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Unions have lodged their pay claim for local government and school support staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland for 2025-26.
UNISON, the GMB and Unite have called for a £3,000 rise for all staff, on the grounds that council workers are “overdue” a significant increase in salary, having “missed out” on more generous settlements given to other public sector workers last year.
In 2024-25, council staff were given an increase of £1,290 or 2.5%, whichever was higher, with slightly higher amounts given to those working in the capital to cover London weighting.
Less generous pay deal for council staff
This was worth 3-4% for most social workers, significantly less than the 5.5% received by their counterparts in the NHS and also below the 4.43% settlement for practitioners working for Cafcass.
Besides the headline increase, the unions’ claim also includes establishing a £15 an hour minimum wage for the sector, compared with £12.26 currently, increasing annual leave by one day and cutting the working week by two hours.
“Services provided by council and school workers are vital for communities to thrive,” said UNISON’s head of local government, Mike Short. “But wages have remained low, and without decent pay, staff feel undervalued and are looking for better-paid work elsewhere. A proper pay offer is essential.”
‘Low pay, cuts and workload increases’
GMB national officer Sharon Wilde said its members were experiencing “low pay, funding cuts and increasing workloads”, while Unite counterpart Clare Keogh said local government employers needed to “recognise that there is growing anger among workers, especially the lowest paid, about the way they are treated year after year”.
Pay negotiations are conducted through the National Joint Council for Local Government Services, which includes representation from the unions and employers, and whose decisions cover most, but not all councils, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Employer leaders will consult councils will on the unions’ 2025 pay claims at online regional pay briefings during February and March, the Local Government Association (LGA) has said.
Offer likely to be far below claim
Employers will then make an offer to staff. This will likely be far below the unions’ claim, in the context of the significant pressures facing councils in 2025-26, including those arising from the government’s increase in national insurance contributions for employers.
Meanwhile, the government has budgeted for pay increases of 2.8% across the NHS and other parts of the public sector, with these now being considered by independent pay review bodies.
