Wales issues teachers’ pay order from 6 March 2026
If you teach or lead in a maintained school in Wales, a new legal order now sets how your pay and working time are determined for 2025/26. The School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions (Wales) Order 2026 takes effect on 6 March 2026 and is the legal switch that moves schools onto the latest rules and guidance. This confirms how salaries are calculated and how contractual duties are framed for the rest of the academic year. (gov.wales)
Welsh Government has published two updated versions of the statutory document that the Order points to. The “revised February 2026” document covers the period from 1 September 2025 up to and including 7 March 2026. From 8 March 2026, the “revised March 2026” document takes over. Think of it as a two-step handover so pay awards can be backdated while new conditions start in March. (gov.wales)
Who’s covered is straightforward. The documents apply to teachers employed by local authorities or governing bodies of maintained schools in Wales. If you work in an independent school or further education, your pay and conditions are set separately by your employer, not by this Order. (gov.wales)
On pay itself, Welsh Government guidance confirms a 4% uplift to all statutory scale points and allowances, effective from 1 September 2025. That means you should see back pay calculated from that date once your employer runs the update. If something looks off on your payslip, ask for a breakdown showing how the uplift was applied from September. (gov.wales)
Additional Learning Needs Coordinators are a headline change. Ministers are moving ALNCos onto the leadership group pay and conditions, following the Independent Welsh Pay Review Body’s recommendations. The backdated pay award runs from 1 September 2025, but the leadership terms themselves start in March and are not retrospective; government has also signalled extra funding to support the move, and back pay may land in different months depending on local processes. (gov.wales)
There’s also a simplification many classroom teachers will welcome. The need to submit a formal application to move from the main to the upper pay scale is removed, implementing a key recommendation from the IWPRB’s strategic review. Schools should update their pay policies to reflect this and make sure performance and progression conversations focus on evidence, not paperwork hurdles. (gov.wales)
Dates to have in your diary help with planning. The “revised February 2026” document is the basis for pay and conditions from 1 September 2025 to 7 March 2026, and the “revised March 2026” document applies from 8 March 2026. Welsh Government published both on 4 February 2026, so you can cross-check any local messages against the official text. (gov.wales)
What this means for you as staff: check your contract or latest salary letter against the new statutory scales, and look out for back pay covering the period since September. If you’re an ALNCo, speak with your headteacher about where you’ll sit on the leadership pay range and when that will show in payroll. For supply staff, confirm the daily rate your employer is using from September onward to ensure it reflects the uplift. (gov.wales)
What this means for heads and business managers: refresh your pay policy, update leadership structures where ALNCos are moving, and brief governing bodies on the changeover dates. The 2025 Order currently underpins pay and conditions but is replaced by the 2026 Order from 6 March; from 8 March, use the March 2026 document for day‑to‑day decisions on duties and working time. (legislation.gov.uk)
If you want to read the source material, head to the Welsh Government pages for the “revised February 2026” and “revised March 2026” School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions documents, and to legislation.gov.uk for confirmation of the new 2026 Order’s title and status. We’ve used these official texts to check the dates and changes so you don’t have to. (gov.wales)