The 3.5% increase, recommended by the School Teachers Review Body (STRB), will apply from 1 September 2026.
The pay award applies to all maintained schools. Academies can choose to follow it.
The pay award will be partially funded
Schools will be expected to cover the first 1% of each pay award through "continued efforts to maximise value from their budgets".
Get advice on how to budget for expenditure on staffing in our other article.
The DfE hasn't yet given further detail on additional funding.
More changes are planned
From September 2027, teachers' and leaders' pay is expected to increase by a further 3%, bringing the total increase to 6.5% over the next 2 years.
Next steps
Use the DfE's salary calculator to find out how teacher salaries could change in your school from September.
School teachers' pay and progression: summary table Teachers' pay