards, pay points are expressed in terms of the years of experience required to attain each level of pay, measured from the anniversary of appointment. Legacy pay-point numbers are no longer used.
Looking for the full 2018–2021 pay scale? The complete Table 10 — every band and pay point for 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 — is published in the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook. For the current rates, see our Pay Rates page.
How the pay bands were restructured
From 1 April 2018
- Points were removed from the bottom of each pay band to start removing the overlaps between bands. For 2018/19 the bottom overlap point was removed from each band — the exception being band 2, where the bottom three points were removed. The restructuring of band 1 was complete from 1 April 2018.
- Band 1 closed to new starters from 1 December 2018.
- Further substantive pay points were removed on 1 April 2019 and 1 April 2020.
- A minimum rate of £17,460 was introduced from 1 April 2018.
- The top pay points in bands 2–8c were increased by 3%. The top points in bands 8d and 9 were increased by the monetary value of the increase to band 8c.
From 1 April 2019
- Further restructuring removed points from the bottom of bands 3–9.
- The top pay point in bands 2–8c increased by 1.7%; bands 8d and 9 increased by the monetary value of the band 8c increase.
- Staff on the top pay point of their band on 31 March 2019 received a one-off non-consolidated lump sum (1.1% of the top point for bands 2–8c; bands 8d and 9 matched the band 8c value).
Table 10(a) — One-off non-consolidated cash payments for 2019/20
| Top of Band | Years of experience | 2019/20 |
|---|---|---|
| Band 2 | 7 | £209 |
| Band 3 | 7 | £229 |
| Band 4 | 7 | £261 |
| Band 5 | 8 | £331 |
| Band 6 | 9 | £410 |
| Band 7 | 9 | £481 |
| Band 8A | 6 | £559 |
| Band 8B | 6 | £671 |
| Band 8C | 6 | £799 |
| Band 8D | 6 | £799 |
| Band 9 | 6 | £799 |
From 1 April 2020
- Further restructuring completed the changes to bands 2–9.
- The top pay points in bands 2–8c increased by 1.67%; bands 8d and 9 increased by the monetary value of the band 8c increase.
- Staff on the following transitional pay points on 31 March 2021 moved to the next point up on 1 April 2021: £27,416 (Band 5), £33,779 (Band 6) and £41,723 (Band 7).
- Certain points in bands 8a–9 received additional one-off consolidated payments in 2020/21, paid in monthly instalments (see Table 10(b)).
Table 10(b) — One-off consolidated cash payments to specific points in bands 8a–9 (2020/21)
| Band | Years of experience | Basic pay (2020/21) | One-off consolidated payment | Total pay (2020/21) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8a | 4 | £45,753 | £765 | £46,518 |
| 8a | 5 | £45,753 | £2,766 | £48,519 |
| 8b | 4 | £53,168 | £2,282 | £55,450 |
| 8b | 5 | £53,168 | £5,215 | £58,383 |
| 8c | 4 | £63,751 | £1,180 | £64,931 |
| 8c | 5 | £63,751 | £5,534 | £69,285 |
| 8d | 4 | £75,914 | £1,949 | £77,863 |
| 8d | 5 | £75,914 | £5,907 | £81,821 |
| 9 | 4 | £91,004 | £3,209 | £94,213 |
| 9 | 5 | £91,004 | £7,732 | £98,736 |
Amendment number 39: NHS TCS Advisory Notice 01/2018
Last updated 13 July 2018
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