NHS Band 1 pay after tax
Take-home pay a month
£1,700.26
A full-time Band 1 salary in England starts at £25,272. After income tax, National Insurance and NHS Pension contributions you take home £1,700.26 a month.
Band 1 is the lowest Agenda for Change band. In England it is closed to new entrants and has one rate of pay, £25,272, which leaves £1,700.26 a month after tax, National Insurance and the pension. Scotland pays Band 1 staff £26,557, so take-home there is £1,776.87 a month.
| Pay point | Salary | Pension | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry (single point; closed to new entrants) | £25,272 | £1,642.68 | £20,403.10 | £1,700.26 |
Pay scale: www.nhsemployers.org/system/files/2026-02/2026%20AfC%20pay%20scales.pdf, effective 1 April 2026
| Pay point | Salary | Pension | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Point 1 | £26,557 | £1,699.65 | £21,322.39 | £1,776.87 |
Pay scale: www.publications.scot.nhs.uk/files/pcs2026-afc-01.pdf, effective 1 April 2026
Who is on Band 1
The NHS careers site gives domestic support worker, housekeeping assistant, driver and nursery assistant as examples of Band 1 roles on its Agenda for Change pay rates page. In England the band takes no new starters, so it covers staff who were already on it.
England's Band 1 rate is the same figure as both points of Band 2. A Band 1 worker in England therefore takes home exactly what a Band 2 worker does, before any overtime or unsocial hours payments, which these figures leave out.
Deductions on a Band 1 salary
On £25,272 the NHS Pension takes £1,642.68 a year. That contribution comes off before income tax is worked out, so the income tax bill is £2,210.06, all at the basic rate of 20%. National Insurance is charged on the full salary and comes to £1,016.16.
What is left for a full-time Band 1 employee in England is £20,403.10 a year. The pension rate for pay at this level is the second lowest of the six tiers in the England scheme. The tier depends on actual pay, so someone working part time on Band 1 can fall into the lowest tier instead.
Band 1 in Scotland
NHS Scotland sets its own Band 1 rate through a separate pay circular, and for 2026/27 it is higher than England's at £26,557. The Scottish scheme has its own contribution tiers too, and it takes £1,699.65 from this salary.
Scottish income tax starts with a starter rate of 19% on the first slice of taxable pay, which helps at this level. Band 1 income tax in Scotland is £2,416, and the yearly take-home is £21,322.39. The methodology page explains how each figure is worked out.
Questions
Can a new employee start on Band 1 in England?
No. The NHS Employers pay scales for England mark Band 1 as closed to new entrants. For 2026/27 its single rate is the same amount that Band 2 pays at both of its points.
How much is Band 1 a month after tax?
A full-time Band 1 worker in England takes home £1,700.26 a month after income tax, National Insurance and the NHS Pension. The Scottish figure is £1,776.87 a month.
Does Band 1 pay any higher rate tax?
No. Taxable pay on Band 1 stays well inside the basic rate band in England, and inside the starter and basic bands in Scotland, so none of it meets a higher rate.