Part-Time Teacher Pay — How FTE and Pro-Rata Work

What "part-time" means on a teacher payslip

Most teachers know that part-time salary is pro-rated — but the mechanics can be confusing, particularly when it comes to pension contributions and the TPS tier.

Schools usually express part-time work as a fraction of a full-time week. This calculator uses 32.5 hours as full time:

FTE = contracted hours ÷ 32.5

Your salary is then FTE × the full-time pay for your scale point. Check your contract — some schools use a different full-time figure, but the principle is the same.

Worked examples

M3 teacher working 26 hours (0.8 FTE)

• Full-time M3 gross: £38,400
• 0.8 FTE gross: £30,720
• TPS (7.4% — rate based on actual pro-rated pay): −£2,273
• Income tax: −£3,175
• National Insurance: −£1,452
• Net annual: ~£23,819 · Monthly: ~£1,985

Full-time M3 takes home £2,369/month. Working 80% of the hours gives you 84% of the take-home — because at a lower income you pay proportionally less tax and a lower TPS rate.

M6 teacher working 19.5 hours (0.6 FTE)

• Full-time M6 gross: £46,940
• 0.6 FTE gross: £28,164
• TPS (7.4%): −£2,084
• Income tax: −£2,702
• National Insurance: −£1,248
• Net annual: ~£22,130 · Monthly: ~£1,844

Full-time M6 takes home £2,831/month. At 0.6 FTE you take home £1,844/month — 65% of the full-time figure from 60% of the hours.

How TPS tiers work for part-time teachers

The TPS tier is based on your actual pensionable pay — not your full-time equivalent. A full-time M6 teacher on £46,940 pays 8.9%; the same teacher at 0.6 FTE earns £28,164 and pays 7.4%.

That lowers the cost of the pension relative to salary, though it also means a smaller pension accrual for that year.

What appears on your payslip

Your payslip will typically show:

• Scale point: e.g. M6
• FTE salary: the full-time annual figure for your scale point
• Actual salary: the pro-rated amount you earn

TLR and SEN allowances are also pro-rated to your FTE.

Pension and part-time service

Part-time service still counts towards your TPS pension — in proportion. A year at 0.6 FTE builds up 1/57 of your actual (pro-rated) pay, so you can work part-time for years and still build a meaningful pension.

Getting it right on your payslip

Mistakes do happen. If the FTE on your payslip looks wrong, check it against your contracted hours divided by your school's full-time hours. If something seems off, speak to HR or your union rep.

Use our calculator — enter your scale point, location and contracted hours to see your exact take-home and TPS tier.