The Burgundy Book sliding scale
The Burgundy Book — the national Conditions of Service negotiated for teachers in England and Wales — sets minimum occupational sick pay based on your total aggregated teaching service with one or more local authorities. It counts teaching and non-teaching directed time days, so school closures and holidays are excluded.
| Length of service | Full pay | Half pay |
|---|---|---|
| First year | 25 days (half pay only after 4 calendar months' service) | 50 days |
| Second year | 50 days | 50 days |
| Third year | 75 days | 75 days |
| Fourth and successive years | 100 days | 100 days |
In rough month terms, a fourth-year teacher can receive six months at full pay followed by six months at half pay within a single sick-pay year. Employers have discretion to extend beyond these minima, and some local authority policies enhance them — check your contract. Because this scheme governs maintained schools, academy trusts and independent schools may set their own arrangements instead, though many choose to mirror Burgundy Book terms.
How statutory sick pay fits underneath
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is not extra money while you are on full pay — it forms part of your occupational entitlement. Where the scheme matters most is at half pay: SSP is paid on top of your half salary until you have received 28 weeks of it in one absence period. After SSP exhausts, you can apply for Employment and Support Allowance, and your employer must issue form SSP1 to support the claim.
This layering is particularly important for first-year teachers, whose occupational entitlement is thinnest: 25 working days at full pay, then up to 50 at half pay once four calendar months of service are complete. SSP keeps something flowing through much of that first year even as occupational pay tapers.
| When | What you must do |
|---|---|
| Day 1 of absence | Alert the school and indicate likely duration |
| Calendar day 4 | Self-certificate form on return if still absent |
| Calendar day 8 | Fit note from doctor required, repeated until fit |
| Day 25 / 50 / 75 / 100 | Full pay expires depending on service length |
| 28 weeks | SSP ends; employer issues SSP1 for ESA claim |
The April-to-March trap
Occupational sick leave runs in fixed years from 1 April to 31 March, unlike the school year. A teacher who falls ill in October uses their entitlement continuously through the following March — and crucially, someone still absent when April arrives does NOT get a fresh allocation. The new year's entitlement only unlocks once you have returned to work. An unsuccessful return followed by relapse restores the original entitlement rather than consuming a new one.
Holidays, part-time and moving schools
Three structural quirks catch people out. First, holidays protect you: if you are on full or half pay when a holiday begins, pay continues through the break without consuming any entitlement — only working days count. Second, part-time teachers measure absence in school working days rather than personal workdays: a 0.6 teacher who is off sick receives their 0.6 salary for each of up to 100 school working days, which stretches real-time coverage far beyond 100 attendance days. Third, service aggregates across local authorities, so a move from one council to another does not reset the sliding scale; a break in continuity also has no effect on the aggregated count.
Injury at work: the six-month rule
Absence caused by an accident, injury or assault sustained in the course of duty attracts a separate, better provision: full pay for up to six calendar months, regardless of the ordinary sliding scale. This covers playground accidents, assaults by pupils and road traffic collisions on duty journeys. Documenting that an injury happened at work matters enormously here — report it formally on the day it happens, however minor it seems, because retrospective reclassification is difficult.
What half pay looks like in cash
The transition to half pay is the moment most people underestimate. Deductions do not halve neatly: pension contributions recalculate downward on the reduced salary, but fixed commitments stay put. These indicative monthly figures show the gap for a mid-scale teacher.
| Phase | Gross monthly | Approx. net |
|---|---|---|
| Full pay | £3,412 | ≈£2,430 |
| Half pay plus SSP | £1,706 + £194/wk | ≈£1,560 |
| After entitlement ends | £0 + ESA if eligible | varies |
Long-term sickness and your contract
Once full and half pay both expire within a sick-pay year, pay stops entirely even though employment continues. Schools should review positions before entitlement expires and consider ill-health retirement routes through the Teachers' Pension Scheme for serious long-term conditions — our pension guides explain how early ill-health benefits differ from normal retirement. Capability procedures run separately from sick pay and should accommodate reasonable adjustments; being signed fit by your GP while the school delays a return meeting generally means medical suspension on full pay pending resolution.
Supply teachers and other gaps
Agency supply teachers are not covered by the Burgundy Book's sick provisions at all — entitlement depends entirely on the agency contract, and many offer statutory minimums only. Directly engaged daily supply sits similarly outside the scheme. Teachers in Scotland operate under SNCT arrangements with their own scale, and Northern Ireland runs separate machinery again. If you are comparing offers mid-career, sick pay rarely features in the decision until it suddenly matters, yet the gap between 25-day and 100-day entitlements represents thousands of pounds of income security.
Budgeting around reduced pay
Half pay arrives with full-size deductions relative to income: pension contributions recalculate on the reduced amount, but rent and mortgages do not. Anyone managing a long-term condition should model the cliff edges — the day full pay ends, the day half pay ends, and week 28 when SSP exhausts. Our budget planner handles variable-income planning, and the financial planning hub puts sick-pay risk alongside its siblings: redundancy risk, maternity tapering and unplanned career breaks. If your situation tips into leaving altogether, read the leaving teaching guide before you resign, because notice timing interacts with pay protection.
Frequently asked questions
How much sick pay do teachers get?
Under Burgundy Book terms, entitlement rises with service: 25 working days at full pay plus 50 at half pay in your first year, climbing to 100 full and 100 half after four years of aggregated teaching service.
Do teachers get paid sick leave in the first year?
Yes, but modestly: 25 working days at full pay, and 50 days at half pay once you have completed four calendar months of service. Statutory Sick Pay continues on top during the half-pay phase.
Do school holidays count against teacher sick pay?
No. Only working days consume entitlement. If you are on sick pay when a holiday starts, pay continues through the break without using up your allowance.
What happens when teacher sick pay runs out?
After full and half pay expire within the April-to-March year, pay stops although employment continues. After 28 weeks SSP ends too, at which point Employment and Support Allowance becomes the route.
Does sick pay reset every year for teachers?
A new entitlement year starts each 1 April, but you must be back at work to access it. Someone still absent on 1 April continues on the previous year's exhausted entitlement.
Do supply teachers get sick pay?
Agency supply teachers are not covered by the Burgundy Book sick pay scheme. Any entitlement comes from the agency's own contract, which is often statutory minimum only.
Is teacher sick pay different in academies?
It can be. Academies and independent schools may set their own schemes, though many mirror the Burgundy Book. Check your trust's sick pay policy and your contract.
What happens if I am injured at work as a teacher?
Absence caused by a work accident, injury or assault carries a separate entitlement of full pay for up to six calendar months, independent of the ordinary sliding scale.
Does moving schools affect my teacher sick pay?
No. Aggregated teaching service across local authorities determines your place on the scale, so changing schools does not reset your entitlement.
How long can a teacher be off sick on full pay?
It depends on aggregated service: 25 working days of full pay in your first year, rising to 100 working days after four years. Only school working days count, so calendar coverage stretches across several months, and holidays on sick pay consume nothing.
Do I need a fit note for teacher sick pay?
From the eighth calendar day of absence onward. Before that, a self-certification form covers the absence when you return.
Sources
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