Pay reform in the civil service shouldn’t be that hard. When I first dealt with pay delegation over 30 years ago in what is now the Department for Work and Pensions, one of the objectives of the first pay review was to introduce a simple, understandable pay system.
Too often, pay has been overcomplicated and there are management consultants who are enjoying a much wealthier retirement on the back of 30 years of pay delegation. The fundamentals remain simple but are often skewed by trends in the private sector (usually from a decade previous), obsessions about performance-related pay and, of course, political interference.
No one thinks the current system works but few have got close to the answers, not least because putting the genie back in the bottle on delegation is a legal minefield. But finally, there is some glimmer of hope. It’s that moment when you’re on holiday and have stayed out all night. With one last swig from the ouzo bottle, you welcome in the new dawn across the horizon. That’s a strange analogy for the latest Senior Salaries Review Body recommendations but fitting, nonetheless.
This year’s recommendations address a number of issues that have blighted the senior civil service pay system for decades. There is no quick fix and, as Theresa May used to say, there’s no magic money tree. So reform will be incremental, but crucial, steps in the right direction, building on a strategy to deliver longer-term change.
Overly long pay ranges, the lack of pay progression and an overlap between grades are three of the issues that needed addressing. Pressure has been building for years, resulting in devolved governments and departments like the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office starting to do their own thing.
This year and last, the SSRB recommended a £5,000 increase on the minimum of the pay ranges. Those repeated steps in the right direction help address problems of low starting pay, pay range length – which makes progression more difficult to solve – and the overlap between grades. That was particularly prevalent between the maximum of civil service grade 6 and the minimum of SCS pay band 1.
A 2.5% increase to base pay for the SCS has been combined with a dedicated pot worth 1% of the total pay bill for pay progression – the first time in a generation one of the main bugbears in the system is being addressed. It’s far from perfect and doesn’t provide the guaranteed outcomes we’re looking for, but it’s a welcome start and the bedrock for further reforms.
The SSRB recommendations have also framed the overall rate for the grades below the SCS. This year’s pay remit guidance, the framework for pay settlements across the civil service, includes an increase of 3.5% – as well as measures to address pay compression in the most junior grades, exacerbated by increases to the National Living Wage.
Some streamlining of business cases and encouragement to harmonise pay settlement dates are welcome. Delegated pay arrangements face many of the same pressures as the SCS pay system, particularly the lack of progression. This will be a focus for our negotiations across the service and the SCS reforms will be an added catalyst.
The work of the SSRB and the meaningful engagement we’ve had with the pay team in the Cabinet Office have demonstrated the value of a strong, collaborative relationship. The SSRB has been setting the pace, driven by a strong and dynamic chair in Lea Paterson.
That’s the approach we want to see across the civil service. In the short term, it will help us focus our negotiations for delegated grades to address the very same issues. Over the longer term, it demonstrates the benefits of an independent pay review body, guided by evidence and focused on strategic reform. We strongly believe that will deliver better outcomes for members and a more cohesive approach to civil service pay.
Pay reform should be at the heart of the government’s broader reform agenda for the state. It is intrinsically linked to delivering the right people with the right skills. For too long, it’s been a risk-management tool – what can they get away with, rather than a key element of the people strategy.
There are signs that this is being recognised both by ministers and the senior leadership of the civil service, demonstrated in the messaging from the cabinet secretary around the announcement.
So we’re on the beach and the sun is coming up. There’s always hope with a new dawn, but there’s always risk of rain. This is, after all, Troon on the Clyde coast.
Dave Penman is general secretary of the FDA union. This piece first appeared in CSW's forthcoming Summer 2026 magazine. Look out for the digital version, which will be launched in the coming week