Jeremy Miles MS, Minister for Education and the Welsh Language
I am pleased to publish today the third report of the Independent Welsh Pay Review Body (IWPRB), covering recommendations for amendments to teachers’ pay and conditions from September 2021.
I would like to thank the IWPRB for producing such a detailed and comprehensive report despite the inevitable difficulties and disruptions caused by the pandemic.
The IWPRB make 12 main recommendations, all of which I am minded to accept in principle and aim to implement from 1 September. The full list of recommendations in the Report is at Annex A. Briefly, these include:
- Uprating all pay scales and allowances by 1.75%; and
- Clarification and/or a review of policy in relation to certain existing terms and conditions.
Details of the new pay ranges for teachers are at Annex B.
Pay
These are uncertain times. Given the UK Government’s decision to freeze public sector pay, the Welsh Government did not receive any additional funding through the Barnett formula to provide for public sector wide pay awards in 2021-22, with the exception of the NHS and those on the lowest wages.
This is a decision of the UK Government’s making but has a direct consequence for Wales.
Teachers’ pay is a significant element of schools’ and local authorities’ budgets and I am well aware of the many competing pressures on budgets at the moment. The total cost of these proposals will be £14.87m this financial year and will need to be met from within existing local authorities’ budgets. Local authorities were required to accommodate potential public sector pay awards in this year’s budget planning following the £176m cash increase in the local government settlement provided by Welsh Government for 2021-22.
Terms and conditions
I welcome the recommendations relating to teachers’ terms and conditions.
Since devolution of powers over teachers’ pay and conditions we have diverged from the position in England by introducing a number of key changes, such as experience-based pay progression and national statutory pay scales. I welcome the IWPRB’s comments on these matters and intend to provide the clarifications they have sought.
I also accept the recommendations on the need for further research and the need for the IWPRB to carry out a comprehensive review of the structure of teachers’ and leaders’ pay and conditions. It is vitally important that the development of a more distinct national system here in Wales not only improves and enhances the system but is also fairer and more transparent for all teachers.
Next steps
I will now be inviting written comments from key stakeholders on: the IWPRB’s report; my response to the IWPRB key recommendations; and on the proposed increases to teachers’ pay.
Annex A
The following sets out the full set of recommendations from the IWPRB as published in its Third Report on 11 June 2021, together with my response.
|
No. |
Recommendation |
Proposed response/required action |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
We recommend that all statutory scale points on all pay scales, and all allowances, are increased by 1.75% in the context of current and forecast CPI inflation. |
1. Accept and amend STPC(W)D.
|
|
2 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government should clarify the distinction between an executive head teacher and head teacher within the STPC(W)D. |
There is currently no legal definition of an executive headteacher as roles and responsibilities vary, therefore:
Edit STPC(W)D to more clearly identify distinction between headteacher responsible for 1 school or more than 1 school;
Commission study of variation of headteacher roles including provision of formal definitions to provide clarity on titles such as “executive headteacher”.
|
|
3 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government advises school governing bodies to consider fully the institutional context and complexity when setting the pay for headteachers accountable for more than one school, using the discretionary powers available to them in the STPC(W)D. |
Write to employers highlighting appropriate section in STPC(W)D. |
|
4 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government reminds school governing bodies of their statutory responsibility to agree an annual pay policy for their school, which includes a statement on the school’s staffing structure and the positions which attract TLR payments and to consult and share this pay policy with staff. |
Write to employers highlighting appropriate section in STPC(W)D. |
|
5 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government consult on a change in the provision within the STPC(W)D to allow part-time teachers to receive full-time TLR1 and TLR2 payments, including schools using their own discretion in making such awards. |
Include as part of comprehensive review in Recommendation 8 below. |
|
6 |
We recommend to the Welsh Government that the definition of pay portability be encompassed in a set of mandatory and discretionary principles to be incorporated into the STPC(W)D from September 2021. |
Accept and include in new STPC(W)D. |
|
7 |
We recommend that work is undertaken, alongside the implementation of the ALNET (Wales) Act, to determine how ALNCos should be remunerated. |
Include as part of comprehensive review in Recommendation 8 below. |
|
8 |
We recommend to the Welsh Government that in view of the ambitions for education in Wales, the introduction of the Curriculum for Wales, and the lessons learned from the pandemic, a comprehensive review should be undertaken to ensure that the structure of teachers’ and leaders’ pay and conditions embraces aspirations for the future. |
Commission IWPRB to carry out Review (including allowances mentioned in 5 and 7 above). |
|
9 |
We recommend that in the next publication of the STPC(W)D the Welsh Government clarifies the position on the five-point scale; pay progression and performance and pay progression on the UPR, as recommended in the IWPRB’s 2020 report. |
Accept and include in STPC(W)D. |
|
10 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government urgently reviews the monitoring and reporting of equalities legislation at school and local authority level, and considers whether changes are required to the STPC(W)D and school pay policies, to ensure that schools and local authorities carry out their statutory duties regarding equalities. |
WG to consider and write to employers where necessary. |
|
11 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government reviews the guidance available to school governors on pay and conditions and publishes a governance handbook which is regularly updated. |
WG to consider existing guidance and update Governing Bodies as appropriate. |
|
12 |
We recommend that the Welsh Government should facilitate arrangements for future work on a model pay policy at a national level, thereby removing the need for this work to be replicated across regional consortia and local authorities. |
WG to facilitate arrangements for employers’ organisations to take forward future work on a model pay policy at a national level. |
In principle, I am minded to accept all of the IWPRB’s (R1-R12) recommendations above.
Annex B
Recommended pay scale points for 2021-2022
| Scale point | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| M2 (min) | £27,018 | £27,491 |
| M3 | £29,188 | £29,699 |
| M4 | £31,436 | £31,986 |
| M5 | £33,912 | £34,505 |
| M6 | £37,320 | £37,973 |
| Scale point | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| U1 | £38,690 | £39,367 |
| U2 | £40,124 | £40,826 |
| U3 | £41,604 | £42,332 |
| Scale point | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | £18,169 | £18,487 |
| 2 | £20,282 | £20,637 |
| 3 | £22,394 | £22,786 |
| 4 | £24,507 | £24,936 |
| 5 | £26,622 | £27,088 |
| 6 | £28,735 | £29,238 |
| 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|
| £42,402 - £64,461 | £43,144 - £65,589 |
| Allowance type | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| TLR1 | £8,291 - £14,030 | £8,436 - £14,276 |
| TLR2 | £2,873 - £7,017 | £2,923 - £7,140 |
| TLR3 | £571 - £2,833 | £581 - £2,883 |
| ALN | £2,270 - £4,479 | £2,310 - £4,557 |
| Scale point | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | £42,195 | £42,933 |
| 2 | £43,251 | £44,008 |
| 3 | £44,331 | £45,107 |
| 4 | £45,434 | £46,229 |
| 5 | £46,566 | £47,381 |
| 6 | £47,735 | £48,570 |
| 7 | £49,019 | £49,877 |
| 8 | £50,151 | £51,029 |
| 9 | £51,402 | £52,302 |
| 10 | £52,723 | £53,646 |
| 11 | £54,091 | £55,038 |
| 12 | £55,338 | £56,306 |
| 13 | £56,721 | £57,714 |
| 14 | £58,135 | £59,152 |
| 15 | £59,581 | £60,624 |
| 16 | £61,166 | £62,236 |
| 17 | £62,570 | £63,665 |
| 18* | £63,508 | £64,619 |
| 18 | £64,143 | £65,266 |
| 19 | £65,735 | £66,885 |
| 20 | £67,364 | £68,543 |
| 21* | £68,347 | £69,543 |
| 21 | £69,031 | £70,239 |
| 22 | £70,745 | £71,983 |
| 23 | £72,497 | £73,766 |
| 24* | £73,559 | £74,846 |
| 24 | £74,295 | £75,595 |
| 25 | £76,141 | £77,473 |
| 26 | £78,025 | £78,025 |
| 27* | £79,167 | £80,552 |
| 27 | £79,958 | £81,357 |
| 28 | £81,942 | £83,376 |
| 29 | £83,971 | £85,440 |
| 30 | £86,061 | £87,567 |
| 31* | £87,313 | £88,841 |
| 31 | £88,187 | £89,730 |
| 32 | £90,379 | £91,961 |
| 33 | £92,624 | £94,245 |
| 34 | £94,914 | £96,575 |
| 35* | £96,310 | £97,995 |
| 35 | £97,273 | £98,975 |
| 36 | £99,681 | £101,425 |
| 37 | £102,159 | £103,947 |
| 38 | £104,687 | £106,519 |
| 39* | £106,176 | £108,034 |
| 39 | £107,239 | £109,116 |
| 40 | £109,914 | £111,837 |
| 41 | £112,660 | £114,632 |
| 42 | £115,483 | £117,504 |
| 43 | £117,197 | £119,248 |
* These points and point 43 are the maximum salaries for the eight headteacher group ranges.