NJC local government services · 2026-27
Sleep-in pay and other allowances
Allowances went up by 3.3% too — the same rise as the pay spine, from 1 April 2026. The backpay calculator leaves these out, because they depend on nights and sessions you actually worked. This page gives you the figures so you can add them yourself.
If you do sleep-in shifts
£1.42
more per night, from £43.12 to £44.54. You are owed that for every sleep-in worked since 1 April 2026, on top of the pay rise itself. Twenty nights of arrears is £28.40; forty is £56.80.
Every allowance, both years
| Allowance | Paid | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sleeping-in duty payment Green Book (all NJC staff) · Part 3, paragraph 2.6(e) | per night | £43.12 | £44.54 | £1.42 |
| Special educational needs allowance, nursery staff in educational establishments Former APT&C agreement (Purple Book) · Paragraph 28(3) | a year | £1,539.00 | £1,590.00 | £51.00 |
| City and Guilds science laboratory technician's certificate Former APT&C agreement (Purple Book) · Paragraph 28(14) | a year | £251.00 | £259.00 | £8.00 |
| City and Guilds laboratory technician's advanced certificate Former APT&C agreement (Purple Book) · Paragraph 28(14) | a year | £181.00 | £187.00 | £6.00 |
| Inner fringe area allowance Former APT&C agreement (Purple Book) · Paragraph 32 | a year | £1,045.00 | £1,079.00 | £34.00 |
| Outer fringe area allowance Former APT&C agreement (Purple Book) · Paragraph 32 | a year | £729.00 | £753.00 | £24.00 |
| Standby duty allowance, social workers Former APT&C agreement (Purple Book) · Paragraph 36 (1)(a)(i) | per session | £34.71 | £35.86 | £1.15 |
| Inner fringe area allowance Former manual worker agreement (White Book) · Section 1, paragraph 3 | a year | £1,045.00 | £1,079.00 | £34.00 |
| Outer fringe area allowance Former manual worker agreement (White Book) · Section 1, paragraph 3 | a year | £729.00 | £753.00 | £24.00 |
Working out your arrears on an allowance
For anything paid per night or per session, it is the increase multiplied by how many you worked since 1 April 2026:
arrears = increase per night × nights worked since AprilFor anything paid per year, it works exactly like salary: the annual increase divided by twelve for each month you are owed. The backpay calculator does that arithmetic for your salary; the same shape applies here.
Your payslip should show allowances as separate lines from basic pay. If the pay rise reached your salary but your sleep-in rate is unchanged, that is worth raising with payroll — the circular uprates both together.
Which agreement applies to you
The sleeping-in payment is in the Green Book and applies across NJC terms. The rest are protected allowances carried over from the agreements that preceded single status, so they apply only to staff who transferred from them. The London and fringe area figures are published twice — once under each of the two former agreements — at identical amounts.
These are the rates as published. Whether you are entitled to any of them depends on your contract and your employer, which this site cannot tell you. See the methodology and the source register.
Sources for the allowance figures
- Local Government Services Pay Agreement 2025 — NJC circular, 24 July 2025 (v2), Annex 2 (allowances) National Joint Council for Local Government Services · 2025-26 · Effective · checked · independently checked Verified
- Local Government Services Pay Agreement 2026 — NJC circular, 24 August 2026, Annex 2 (allowances) National Joint Council for Local Government Services · 2026-27 · Effective · checked · independently checked Verified