Changes to pay scales for Specialty and Specialist doctors
In July, the government announced the 2024/25 pay award for staff under the remits of the NHS Pay Review Body (NHS PRB) and Doctors’ and Dentists’ Review Body (DDRB).
Here’s how it affects Specialty and Specialist (SAS) doctors moving forward:
- The starting salary for a specialty doctor increased from £52,530 to £55,825.
- SAS doctors on the 2021 contracts will receive a pay uplift of between 6.1% and 9.2%
- Pay scales for those SAS doctors employed on closed pre-2021 contracts will be uplifted by £1,400 (pro-rated where appropriate) effective from 1 April 2024.
- The pay increases are scheduled to be paid in August 2024 salaries and backdated to 1 April 2024.
Regarding career development, the DHSC, NHS Employers, NHS England and the BMA agreed three priority actions to support the career development and progression of SAS doctors.
The first was to develop advice and guidance specifically to support career progression for SAS doctors.
The second was to explore what national levers are available to encourage, establish and embed specialist roles to provide career development opportunities for SAS doctors.
The third action was to ensure that, for specialty doctors undertaking a specialist doctor role, the acting up clause (which already existed in the SAS terms and conditions of service) is properly utilised.
In addition, job planning will now be promoted more widely so that SAS doctors are able to work optimally, with access to the appropriate opportunities, and to collaborate on a piece of work with the objective of helping SAS doctors to progress through the portfolio pathway.
For more information around changes to pay scales and how it affects you, please get in touch with the Kaizen Recruitment team: