The 2026/27 values
The School teachers’ pay and conditions document 2026 (STPCD) is dated 14 October 2026 and is valid from 1 September 2026. Following the School Teachers’ Review Body’s 36th report, it applies a 3.5% increase to all pay and allowance ranges from 1 September 2026.
| Payment | Annual value from 1 September 2026 | Paragraph |
|---|---|---|
| TLR1 | £10,531 to £17,819 | 20.2(a) |
| TLR2 | £3,651 to £8,913 | 20.2(b) |
| TLR3 (fixed term) | £727 to £3,600 | 20.3 |
| SEN allowance | £2,885 to £5,690 | 21.1 |
The document also sets a 3% increase from 1 September 2027 (Annex 5). From then, a TLR1 will be £10,847 to £18,354, a TLR2 £3,761 to £9,181 and a TLR3 £749 to £3,708.
The values are the same everywhere in England. There are no London TLR rates.
Who the STPCD applies to
The STPCD sets pay for teachers in maintained schools in England. Academy trusts set their own pay terms. Many follow the STPCD, but they don’t have to, so check your contract and the trust’s pay policy.
What a TLR is for
A school “may award a TLR payment to a classroom teacher for undertaking a sustained additional responsibility, for the purpose of ensuring the continued delivery of high-quality teaching and learning and for which the teacher is made accountable” (paragraph 20.1). Unqualified teachers can’t be awarded TLRs.
Before awarding any TLR, the school must be satisfied the role includes a significant responsibility that isn’t required of all classroom teachers and that (paragraph 20.4):
- is focused on teaching and learning
- requires the teacher’s professional skills and judgement
- requires the teacher to lead, manage and develop a subject or curriculum area, or to lead and manage pupil development across the curriculum
- has an impact on the progress of pupils beyond the teacher’s own classes
- involves leading, developing and enhancing the teaching practice of other staff
For a TLR3, the third and fifth points don’t have to apply.
TLR1 or TLR2? A TLR1 also needs “line management responsibility for a significant number of people” (paragraph 20.5). A teacher can’t hold a TLR1 and a TLR2 at the same time, but can hold either alongside a TLR3.
TLR3 is for “clearly time-limited school improvement projects, or one-off externally driven responsibilities” (paragraph 20.3). Its length must be set at the start, it is paid monthly, and the school shouldn’t award consecutive TLR3s for the same responsibility (Section 3, paragraph 55).
Typical roles
The STPCD doesn’t list roles, so no TLR is attached to a job title nationally. Each school decides which posts carry a TLR, at what level and value, in its staffing structure and pay policy (Section 3, paragraph 48). The value should reflect the weight of the job, and posts of equal weight should get equal value (paragraph 50).
- Head of department or subject lead. “Lead, manage and develop a subject or curriculum area” is one of the criteria. With line management of a significant number of people, the post can be a TLR1. Without it, a TLR2 is the option.
- Second in department. The post needs to meet the same criteria in its own right, including leading the practice of other staff. If it doesn’t include line management of a significant number of people, it can’t be a TLR1.
- Head of year or pastoral lead. “Lead and manage pupil development across the curriculum” is the criterion that fits pastoral roles. TLR1 or TLR2 depends on the scope and line management.
- SENCO. The STPCD doesn’t mention the SENCO. Schools recognise the role in different ways, including a TLR, an SEN allowance where paragraph 21.2 applies, or a post on the leadership range.
- Deputy DSL. Safeguarding isn’t named in the TLR criteria. See the deputy DSL guide.
Section 3, paragraph 49 says teachers can’t be expected to take on responsibility for a subject area, or to manage other teachers, without appropriate additional payment.
Part-time teachers: the September 2026 change
From 1 September 2026, TLR1s and TLR2s are no longer automatically pro rata. The school must set the value “based on the proportion of the TLR the teacher is undertaking - i.e. the proportion of the full-time equivalent responsibility” (paragraph 20.6). This was optional from September 2025 and became mandatory in 2026.
In practice:
- a part-time teacher who takes on all of a TLR role can receive the full TLR
- a full-time teacher who shares a TLR role can receive part of it
- the share and the duties must be agreed in writing, and should fit within the teacher’s normal hours (Section 3, paragraph 52)
A TLR3 is never pro rata (paragraph 20.7). Salary and other allowances, including the SEN allowance, are still pro rata (paragraph 42.1).
When a TLR changes or ends
A TLR1 or TLR2 is “permanent while the postholder remains in the same post in the staffing structure” (Section 3, paragraph 53). Its value should only change when there is a national change to TLR values, or when the school reviews its staffing structure and decides the responsibilities have materially changed (paragraph 50).
If a restructure removes or reduces a TLR1 or TLR2, the teacher is normally entitled to a safeguarded sum: the difference between the old and new payment (paragraphs 30.1(b) and 31.2). The school must write to the teacher within one month of the decision, giving the reason, the amounts and when protection ends (paragraph 32). The safeguarded sum is paid until the third anniversary of the relevant date, or sooner if, for example, the teacher takes a new payment of equal or higher value (paragraph 33).
There’s no protection for:
- TLR3s, which end on the date set at the start
- temporary TLR1s and TLR2s, such as one awarded to cover maternity leave or a vacancy, which end when the cover ends
- TLRs held on fixed-term contracts, which end with the contract
Working out your pay
Use the teacher pay calculator to add a TLR or SEN allowance to any 2026/27 salary point, including part-time pay. Browse pastoral, SEND and leadership jobs to see how schools advertise these roles.