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On 22nd May 2025, the government confirmed it has accepted in full the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) recommendation of a 4% pay increase for all teachers and school leadership roles. This uplift takes effect from 1st September 2025 and applies to all pay points and allowances.
To help schools manage this increase, the government has announced an additional £615 million in funding for the 2025-26 academic year. This includes:
Schools will be expected to fund approximately the first 1% of the pay award, with the remainder covered by existing budget "headroom” and extra funding. The Department for Education (DfE) has also published mainstream and high needs rates and a calculator tool to help schools estimate their grant funding.
As part of a broader effort to improve recruitment and retention, the update also highlighted support for flexible working policies in schools. Furthermore, the School Support Staff Negotiating Body has been launched, marking the start of a structured dialogue around pay and conditions for support staff.
These changes come at a time of economic pressure, but the DfE has reiterated that its focus remains on ensuring every child has access to high-quality teaching and the opportunity to thrive.
The DfE made a commitment to confirming the 2025/26 Teachers’ Pay Award earlier than in previous years. This allows for better forward planning and ensures that the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) can be finalised before the summer holidays – addressing concerns about last-minute changes in prior years.
The STRB’s 35th report and the updated offer from the National Employers will no doubt have moved budget assumptions and potentially prompted additional reviews of staffing structures over the half-term. When considering sustainable structures and affordability, it’s important to use metrics contextually.
Integrated Curriculum and Financial Planning (ICFP)
ICFP metrics are a good indicator of where staffing expenditure is beginning to exceed affordable levels, however, they don’t necessarily recognise the context of individual Schools and Trusts, which must also be considered. For instance, natural staff turnover, such as retirements, may provide opportunities to rationalise staffing without resorting to redundancies.
Use Benchmarking to Provide Clarity
The DfE benchmarking tool is an excellent resource for comparing schools and trusts with similar characteristics. If benchmarking hasn’t yet been completed for the year, consider adding a slide deck to your budget presentation. This provides clarity, validating the budget assumptions for non-finance stakeholders and rooting your School or Trust’s assumptions contextually.
Present Quantified Options to Senior Teams and Trustees
Prepare both best-case and worst-case scenarios for staffing and budget planning scenarios for presentation to the Senior Leadership Team and Trustees. This is often a stressful period for CFOs and HR teams, but it’s crucial to remember that staffing structure decisions fall under Board-level accountability.
By quantifying options and updating your risk register, you help build a culture of collective responsibility and informed decision-making.
At Edwin People, we believe in providing strategic insight that supports Schools and Trusts in navigating complex policy updates. For tailored advice on workforce planning, budgeting or restructuring, get in touch with our team today.
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