What does a Band 4 Supervising Officer take home 2026/27?

On the £34,440 base rate with the 4.6% alpha contribution, take-home is about £27,049 a year or £2,254 a month. With the 20% unsocial hours addition taking pay to £41,328 it is about £31,474, and on 39 hours with committed hours payments at £43,562 it is about £32,985.

Why does Band 4 have no pay scale?

It is published as a spot rate. Unlike Band 3, which has three pay points, and Band 5, which has three, Band 4 pays one figure for the role. Extra earnings come from hours and allowances rather than from years served.

Prison Supervising Officer Salary 2026/27: Band 4

Supervising Officer is Band 4 in the HMPPS Fair and Sustainable structure, the first supervisory rung above a prison officer. Base pay is a spot rate of £34,440 rather than a range, rising to £41,328 with the 20% unsocial hours addition and £43,562 on 39 contracted hours with two committed hours payments. The 3.5% PSPRB award was accepted in full on 26 March 2026 and backdated to 1 April.

Typical pay & take-home

Band 4 spot rate, 37 hours with 20% unsocial: £41,328
Band 4, 37-hour base to 39 hours with 2xACHP and 20% unsocial: £34,440–£43,562
Take-home on that salary: £31,474 England, after the 5.45% alpha pension contribution, Income Tax and NI.

At £41,328, you earn about 6% above the UK full-time median (£39,039), placing you between the 50th percentile (£39,039) and the 75th percentile (£54,009) of UK full-time earnings.

See exact take-home for £41,328 →

What influences prison supervising officer (band 4) pay

Band 4 is a spot rate, not a scale: every Supervising Officer on 37 contracted hours is on £34,440 regardless of length of service. Progression comes from promotion to Band 5, not from increments.

What actually varies is hours and allowances. The 20% unsocial hours addition takes base to £41,328, and moving to a 39 hour contract with two committed hours payments takes it to £43,562 - a £9,122 spread on the same rank.

London adds a flat differential rather than a percentage: on the £34,440 base it is £3,432 in outer London (£37,872) and £5,218 in inner London (£39,658). The 20% unsocial hours addition is then worked out on the London figure, so on the £41,328 headline the difference is £4,118 outer (£45,446) and £6,262 inner (£47,590). Being cash, the uplift is a larger share of pay at this band than at governor grades.

The alpha pension contribution is 4.6% at base pay, the tier for pensionable earnings up to £36,199, stepping to 5.45% once unsocial hours take pay above that. It is a net pay arrangement, so Income Tax relief is automatic but National Insurance is charged on the full gross.

Career progression

Prison Officer (Band 3): £29,107 to £30,648 base.
Supervising Officer (Band 4): £34,440 spot rate.
Custodial Manager (Band 5): £37,417 to £39,214 base.
Head of Function (Band 7) and above: £54,148 upwards.

Frequently asked questions

What does a Band 4 Supervising Officer take home 2026/27?: On the £34,440 base rate with the 4.6% alpha contribution, take-home is about £27,049 a year or £2,254 a month. With the 20% unsocial hours addition taking pay to £41,328 it is about £31,474, and on 39 hours with committed hours payments at £43,562 it is about £32,985.
Why does Band 4 have no pay scale?: It is published as a spot rate. Unlike Band 3, which has three pay points, and Band 5, which has three, Band 4 pays one figure for the role. Extra earnings come from hours and allowances rather than from years served.

All UK professions →

Sources

PSPRB Twenty-Fifth Report on England and Wales 2026
Civil Service Pension Scheme - member contribution rates 2026/27
ONS - ASHE 2025 Table 14.7a, annual pay by SOC 2020 occupation (occupational pay)
ONS — Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2025 (UK full-time median and percentiles)
HMRC — Rates and thresholds 2026/27
Our full methodology & calculation sources →