Profession · 2026/27
NHS Band 2 Salary 2026/27: Healthcare Assistant Take-home
Band 2 covers healthcare assistants, porters and ward clerks at a flat 2026/27 Agenda for Change rate of £25,272 (no spine progression). London weighting and unsocial-hours enhancements add on top.
Typical pay & take-home
- Median gross
- £25,272
- Typical range
- £25,272–£25,272
- Take-home at median
- £21,715
England, no pension applied — use the salary calculator for your scheme.
At the median for this profession, you earn 32% below the UK full-time median (£37,430), placing you in the bottom 19% of UK earners.
What influences nhs band 2 healthcare assistant pay
Band 2 has no within-band progression in the 2026/27 AfC structure - everyone on the band sits at £25,272. Moving up means applying for a Band 3 post once you have taken on assessed clinical responsibilities.
High-cost-area supplements lift the headline: inner London +20% of basic, outer London +15%, fringe London +5%. On the inner-London supplement a Band 2 effective gross is around £30,300.
Unsocial-hours enhancements under Section 2 of the AfC handbook apply to most ward-based Band 2 roles: nights, weekends and bank holidays carry premia of 30-60% on top of basic.
Career progression
- Band 2 entry and ceiling: £25,272 (no spine progression in 2026/27).
- Band 3 entry: £25,760 (typically Senior HCA / clinical support worker).
- Band 4 entry: £28,392 (Assistant Practitioner / Nursing Associate).
- Band 5 entry: £32,073 (registered nurse / qualified practitioner).
Frequently asked questions
- What is the take-home pay for an NHS Band 2 in 2026/27?
- On £25,272 gross with the entry-level NHS pension tier, take-home is around £20,400-£20,800 a year after Income Tax, NI and pension. Inner-London supplement adds materially to that - run your specific figure through the calculator.
- Why is Band 2 a single flat rate not a range?
- NHS Employers removed within-band progression from Band 2 in the 2025/26 pay deal so anyone employed on Band 2 sits at the single rate. Progression now requires applying for a Band 3 post.