Civil Service Pay - Increments?

[87SPD]

Hi there,

I have applied for a SEO job as a civil servant, the pay is £37,064 with an extra allowance for a qualification (which I have).

I am currently in an NHS role band 5 so this is a good pay offer for pretty much the same job I am doing now. My question is, do you get increments each year? How does it work? I obviously don't want to be sat on that salary for years to come!

Any info/advice?

TIA :)

Is that the bottom of the SEO band for that role? And definitely for the area you're in (national, central London, outer London)?

Yes in some agencies there are increments, however it's not straight forward. Many agencies have a banding for the role with a minimum and a maximum and the bottom of the payband will likely be brought up by the annual payrise each year to be closer to the max. I'm at the max in my HEO role, but I entered in this having dropped from SEO to HEO.

@PinkFootstool thanks for the response.

It just states that salary (outside London). Not from and to if that makes sense.

I would really like the job but I am worried about the increase (or lack of) in pay! I would also be reducing my annual leave as I have over 5 years service in NHS which increases my A/L allowance but I can overlook that.

Would you mind me asking for your experience working as a Civil Servant?

Thanks again

There are no increments in any civil service department I've ever worked in. You stay at the bottom of the band, which increases every year (generally by less than inflation). The only way to get a bigger salary increase is by moving departments to one that pays more, or getting promoted.

@JoanOgden thank you that is what I thought. I know it varies but what is the approx % of increase each year?

Also would you mind sharing your experience of working for the Civil Service?

I am used to public sector with being in the NHS but can imagine it is quite different.

I came from the NHS and have really enjoyed the flexibility and ability to work from home. Will obviously depend on the role but I tend to get set projects/pieces of work and left to get on with it and plan my own work which I appreciate.

The one thing I will warn you about is expect things to be slooooow. It will take a long time to get into post. It will take a long time to get set up with all your IT and systems. It takes a long time for any updates to get rolled out or to get new equipment or often to get information from another department. It can feel a bit alarming at first if you feel like you aren’t getting things done but nobody will blame you for it.

I'm not sure an average would be helpful. It's usually slightly below inflation (this year I imagine it will be a long way below inflation) but varies between departments.

I've been very happy in the civil service (previously worked in the private sector) but experiences are varied. It's true that most things take ages, but when work is really urgent it can be turned around very quickly indeed.

No increment increases for the last 10ish years now. You stay where you are, unless there's a pay award agreed.

Good luck with the new role

Been working in the Civil Service for over 10 years, never received an incremental pay increase, only an increase when the pay award rolls round every year (usually between 2% and 2.5%, although this year could be up to 5%), or on promotion - I started as an AO, now G7 in broad Civil Servant "Speak".

Some departmental salaries include the London weighting within the salary, others list the salary and then the LW is included on top. Depending on the department, even outwith London you might receive an RRA (Retention and Recruitment Allowance).

All the best with the application.

Really appreciate the insight, where I work now is very slow!

It also is really frustrating that if you want to get on and show initiative you just get all of the work that others won't do because they are 'difficult' to deal with.

It has disheartened me so much as I have taken more on but no sign of any progression due to budget cuts etc. Yet there are so many staff in the same band or lower who literally get away with doing half my workload because they claim stress etc which could be valid I am not knocking them personally but it does frustrate me that management don't really care as long as 'somebody' is doing the work! I find I am doing things way below and way above my pay grade so there is no consistency or satisfaction, it all feels very pointless.

I just want out of this environment and start a fresh where I can really use my skills properly and feel like I can get stuck into projects etc that I know I am more than capable of doing.

I am worried that I am jumping from one sinking ship to another though, I don't mind a slow start or even a slow pace as long as the work I get is of some value. Hope that makes sense! The department I have applied to is relatively new and one that I have a strong interest in.

Really do appreciate your responses. Thank you

My experience in an arms length body but linked to CS pay deals is that it doesn’t go up just 1-2% per year the last few years. Really frustrating as you can be at your level with 10yrs experience but paid same as a new starter. It’s the reason many staff have left, I’ve been lucky/pushed to move up and have a good hybrid role that suits my work life balance. I have family who work in the Nhs and they seem to work many more hours & with higher stress but that’s in nursing.

HMPPS had increment increases when I was there (admittedly a year ago) so you went up a spine point in your band depending on the results of your competency based framework. It was a relatively new thing though.

Similar to others. Been in the civil service nearly 14 years now. no increments at all. Each year had between 0-2% in pay rises. This year we are getting an amazing 4.5% with an additional £1.5k non consolidated payment for cost of living and my eyes are lighting up. Had several years of pay freezes.

however, the promotion jumps are pretty high and depending on Departments etc the jump to G7 from SEO can be anywhere between about a 10-20k bump and G6 is about an additional 10k on top of that.

As for working in the civil service there are massive pros and cons. Flexible working and working from home is an amazing one especially with family. A/L is pretty generous (I think all departments have 25 to start and then 30 after max 5 years now) and you can earn flexi leave if you want more than that. 6 months maternity pay which is waaay more generous than the NHS one and 5 months full pay for sickness.

However, you are often desk bound - more so since covid as meetings are all online - so it can get tedious. Beaucracy can make work frustrating and you are very demonised by the media.

Any other questions happy yo help

The £1.5K is before tax and NI (of course) - still welcome but I have had to remind a couple of colleagues who had already spent the 1.5K amount in their heads.

I agree re most of the pros and cons - the biggest frustration for me is that we had a 40% hybrid working model but no thought has been given to how some people might not be able to afford that given the steep rise in commuting costs; my job as well quite often can be done WFH so feels like a waste of my time and money to have to traipse into London just to be a "bum on a seat"/satisfy various particular MPs....I get, at best, about 5 hours of productivity in the office, yet at home can easily be 7/8 hours of productivity (and I get the laundry done).

This is really interesting thank you!

One more question, if it says 40% office working does that actually happen? Or is it more laid back to allow the worker to choose? I currently wfh full time and have become so withdrawn in myself, realised I do need the human interaction even if it is just a natter whilst getting a coffee from the kitchen. I have also put a LOT of weight on as I can't stop snacking 🤦‍♀️ A couple of days going out to work would feel like the push I need to get back into some sort of 'social' routine again.

Also bit bizarre but I have previously stood in a local election, will this be flagged at vetting and scupper my chance of being employed? No longer involved in it.

It does sound like a really interesting role that I have the criteria for, I am always wanting to develop and would most likely seek promotion/progression at some point.

So for my Department, it really should be a "minimum" of 40%, however a lot is down to managerial/head of unit discretion; as an LM I do take into account differing circumstances - some in my team prefer being in the office for the social interaction (which I get), some don't like it, like I say I'm much more productive at home, and trains/strikes can make the commute an absolute bl**dy nightmare. If you're worried, have a chat with your manager.

In terms of vetting - be honest. They know the truth already, they're just looking to make sure you are being truthful. Depending on the level of vetting, I wouldn't imagine it would cause a problem, but better to be safe than sorry IMO.

Also, if you haven't already, reach out to the recruiting line manager, have a chat with them, and get to grips with what the role is really about. CS job adverts are quite limited I find, and also when you get to interview you've already got an idea of what you're stepping into. Also, ask about any training available; for example if it's a policy based role, would you be expected to draft submissions for ministers, respond to correspondence, draft guidance?

Ask about career progression, however don't be surprised if the response is "it's your responsibility". As a manager, we do everything we can to help develop you, but at the end of the day if you want promotion, nobody else is going to do it for you.

Hope that's helpful!