Education secretary Nicky Morgan has recommended that teachers' pay rises remain capped at 1%, but that schools be permitted to offer additional lump sum payments, Schools Week reports.
In a letter to the School Teachers' Review Body (STRB), Ms Morgan suggested that schools should be able to reward good performance by paying teachers "non-consolidated payments" on top of their salaries.
The article also says that Ms Morgan asked the STRB to consider allowing schools to move teachers from the upper pay scale to the main pay scale, and to provide salaries in advance to enable teachers to pay rent deposits.
It relays her claims that such arrangements would give schools more flexibility to reward good performance.
It quotes NUT general secretary Christine Blower as saying that the government has