Updated for the 3.3% rise (April 2026)
Teaching assistant pay calculator
Find out what you'll actually get paid each month. Just answer a few quick questions — you'll need your hourly rate from your payslip.
How would you like to work it out?
What's your Basic Pay?
Find Basic Pay on your payslip and type in the amount. If there are a few Basic Pay lines, use the biggest one — small lines marked Retro or X are back pay.
Not sure what everything on your payslip means? Read our payslip guide.
Do you get any extra pay?
Tap any that apply — or skip this one.
Are you paying back a student loan?
You take home
£1,390a month
from £1,629 a month before anything is taken off
Where your pay goes
- Your take-homeWhat lands in your bank account£1,390
- Pension (LGPS)Saved for your retirement (5.8%), taken off before tax£94
- Income taxPaid on what you earn over £12,570 a year£97
- National InsuranceCounts towards your State Pension£46
Bonus you don't see: your employer also pays about £318 a month into your pension for you.
Based on Basic Pay of £1,628.58 a month.
Using the NJC pay rates from 1 April 2026.
Questions TAs ask
Why is my pay less than the salary on my contract?
The salary on your contract is usually what you’d earn working full time (37 hours), all year round. Most TAs work fewer hours and only in term time — 39 weeks a year — plus holiday pay, so you’re paid for about 43.9 weeks (44.8 once you’ve worked there five years). That’s then split into 12 equal monthly payments.
Do I get paid in the summer holidays?
Yes. Your pay for the year is spread evenly over 12 months, so you get the same amount every month — including August. A few schools do it differently, so check your contract if you’re not sure.
Has the 2026 pay rise happened?
Yes. Teaching assistants got a 3.3% rise from 1 April 2026. It was only agreed in August, so many schools are paying it late with back pay from April. The lowest rate is now £13.28 an hour.
Which pension am I in?
Teaching assistants are in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). Most TAs pay 5.8% or 6.5% of their pay. It’s taken before income tax, so it costs you a bit less than it looks, and your employer pays in around 20% on top.
Do ELSAs get paid more?
There’s no set national rate. Some schools pay ELSAs an extra allowance; others move you up a pay point. In the calculator, tap “ELSA or other allowance” to add it — or just change your hourly rate if your pay point went up.
How do I add overtime?
Tap “Overtime” in question 4 and enter roughly how many extra hours you do a month or a year. If you do little bits here and there, the overtime tracker lets you log them on your phone as you go.
Get told when TA pay changes
A short email when the support staff pay rise is agreed (and when back pay is due). Nothing else.