Pay Cap

[McDougal]

This may be a ridiculously stupid question but google hasn't helped.

I'm doing PGCE next year. Hopefully I'll get a job at the end of it and am assuming I'll be on M1.

This is the stupid part....following my first year, would I go up to M2 or is this what the cap is all about? I know that often it is performance related but if all was well, would moving up to M2 be blocked by the cap?

I probably sound too clueless to be a teacher but sometimes it's just better to ask people who are already doing it!

When I say next year, I mean September. Just finished second year so I'm already in the academic year mindset.

Oh right. That makes sense. Thank you.

No wonder my course is so under subscribed this year

I'm sure it will continue to be while this government strips the education system to the bones

It would depend on the pay policy of the school.

There are usually pay scales - you would start somewhere on the scale. Whether you move up the scale depends on performance. The policy should indicate how many steps up the scale you can go e.g. Could be 2 steps for outstanding, 1 for good and 0 if not good.

The pay cap applies to the % pay rise before performance increases. So if a 1% increase is applied across the scales then all steps will increase by 1%.

Thank you, Fan. So the cap applies to the standard annual pay rise which is usually outstripped by inflation anyway?

Fingers crossed the school I hopefully get a job in has a two step increase and that I'm 'outstanding' enough to get it

The amount at each pay point increases by 1% each year.

In the early days you can increase your salary by more than 1% by moving up a pay point according to your school's pay policy; performance etc.

But when you reach the top of the pay scale your pay rises will be limited to the increase in the amount at that pay point which is when your pay starts to be eroded by inflation.