Part-time teachers: how pay and hours are worked out

A part-time teacher in a maintained school in England is paid the same percentage of the full-time salary as the percentage of the timetabled teaching week they work. Directed time is cut by the same percentage. Both are worked out from the school’s timetabled teaching week under the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document 2026, so two part-time contracts at the same school can look similar and still have different mixes of teaching and non-contact time.

How the percentage is calculated

The school’s timetabled teaching week is the time in the timetable when pupils are normally taught. It includes PPA and other non-contact time, and excludes breaks, registration and assemblies. Your percentage is the number of those hours you are employed for, divided by the total for a full-time classroom teacher at the same school.

The DfE guidance gives a worked example. Suppose a full-time teacher’s timetabled week is 25 hours. A part-time teacher works every morning from 9.00 to 12.15, which is 3 hours once a 15 minute break is taken out. That is 15 hours out of 25, or 60 per cent. The percentage stays the same however the school’s timetable cycle runs, weekly, fortnightly or otherwise.

Salary and allowances are then paid at that percentage, with the exception of TLRs. The same percentage applies to any additional hours you agree to work at the head’s request. The pro rata salary guide explains the general idea outside teaching.

Directed time

A full-time teacher has 1,265 hours of directed time. A part-timer has the same percentage of it. In the example above, 60 per cent of 1,265 gives 759 hours.

The percentage does not decide the mix of teaching, PPA and non-contact time. The guidance says two part-timers at 50 per cent can have different amounts of each. PPA is still guaranteed as part of your hours: at least 10 per cent of your timetabled teaching time. See the guide to teachers’ contract limits.

Days off and extra duties

You cannot be required to work or attend non-pupil days, or parts of days, on days you do not normally work. You can attend by agreement with the head, and the extra hours are paid by the same percentage. You can be asked to do directed-time work outside school sessions on days you do work, but the share of non-pupil time must not be higher than a full-timer’s. The guidance warns that giving a part-timer a larger proportion of directed time outside their sessions may amount to discrimination. INSET time is pro rata too, as explained in the 195-day year guide.

The guidance expects the school to give every part-time teacher a written, agreed statement of how working time will be used, covering timetabled teaching, leadership and management time where it applies, and expectations for directed time beyond the school day.

TLRs and part-time work

TLR3s are not pro-rated. For TLR1s and TLR2s, the rules changed on 1 September 2026: payment now depends on the proportion of the full-time responsibility you take on. That can differ from your salary percentage. The responsibilities agreed must be set out in writing and be capable of being done within your normal hours. The guidance asks schools to advertise TLRs so they are open to staff on any working pattern, and mentions women returning part-time from maternity leave and teachers returning from long-term sickness. The TLR guide has the values.

Rights and pension

Part-time teachers have the same legal protection against less favourable treatment as other part-time workers. The STPCD guidance says contracts must comply with the Part-time Workers Regulations 2000 and the Equality Act 2010. The part-time worker rights guide covers the general law, and the part-time pension guide explains how part-time service counts.

What to check

• Ask for your percentage and how it was calculated, and check it against the timetable.
• Look at your written working-time statement. It should show timetabled teaching, PPA and expectations beyond the school day.
• Check that your directed time is the same percentage of 1,265 hours, and that PPA is at least 10 per cent of your timetabled teaching.
• If you hold or want a TLR, get the agreed responsibilities and the payment in writing.