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Term Time Pay

Term-time-only pay calculator

If you work in a school only during term time, your pay isn't the salary in the job advert. Enter your full-time-equivalent (FTE) salary, your hours and the weeks you work to see what you'll actually be paid each year, month, week and hour. The working is shown under the result so you can check it against your payslip.

England and Wales only: Northern Ireland not covered. Figures are pending verification. See the details.

Your contract

The annual salary for the post if it were full-time and all year: the advertised salary, or your spine point.
hours
Usually 39 (190 school days + 5 training days). Check your contract.
weeks
37 under the NJC Green Book. Some councils and academies use 36 or 35.
hours
Paid holiday is built into term-time pay. Pick the entitlement a full-time, all-year colleague in your post would get (bank holidays included). How to find this

Your estimated gross pay

Per month

£1,529.08

Per year
£18,348.91
Per week you work
£410.93
Per hour
£13.70
Your year, in weeks

Paid for 44.652 weeks, spread over 12 equal monthly payments: 85.6% of the all-year pro-rata salary of £21,427.30.

Gross, before tax, National Insurance and pension. Estimates only.

Show the working

  1. Hours fraction 30 ÷ 37 hours = 0.8108
  2. Full-time leave (all-year employee) 23 + 8 + 2 days = 33 days
  3. Full-time leave in weeks 33 days ÷ 5 = 6.6 weeks
  4. Term-time holiday weeks (pro-rated) 39 × 6.6 ÷ (52.143 − 6.6) = 5.652 weeks
  5. Paid weeks 39 weeks worked + 5.652 holiday weeks = 44.652 weeks
  6. Paid-weeks factor 44.652 ÷ 52.143 weeks in a year = 0.8563
  7. Actual annual pay £26,427 × 0.8108 × 0.8563 = £18,348.91
  8. Monthly pay (12 equal instalments) £18,348.91 ÷ 12 = £1,529.08
  9. Hourly rate £26,427 ÷ (37 hours × 52.143 weeks) = £13.70
  10. Weekly pay in a week you work £13.70 × 30 hours = £410.93

Worked at full precision and rounded only for display (money to 2 decimal places, factors to 4). Some employers use a days-based method or round at different stages, so your payslip may differ by a few pence.

Covers England and Wales. Northern Ireland not covered. Northern Ireland did not adopt the 2024 holiday changes for part-year workers, so these results don't apply there.

  • Scotland: council staff are on SJC terms, not the NJC Green Book, and many Scottish councils use a 35-hour week. Change the full-time hours and holiday to match your contract.
  • Academies: most academies follow the Green Book, but they don't have to. Check your contract for your full-time hours and holiday entitlement.
  • Gross pay only: no tax, National Insurance, pension, overtime or allowances.

Figures pending verification

Some of the figures this calculator uses have been researched but not yet checked by hand against the official sources: weeks per year (52.143); the default holiday entitlement (Green Book, under 5 years); 2026/27 NJC pay spine values used in examples. Treat results as estimates until this notice is removed.

Rules last checked: not yet checked. Figures for 2026/27. See the sources

How this calculator works

It uses the method in the NJC Green Book's term-time-only guidance (Part 4.12), which councils and most schools in England and Wales use for support staff.

  1. Hours fraction: your hours ÷ full-time hours (usually 37).
  2. Holiday weeks: a full-time, all-year colleague's leave (in weeks) is pro-rated to the weeks you work: weeks worked × leave weeks ÷ (52.143 − leave weeks).
  3. Paid weeks: weeks worked + holiday weeks.
  4. Annual pay: FTE salary × hours fraction × paid weeks ÷ 52.143.
  5. Monthly pay: annual pay ÷ 12.
  6. Hourly rate: FTE salary ÷ (full-time hours × 52.143). This is the same for term-time and all-year staff on the same grade.

The holiday entitlement option matters. Under the Green Book, a full-time employee with under 5 years' service gets 23 days' annual leave, plus 8 bank holidays and 2 extra days: 33 days in all. With 5 or more years' service it is 26 days, so 36 in all. The statutory minimum option uses the 12.07% figure for part-year workers instead.

Worked examples

These use 2026/27 NJC pay spine values. Each one shows the full working, so you can follow the same steps with your own figures.

Teaching assistant: SCP 5, 30 hours, 39 weeks

A typical teaching assistant contract with Green Book leave and under 5 years' service.

FTE salary £26,427.00, 30 of 37 hours a week, 39 weeks a year, holiday: Green Book (pro-rated).

Actual pay: £18,348.91 a year, £1,529.08 a month.

See the working

Working

  1. Hours fraction 30 ÷ 37 hours = 0.8108
  2. Full-time leave (all-year employee) 23 + 8 + 2 days = 33 days
  3. Full-time leave in weeks 33 days ÷ 5 = 6.6 weeks
  4. Term-time holiday weeks (pro-rated) 39 × 6.6 ÷ (52.143 − 6.6) = 5.652 weeks
  5. Paid weeks 39 weeks worked + 5.652 holiday weeks = 44.652 weeks
  6. Paid-weeks factor 44.652 ÷ 52.143 weeks in a year = 0.8563
  7. Actual annual pay £26,427 × 0.8108 × 0.8563 = £18,348.91
  8. Monthly pay (12 equal instalments) £18,348.91 ÷ 12 = £1,529.08
  9. Hourly rate £26,427 ÷ (37 hours × 52.143 weeks) = £13.70
  10. Weekly pay in a week you work £13.70 × 30 hours = £410.93

Worked at full precision and rounded only for display (money to 2 decimal places, factors to 4). Some employers use a days-based method or round at different stages, so your payslip may differ by a few pence.

Same post, 5+ years' service

After 5 years' continuous service the full-time leave rises from 33 to 36 days, so more paid holiday weeks are built in.

FTE salary £26,427.00, 30 of 37 hours a week, 39 weeks a year, holiday: Green Book (pro-rated).

Actual pay: £18,593.88 a year, £1,549.49 a month.

See the working

Working

  1. Hours fraction 30 ÷ 37 hours = 0.8108
  2. Full-time leave (all-year employee) 26 + 8 + 2 days = 36 days
  3. Full-time leave in weeks 36 days ÷ 5 = 7.2 weeks
  4. Term-time holiday weeks (pro-rated) 39 × 7.2 ÷ (52.143 − 7.2) = 6.248 weeks
  5. Paid weeks 39 weeks worked + 6.248 holiday weeks = 45.248 weeks
  6. Paid-weeks factor 45.248 ÷ 52.143 weeks in a year = 0.8678
  7. Actual annual pay £26,427 × 0.8108 × 0.8678 = £18,593.88
  8. Monthly pay (12 equal instalments) £18,593.88 ÷ 12 = £1,549.49
  9. Hourly rate £26,427 ÷ (37 hours × 52.143 weeks) = £13.70
  10. Weekly pay in a week you work £13.70 × 30 hours = £410.93

Worked at full precision and rounded only for display (money to 2 decimal places, factors to 4). Some employers use a days-based method or round at different stages, so your payslip may differ by a few pence.

Lunchtime supervisor: SCP 3, 10 hours, 39 weeks

Short daily hours, so the hours fraction does most of the work.

FTE salary £25,614.00, 10 of 37 hours a week, 39 weeks a year, holiday: Green Book (pro-rated).

Actual pay: £5,928.14 a year, £494.01 a month.

See the working

Working

  1. Hours fraction 10 ÷ 37 hours = 0.2703
  2. Full-time leave (all-year employee) 23 + 8 + 2 days = 33 days
  3. Full-time leave in weeks 33 days ÷ 5 = 6.6 weeks
  4. Term-time holiday weeks (pro-rated) 39 × 6.6 ÷ (52.143 − 6.6) = 5.652 weeks
  5. Paid weeks 39 weeks worked + 5.652 holiday weeks = 44.652 weeks
  6. Paid-weeks factor 44.652 ÷ 52.143 weeks in a year = 0.8563
  7. Actual annual pay £25,614 × 0.2703 × 0.8563 = £5,928.14
  8. Monthly pay (12 equal instalments) £5,928.14 ÷ 12 = £494.01
  9. Hourly rate £25,614 ÷ (37 hours × 52.143 weeks) = £13.28
  10. Weekly pay in a week you work £13.28 × 10 hours = £132.76

Worked at full precision and rounded only for display (money to 2 decimal places, factors to 4). Some employers use a days-based method or round at different stages, so your payslip may differ by a few pence.

Senior role: SCP 15, full-time hours, 40 weeks

Full-time hours mean the hours fraction is 1. An extra week (e.g. for training or term preparation) adds a little more holiday too.

FTE salary £31,015.00, 37 of 37 hours a week, 40 weeks a year, holiday: Green Book (pro-rated).

Actual pay: £27,240.19 a year, £2,270.02 a month.

See the working

Working

  1. Hours fraction 37 ÷ 37 hours = 1.0000
  2. Full-time leave (all-year employee) 23 + 8 + 2 days = 33 days
  3. Full-time leave in weeks 33 days ÷ 5 = 6.6 weeks
  4. Term-time holiday weeks (pro-rated) 40 × 6.6 ÷ (52.143 − 6.6) = 5.797 weeks
  5. Paid weeks 40 weeks worked + 5.797 holiday weeks = 45.797 weeks
  6. Paid-weeks factor 45.797 ÷ 52.143 weeks in a year = 0.8783
  7. Actual annual pay £31,015 × 1.0000 × 0.8783 = £27,240.19
  8. Monthly pay (12 equal instalments) £27,240.19 ÷ 12 = £2,270.02
  9. Hourly rate £31,015 ÷ (37 hours × 52.143 weeks) = £16.08
  10. Weekly pay in a week you work £16.08 × 37 hours = £594.81

Worked at full precision and rounded only for display (money to 2 decimal places, factors to 4). Some employers use a days-based method or round at different stages, so your payslip may differ by a few pence.

Checking the result against your payslip

Frequently asked questions

Why is my term-time pay less than the advertised salary?

Job adverts usually show the full-time-equivalent (FTE) salary: what the post would pay for 37 hours a week, all year. Your actual pay is reduced twice: once for working fewer hours, and again because you are paid for the weeks you work plus your paid holiday, not for all 52 weeks.

Is my pay spread over 12 months?

Most councils and schools pay term-time staff in 12 equal monthly instalments, so you still get paid in August and over Christmas and Easter. This calculator assumes 12 equal payments. Check your contract if you are paid differently.

What does "paid weeks" mean?

Paid weeks are the weeks you work plus your paid holiday weeks. For a 39-week contract with Green Book leave (under 5 years’ service) that is about 44.65 weeks. Your annual pay is your pro-rata salary multiplied by paid weeks divided by 52.143.

Why 52.143 weeks and not 52?

A year has 365 days, which is 52.143 weeks (365 ÷ 7). The NJC term-time guidance and council payroll use 52.143. Using 52 instead slightly changes the result.

Does this include tax and National Insurance?

No. All figures are gross pay before tax, National Insurance and pension contributions. Overtime, allowances and other extra payments are not included.

Does this work in Scotland, Northern Ireland or for academies?

It is built for England and Wales using the NJC Green Book. Northern Ireland is not covered. In Scotland, and in academies with their own terms, change the full-time hours and holiday entitlement to match your contract.

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