Secondary school teacher salary in the UK
ONS data for April 2025 · Page updated
Teachers in England are paid on pay ranges set nationally, but schools and academy trusts decide where you start and how you progress. That leaves more room to negotiate than many teachers assume, especially in shortage subjects.
- Median full-time pay
- £47,632
- 25th percentile
- £39,059
- 75th percentile
- £54,047
- Change on a year earlier
- +5%
How pay is spread
Line: 10th to 90th percentile. Bar: the middle half of earners (25th to 75th). Mark and label: median. Where ONS doesn't publish the 90th percentile, the line stops at the highest published point.
| Full-time annual pay | Secondary school teacher | All UK jobs |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | £32,058 | £23,990 |
| 25th percentile | £39,059 | £29,262 |
| Median | £47,632 | £39,039 |
| 75th percentile | £54,047 | £54,009 |
| 90th percentile | £62,402 | £76,903 |
| Mean | £47,170 | £48,512 |
ONS classifies this role as “Secondary education teaching professionals” (SOC 2020 code 2313). Figures cover full-time employees across the whole UK, at every level of seniority, so a senior role in London or at a large employer will usually sit above the median. Pay by region for individual occupations isn't published reliably at city level.
What secondary school teachers can negotiate
Your starting point. Schools aren't obliged to match your previous salary when you move, so ask early. Point to your experience, results and any shortage subject you teach, such as maths, physics or computing.
Responsibility payments. Teaching and learning responsibility (TLR) payments are paid for extra responsibilities like leading a subject or year group. If a role includes these duties, ask for the TLR.
Academies and independent schools. Academy trusts can set their own pay policies, and independent schools usually set their own scales. Both can have more flexibility than local authority schools. Teachers in Scotland are paid on a separate national scale.
Get a target for your own offer or pay review
AI agents research live market data for your exact role, level, employer and city, and give you a target, a floor and the levers to pull. Free.
Run a free analysisFull negotiation £99 once. £5k+ uplift or a full refund.
Other roles
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2025 (provisional), Table 14.7a (occupation, SOC 2020). Gross annual pay for full-time employee jobs, April 2025. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. See how we use this data.