New pay circular for consultants in England (2003 contract)
This circular informs employers of the pay arrangements applicable from 1 March 2024 for medical and dental consultants on national terms and conditions of service following trade unions’ acceptance of the pay offer made by the government.
Reform of the consultant (2003 contract) pay scale from 1 March 2024
The reformed pay scale for consultants on the 2003 contract includes:
- a reduction in the number of pay thresholds in the pay scale
- an increase in starting pay
- an increase in pay at the top of the pay scale.
The new pay scale reduces the pay thresholds from 8 to 4 and reduces the number of years taken to reach the top threshold from 19 to 14. Scale points 00-19 will remain to allow for system transition. A review will be undertaken and aligned to 14 scale points at a future date.
Payments will be made in May's salaries and will include backpay to 1 March 2024 which overlaps two financial years. Tax and National Insurance are charged at the time of payment. Pension contributions will need to be posted to the correct financial year.
Department of Health and Social Care's offer document provides a bar chart to demonstrate the change to each pay point.
You can also view all pay and conditions circulars for medical and dental staff on our web page.
