School science technician

School science technicians prepare the equipment, solutions and specimens that science lessons need, set up and clear away practicals, look after the labs and prep rooms and keep chemicals stored and used safely. Most work in secondary schools, often as part of a small team, and the posts are paid on the NJC pay spine for school support staff. Many are term-time only.

A day in the prep room

The work runs from requisition sheets. Teachers say what they need for each lesson (a class set of microscopes, 30 test tubes of dilute acid, a ripple tank) and the technician prepares it, gets it to the right lab on time and clears it away afterwards. On a busy day that can mean dozens of practicals across biology, chemistry and physics.

Alongside the daily prep, technicians:

• make up solutions to the right concentration and label them correctly
• order and check stock and manage the department budget for consumables
• maintain and test equipment, including electrical equipment and fume cupboards
• dispose of waste safely
• try out new practicals before teachers use them with a class
• help during practical lessons, especially with younger or less confident pupils

GCSE and A level specifications include required practicals that every student must do, so the department relies on its technicians to have them ready. When a requisition arrives late or a teacher changes plans at short notice, the pressure lands in the prep room.

Chemicals and safety

Handling hazardous substances is a large part of the job. Schools follow health and safety law on hazardous substances, and most use the advice and model risk assessments from CLEAPSS (or SSERC in Scotland) for how to store, prepare and use chemicals and equipment. Technicians are often the people who know those guides best and who check that the department’s risk assessments are current.

You will deal with corrosive, flammable and toxic substances, as well as radioactive sources in some schools and biological materials. Accurate labelling, proper storage and careful record-keeping are expected, and nobody should ask you to do something you have not been trained for. If they do, raise it with the head of department or the school’s health and safety lead. See health and safety rights for the general position.

Qualifications

Employers usually ask for GCSEs including English, maths and science, and often a Level 3 qualification in a science (A levels or a BTEC, for example) or relevant lab experience. Most posts do not require a degree, though some technicians have one. Senior technician roles usually want several years’ experience and the ability to manage a team and a budget.

There is a laboratory technician apprenticeship at Level 3, and some schools and trusts use it to train new technicians. Professional registration as a Registered Science Technician is available through professional bodies and is useful evidence of skills, though schools rarely require it.

Expect an enhanced DBS check with the children’s barred list and the usual school references.

Pay and contracts

Science technician posts in maintained schools and most academies use the NJC pay spine. For 2026/27 it runs from £25,614 at SCP 3 to £56,293 at SCP 43 for a full-time, all-year job. The point depends on the school’s job evaluation, and a technician will usually be graded lower than a senior technician who runs the prep room and supervises others. Look at the grade or spine points on each advert and check them against the NJC pay spine.

Most posts are term-time only, sometimes with a few extra days before term to set up, and the full-time salary on the advert is then reduced. Under the NJC advisory model, 39 weeks with a 36-day leave comparator comes to 86.778 per cent of full-time pay, then pro rata again for hours under 37. How term-time-only pay is calculated shows the method, and the take-home pay calculator does the tax.

Support staff usually join the Local Government Pension Scheme. In 2026/27 the main section charges 5.8 per cent on pay from £18,401 to £29,000 and 6.5 per cent on pay from £29,001 to £47,300. The band depends on what you actually earn, and the full-time figure does not enter into it.

Working with the science department

A technician’s week depends heavily on how the department plans. Requisitions handed in a week ahead make the job manageable, and requests on the morning of the lesson do not. Many prep rooms set a deadline for requisitions and keep a stock of standard practicals ready to go, and a good head of science backs the technicians when they enforce it.

Some periods are much busier than others. The run-up to GCSE and A level required practicals, mock exams with practical elements, and the start of the school year, when equipment has to be checked and restocked, all pile up work. Many technicians are on duty during exam season to help with the practical endorsement records for A level. If the department is short-staffed, ask at interview how cover works when a technician is absent.

Where it can lead

Some technicians stay in the role for decades, building deep expertise in practical science. Others move up to senior technician or a trust-wide technician lead. A good number move into teaching: lab experience is a strong background for a science teacher, and the bursaries for chemistry and physics trainees are among the largest available. Technicians with a design or engineering bent sometimes move across to design and technology technician work.