Police Constable Salary 2026/27
England and Wales constable pay runs across seven pay points, £31,164 to £50,256, on the scale awaiting the determination that implements the 3.5% award from 1 September 2026. The Home Secretary awarded 3.5% from 1 September 2026 - below the 3.9% the Police Remuneration Review Body recommended - and the revised pay points are not published yet. Scottish and Northern Irish rates are close but set separately.
Typical pay & take-home
- Median gross
- £35,106
- Typical range
- £31,164–£50,256
- Take-home at median
- £28,796 England, no pension applied — use the salary calculator for your scheme.
At the median for this profession, you earn 10% below the UK full-time median (£39,039), placing you in the bottom 40% of UK earners.
What influences police constable pay
The constable scale has seven pay points: £31,164, £32,472, £33,789, £35,106, £37,737, £43,038 and £50,256, on the scale awaiting the determination that implements the 3.5% award from 1 September 2026. New constables join at point 1, though a chief officer may start them at point 2 to meet local recruitment needs. London forces pay London Weighting on top, £3,150 on the scale awaiting the determination that implements the 3.5% award from 1 September 2026. The PRRB recommended £3,273 from 1 September; the Home Secretary uplifted it by 3.5% rather than the recommended 3.9%, and the revised amount is not yet published.
The unsocial hours allowance is 10% of the hourly rate, and only for full hours worked between 8pm and 6am, so it lifts pay by a few percent on a night-heavy rota rather than transforming it. It is not pensionable. Overtime and policing-operation pay (e.g. public order, major events) is on top and taxed at marginal rate.
Police Pension Scheme 2015 is a CARE DB scheme. Employee contributions from 1 April 2026 are tiered: 12.88% on pensionable pay up to £37,035, 13.88% from £37,035 to £79,588, 14.22% above £79,588 (per Home Office report to Parliament). Net pay arrangement so IT relief is full. Generous 1/55.3rd accrual and 30-year lump-sum-plus-pension retirement package.
Career progression
- Constable point 1: £31,164, rising to £50,256 at point 7.
- Sergeant: £53,568 at point 2, rising to £56,208 at point 4.
- Inspector: £63,768 at point 0, rising to £68,982 at point 3.
- Chief Inspector: £70,344 at point 1, rising to £73,149 at point 3.
- Superintendent and chief officer ranks above that.
Frequently asked questions
- What does a new constable take home 2026/27?
- At £31,164 gross on pay point 1, with the 12.88% Police Pension tier that applies to pensionable pay up to £37,035, take-home is about £22,747 a year or £1,896 a month. Unsocial-hours premia, shift enhancements and overtime are paid on top of base and taxed at the marginal rate.
- Is the Police Pension still valuable?
- Yes - CARE 1/55.3rd accrual is one of the more generous public DB schemes. At constable-level contributions (12.88% / 13.88% by salary tier from April 2026) the build-up is unusually strong since the member contribution is 12.88% to 14.22% depending on pay, against an employer contribution rate of 35.3%. Many officers can retire at 60 on a near-final-salary equivalent pension.
Getting into this job
How to become a police officer in England and WalesThe six ways into policing in England and Wales, which ones pay you from the day you join, and every federated pay point with real take-home.