UK nurses' starting salary and NHS pay scale as they demand pay rise (2024)

Thousands of NHS nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are going on strike today in a row over pay. NHS appointments and operations have been cancelled because of the strike, with the health service running a bank holiday-style service in many areas.

However The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has said it will still staff chemotherapy, emergency cancer services, dialysis, critical care units, neonatal and paediatric intensive care. This is the second strike in less than a week after talks between the government and the nurses’ trade union ended in failure.

The government has refused to negotiate on pay, though it says it is open to further discussion on other issues. On Tuesday morning, head of the Royal College of Nursing Pat Cullen appeared on ITV’s hit breakfast show Good Morning Britain.

READ MORE: Sheffield GP surgery limits urgent appointments for patients over safety fears

Pat made a plea to Grant Shapps and any other Government Minister to “get into a room and negotiate”. She added that the Prime Minister “needs to bring the NHS back from the brink."

How much are nurses paid?

NHS nurses are paid according to a banding system, depending on their seniority in the profession. Each nurse is paid a salary according to their experience and responsibilities within their band; nurses can also progress to more senior bands.

Newly-qualified nurses start in Band 5 on the NHS pay scale, with a starting salary of £27,055 a year in England (increased somewhat in London). Band 6 nurses earn £33,706 to £40,588, while Band 7 nurses earn between £41,659 and £47,672 a year, Nottinghamshire Live reports.

What pay rise are nurses asking for?

The RCN is calling on the government to give nurses a pay increase of 19.2%. This is 5% above the rate of retail price inflation, which stood at 14.2% in the 12 months to November.

This increase would compensate for the 20% loss of real-terms income which the RCN says nurses have endured over the last 12 years. However, the government has said that it will not negotiate with the union on nurses' pay.

Let us know what you think about nurses going on strike in our survey below.

The government says that the money needed to fund a 19.2% pay rise for nurses would have to come out of the budget for frontline NHS care. It says that this would make it harder for the beleaguered health service to clear its Covid-related backlog.

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UK nurses' starting salary and NHS pay scale as they demand pay rise (2024)

FAQs

UK nurses' starting salary and NHS pay scale as they demand pay rise? ›

The Royal College of Nursing estimated in 2021 that the average annual salary of an NHS nurse is £33,384. The pay rise introduced across the NHS in 2023 means that average is probably now closer to £37,000. More broadly, we estimate that the average salary

average salary
The national average salary (or national average wage) is the mean salary for the working population of a nation. It is calculated by summing all the annual salaries of all persons in work and dividing the total by the number of workers.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › National_average_salary
for a nurse is somewhere between £33,000 and £37,000.

How much do NHS nurses get paid in the UK? ›

How much does NHS - Nursing in England pay? The average NHS salary ranges from approximately £23,687 per year for Progressive Care Nurse to £60,031 per year for Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. Average NHS hourly pay ranges from approximately £9.29 per hour for House Supervisor to £44.94 per hour for Senior Nurse.

How much is the UK nurses wage rise? ›

For that financial year, the government gave NHS staff on Agenda for Change contracts in England a 5% pay rise, while an additional one-off bonus of at least £1,655 was also provided to top-up the 2022-23 deal.

Do UK nurses pay more than the US? ›

Yes, there are differences. Nurses in the USA generally have higher salaries, but the cost of living and benefits can vary.

What is the starting salary for a fully qualified nurse in the UK? ›

UK nurse salaries vary depending on experience and location but typically range between £28,300 and £83,300 annually. Newly qualified nurses in the NHS usually start around £28,407, with the potential to earn more through experience and progression through pay bands.

Are nurses highly paid in UK? ›

Nurse salary in UK per month depends on how long they have worked in the field. As nurses get more training and experience, they can apply for more high paying jobs. The nurse salary in UK per month for those who just got their license is between ~23,07,756 INR and ~29,37,144 INR per year.

Which country pays nurses most? ›

1. Switzerland. With an average annual salary of $99,839, Switzerland takes the top spot as the highest paying country for nurses. The high demand for nurses, combined with the country's high cost of living, contributes to these impressive salaries.

Is 37k a good salary in the UK? ›

37k is good. But I suppose you should think about looking at the longer term. If you're ambitious and talented, you should make the most of it and really seize what or want - or those things that offer as much as possible. Actually, in IBD demand and profits are high but pay is staying relatively undynamic for juniors.

Can a nurse earn 100k in the UK? ›

As of November 2022, the pay points within this band range from £27,055 to £32,934 per year. On gaining further qualifications and experience in the field, your NHS nursing salary can go up to band nine. At band nine, the pay is pretty impressive – around £100,000 a year.

Are nurses in the UK underpaid? ›

Since 2010, NHS nurse salaries have actually dropped by 10% in 'real terms' – that is, in relation to inflation. This is why the RCN and many others are unsatisfied with the approximately 4% pay rise offered in 2022. To them, it doesn't go far enough in undoing more than 10 years of damage.

Can a nurse move from UK to USA? ›

In order to legally migrate to the United States, you must meet federal requirements listed in full here. You will need to obtain a Registered Nurse Immigrant Visa (“Green Card”) or H-1B visa. U.S. law requires nurses to complete a screening program before they can receive an occupational visa.

Why do nurses in the UK get paid so little? ›

It's too crude to compare salaries like that. That said, it's true that nursing is relatively under-paid in the UK. Part of that however is because the state is the largest employer of nurses which keeps wages down but that in turn keeps the cost of healthcare down.

Which state is best for nurses in UK? ›

London is a great place to live and work for Nurses, there is a high demand for nurses in the capital, also there is state of the art equipment and facilities present in hospitals in London.

Can nurses make 6 figures UK? ›

NHS Band 9 Nurse Salary

The highest Nursing Band offered by the NHS is Band 9 and it pays the annual income of Nurses in Consultant level roles. As an expert in your area of nursing, you will be one of the highest earning Nurses and can expect to receive between £93,735 and £108,075 each year!

Which city in the UK pays nurses the most? ›

Highest paying cities for Registered Nurses near England
  • Oxford. £23.41 per hour. 727 salaries reported.
  • Reading. £22.72 per hour. 657 salaries reported.
  • Liverpool. £22.59 per hour. 1.5k salaries reported.
  • Doncaster. £20.98 per hour. 363 salaries reported.
  • Walsall. £20.95 per hour. 307 salaries reported.

What is the best nurse salary in UK? ›

As already mentioned, newly qualified nurses enter the workforce at Band 5. Band 5 nurses can earn up to £34,581 with enough years' experience (over 4 years). Within Band 6, the starting salary is £35,392 and the highest possible salary is £42,618.

Who is the highest paid nurse in UK? ›

Best paid nursing jobs of 2024 in the UK
  1. Children's/Paediatric Nurse. Paediatric nurses care for sick children and teenagers of all ages, beginning at birth. ...
  2. Psychiatric nurse. ...
  3. Cardiac nurse. ...
  4. Research nurse. ...
  5. Nurse practitioner. ...
  6. Midwives. ...
  7. Neonatal intensive care nurse (NICU) ...
  8. Pain management nurse.

How much do NHS staff get paid in the UK? ›

How much does NHS in the United Kingdom pay? The average NHS salary ranges from approximately £23,013 per year for Clerk to £80,946 per year for Director of Analytics. Average NHS hourly pay ranges from approximately £10.22 per hour for Receptionist/Secretary to £89.36 per hour for General Practitioner.

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