Academies will retain the ability to pay their staff more despite having to follow national pay rates, Bridget Phillipson has said, adding new laws will introduce a teacher salary “floor but no ceiling”.
Appearing in from of education committee MPs for the first time today, Phillipson was asked to explain why her schools bill proposed revoking academy freedoms on pay.
Under the plans, academies would be forced to follow national pay scales.
Phillipson said today the proposal would introduce a “floor” on teacher pay and conditions, but “with no ceiling”. She also used a similar phrase for the proposed rules requiring academies to follow the national curriculum.
A handful of trusts pay teachers above national rates, others also provide more flexibility.
Phillipson told MPs government wants to introduce a “solid floor for all teachers working across the profession with clear expectations”, but ensure “every school has the freedom to innovate and go beyond”.
‘No ceiling on teacher pay’
Shadow education secretary Laura Trott called the admission a “U-turn”, adding “if that really is [Phillipson’s] intention, why does the bill not make that clear?”.
A government document explaining the schools bill states relevant clauses in the Education Act 2002 would be extended to academies, “allowing the secretary of state to determine academy teacher remuneration and conditions”.
“This will largely mirror the provisions that currently exist in the maintained school sector,” it added.
Currently, national pay scales also do have a maximum salary for different school roles and pay levels.
Phillipson claimed to MPs there had been “confusion and worry” over the proposal, but reiterated on pay and conditions: “All schools will have full flexibility to innovate, with a floor and no ceiling on what that means.”
A government document explaining the schools bill added while “most academies do [already] follow the statutory pay and conditions framework, the current system means that a teacher could expect different terms and conditions, depending on whether they work in a maintained school or academy trust – there is no guarantee of a core offer for school teachers.
“Expanding the statutory framework to include academy schools and alternative provision academies will mean all state school teachers can expect a core pay and conditions package regardless of which school type they work in.”
‘Innovation and flexibility for all’
There appears to be little difference in teacher pay by school type.
In 2023-24, the median salary for a classroom teacher was £44,870 in secondary academies and £44,677 in LA-maintained secondaries, government workforce data shows.
The median salary was the same in primary academies and maintained schools, at £41,333.
Pay for academy leaders has risen – but the proposal would not cover academy trust executive pay, over which Phillipson has expressed misgivings.
Phillipson told MPs today she said she wants to make the “innovation, flexibility and excellence” which she has seen in the schools system, “much of which I’ve seen in the academies system … available to all schools”.
When questioned on the evidence behind inclusion of this law, Phillipson said it was a “combination of how we want to approach the wider package where it comes to being a teacher: it’s about pay and conditions.
“Lots of what I hear from teachers across the country: yes there are challenges on pay … but some of the biggest challenges are around flexibility and how we make teaching a really attractive place for our best graduates.”
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