What is the NHS pay scale for 2022/23?

The 2022/23 NHS pay scale applies to all Agenda for Change staff. Each UK nation publishes its own circular. The figures shown are drawn from the relevant official documents.

Do all four UK nations pay the same NHS rates in 2022/23?

No. Each nation negotiates its own pay scale. England, Wales and Northern Ireland usually follow the NHS Pay Review Body recommendation, while Scotland negotiates directly between the Scottish Government and trade unions. Differences are usually small at lower bands but can be larger at senior bands.

Why was the 2022/23 deal a flat £1,400 rather than a percentage?

The Pay Review Body recommended a flat uplift on the basis that the cost-of-living pressures of 2022 hit lower-paid staff disproportionately hard. A 4% rise on a Band 2 salary would have been roughly £750, which was widely judged as inadequate compared to the £1,400 flat alternative. The trade-off was that higher-paid staff got proportionately less.

Why did Band 8d and 9 get a different uplift?

The PRB recommended that Bands 8d and 9 receive percentage uplifts (4% and 3.5%) rather than the flat £1,400, on the basis that a £1,400 uplift was a smaller percentage for already-high earners. Critics argued the inconsistency between Band 8c and Band 8d was hard to justify.

NHS pay scales 2022/23

Annual pay scales for every NHS band in 2022/23, drawn from the official circular for each of the four UK nations.

The 2022/23 NHS pay deal

The 2022/23 pay round delivered a flat £1,400 consolidated uplift to Bands 1 through 8c, with 4% for Band 8d and 3.5% for Band 9. The flat element was worth more in percentage terms to lower-paid staff (around 9% for Band 2 entry) and less to higher earners.

The NHS Pay Review Body recommended a £1,400 flat uplift for Bands 1 to 8c rather than a percentage, reasoning that lower-paid staff faced the worst cost-of-living pressures. The UK Government accepted the recommendation, with Bands 8d and 9 getting smaller percentage uplifts of 4% and 3.5% respectively. Scotland followed a similar flat-payment model with slightly higher headline figures. The implementation was complicated by the wide range of pay points being moved differently.

Headline figures, 2022/23

The most-searched NHS bands are 5, 6 and 7, covering staff nurses, specialist nurses and ward managers. Entry salaries for these bands are shown below for each nation.

Band	England	Scotland	Wales	N. Ireland
Band 5 entry	£27,055	£28,384	—	—
Band 6 entry	£33,706	£35,522	—	—
Band 7 entry	£41,659	£43,422	—	—

What changed in 2022/23

Pay scales were reshuffled because the flat £1,400 uplift produced different percentage increases at different points. Band 2 entry moved up roughly 9% (from £18,546 to £20,270), while Band 8c top moved up under 2%. Band 8d and 9 used percentage uplifts (4% and 3.5%), introducing a discontinuity in how staff were treated based purely on which side of an arbitrary line they fell on.

Union response

The 2022/23 settlement was rejected by the major NHS unions but went ahead anyway because the formal Pay Review Body process does not require union agreement. The rejection laid the groundwork for the strike action that followed in late 2022 and early 2023, as unions argued that the flat uplift fell far behind double-digit inflation and represented a meaningful real-terms pay cut at every band.

England

Pay scale, effective 2022-04-01

England pay scale

Band	Minimum	Steps	Maximum	Hourly at top
Band 1 closed	£20,270	1	Single rate	£10.37
Band 2	£20,270	2	£21,318	£10.90
Band 3	£21,730	2	£23,177	£11.85
Band 4	£23,949	2	£26,282	£13.44
Band 5	£27,055	3	£32,934	£16.84
Band 6	£33,706	3	£40,588	£20.76
Band 7	£41,659	3	£47,672	£24.38
Band 8a	£48,526	2	£54,619	£27.93
Band 8b	£56,164	2	£65,262	£33.38
Band 8c	£67,064	2	£77,274	£39.52
Band 8d	£79,592	2	£91,787	£46.94
Band 9	£95,135	2	£109,475	£55.99

England pay scales for 2022/23, effective 2022-04-01. Hourly rate uses the 37.5-hour NHS working week. Source: Pay scales for 2022/23 [Archived] — NHS Employers.

Scotland

Pay scale, effective 2022-04-01

Scotland pay scale

Band	Minimum	Steps	Maximum	Hourly at top
Band 1 closed	£21,692	1	Single rate	£11.09
Band 2	£21,814	2	£23,820	£12.18
Band 3	£23,914	2	£25,808	£13.20
Band 4	£25,914	2	£28,187	£14.42
Band 5	£28,384	3	£35,365	£18.09
Band 6	£35,522	3	£43,286	£22.14
Band 7	£43,422	3	£50,506	£25.83
Band 8a	£53,513	2	£57,767	£29.54
Band 8b	£63,530	2	£68,223	£34.89
Band 8c	£75,711	2	£81,426	£41.64
Band 8d	£90,590	2	£94,629	£48.39
Band 9	£107,840	2	£112,673	£57.62

Scotland pay scales for 2022/23, effective 2022-04-01. Hourly rate uses the 37.5-hour NHS working week. Source: PCS(AFC)2023/2 Annex A — 2022/23 baseline rates.

Common questions about 2022/23 NHS pay

What is the NHS pay scale for 2022/23?: The 2022/23 NHS pay scale applies to all Agenda for Change staff. Each UK nation publishes its own circular. The figures shown are drawn from the relevant official documents.
Do all four UK nations pay the same NHS rates in 2022/23?: No. Each nation negotiates its own pay scale. England, Wales and Northern Ireland usually follow the NHS Pay Review Body recommendation, while Scotland negotiates directly between the Scottish Government and trade unions. Differences are usually small at lower bands but can be larger at senior bands.
Why was the 2022/23 deal a flat £1,400 rather than a percentage?: The Pay Review Body recommended a flat uplift on the basis that the cost-of-living pressures of 2022 hit lower-paid staff disproportionately hard. A 4% rise on a Band 2 salary would have been roughly £750, which was widely judged as inadequate compared to the £1,400 flat alternative. The trade-off was that higher-paid staff got proportionately less.
Why did Band 8d and 9 get a different uplift?: The PRB recommended that Bands 8d and 9 receive percentage uplifts (4% and 3.5%) rather than the flat £1,400, on the basis that a £1,400 uplift was a smaller percentage for already-high earners. Critics argued the inconsistency between Band 8c and Band 8d was hard to justify.