Negotiating starting salary in the public sector

You can negotiate a public sector starting salary, but only within the pay band or grade for the job, and the room depends on the employer. The usual request is to start on a higher pay point than the entry one, backed by evidence of relevant experience. Teachers moving schools and people moving between NHS trusts have the strongest case. Career changers starting at entry level usually have the least.

Why the room is limited

National structures set public sector pay: Agenda for Change in the NHS, the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document in England, the NJC pay spine for councils and school support staff, and departmental pay ranges in the Civil Service. Jobs are evaluated into a band or grade, and the employer cannot simply pay above it. Equal pay rules also make employers cautious about paying one new starter more than others in the same role without a documented reason.

What you can influence is where in the band you start, and occasionally whether a recruitment premium or supplement applies.

Where there is flexibility

Employer	Normal starting point	Room to negotiate
NHS (Agenda for Change)	Entry point of the band	Higher point possible for relevant experience under local policy; moving between NHS employers at the same band usually keeps your pay point
Teachers (England)	Set by the school’s pay policy	Schools decide where in the range to start you; previous pay is not automatically matched
Councils and school support staff	Bottom spine point of the grade	Some councils allow a higher spine point within the grade for experience or recruitment difficulty
Civil Service	Band minimum	Limited; some departments allow a higher starting salary with a business case

NHS

Under Agenda for Change, most bands have an entry point and a top point, with an intermediate point in bands 5 to 9. In England from 1 April 2026, band 5 starts at £32,073, has an intermediate point of £34,592 after two years and tops out at £39,043. A new band 5 normally starts at £32,073.

Trusts can appoint above the entry point where someone brings relevant experience, and each trust’s pay policy sets out how. If you have done similar work elsewhere, perhaps in private healthcare, overseas or in a closely related role, ask whether your experience can be recognised. Moving from one NHS employer to another at the same band, you would normally expect your current pay point to carry over, but check with the new trust before you accept. How the points work over time is in How pay progression works in the NHS.

Teachers

In England, maintained schools must follow the statutory minimum and maximum of each pay range, but the main pay points M1 to M6 are advisory. From September 2026 the recommended points outside London run from £34,069 (M1) to £46,940 (M6). A school decides where to place a new teacher under its own pay policy, and since pay portability was removed it does not have to match what you earned elsewhere.

Schools very often do match an experienced teacher’s current point, though, especially in shortage subjects, and academies set their own policies with similar flexibility. Raise it when the offer is made: say what point you are on now and ask for the same. Teacher pay scales in England 2026/27 has the full ranges, and the 2026 figures still depend on the final pay document being published.

Councils and school support staff

NJC grades cover several spine points. In 2026/27 the spine runs from SCP 3 (£25,614) to SCP 43 (£56,293), and a typical grade spans three or four points. New starters usually begin at the bottom point of the grade, then move up a point each year until they reach the top.

Some councils allow appointment higher in the grade where the candidate has significant relevant experience, or where a post is hard to fill. Others never do. Ask HR for the pay policy, and see Spine points explained for how grades and points fit together.

Civil Service

Each department sets its own pay ranges for each grade, and most start new entrants at the minimum. The 2026/27 pay remit guidance caps headline pay growth at a maximum of 3.5 per cent of the departmental paybill, which limits how much flexibility managers have. Some departments allow a higher starting salary for scarce skills, particularly in digital and specialist professions, but it usually needs approval above the hiring manager.

How to ask

Timing matters. Raise pay once you have the conditional offer and before you accept the written terms. Ask in writing, briefly, and give reasons:

1. Your current salary or pay point, if it is higher than what is offered.
2. The relevant experience you bring, linked to the job description.
3. Any qualifications or registrations above the essential criteria.

Ask for a specific point, not a vague “something higher”. If the answer is no, ask whether a market supplement, relocation package or recruitment premium applies, as some hard-to-fill roles carry one. Then work out what the offer actually means in your pocket with the take-home pay calculator.