Model Pay Policy for Schools

A revised Model Pay Policy which can be accessed via the above hyperlink is commended to you for adoption by the Governing Body. The text has been subject to consultation with the recognised Teacher Professional Associations and Unison in respect of support staff.

The revisions reflect changes in the last two years, most particularly the requirement in the Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document 2004, that a pay policy is mandatory and that a date has to be set by which the Governing Body will determine annual pay reviews.

In addition, it is now also a requirement that schools establish appeal arrangements, the grounds of which are prescribed. This reflects the Secretary of State's decision to end external validation of the Head's decision on the award of the threshold from 1st September 2004 and the fact that if, as a result of this, an appeals process would be needed to be introduced in relation to the threshold, there was a good case for extending access to such a process to teachers (or support staff) who might be aggrieved against any pay decision of the Governing Body.

Other changes are mainly technical and reflect changes introduced particularly in the Teachers Pay and Conditions Document 2004.

With the forthcoming demise of Management Allowances and the introduction of Teaching and Learning Responsibility Payments (TLR's), there will inevitably be further changes to the Model Pay Policy in due course. However, given the nature of the phasing out of Management Allowances and the introduction of TLR's over a period of three years and the current lack of clarity on the technical elements of these at present, it may be that it will be around this time in 2006 that the next revision to the Model Pay Policy is completed as I envisage that the forthcoming changes will require a good deal of local consultation with the trade unions.

You will have noted that the pay policy is described on the front cover as Appendix C. This will enable you to insert this directly into your Personnel Handbook if you print it off manually.

Should you wish to seek advice or clarification on any aspect of the model policy, please contact your allocated Personnel Officer or Personnel Consultant in the first instance.