Police Officer Salary in England and Wales: Pay Scales, Hourly Rates and Overtime

Understanding a police officer salary involves more than just the annual figure. Pay varies by rank, years of service, location, and whether you work unsocial hours. This guide covers the latest pay scales for 2025/26 (effective from September 2025) as set out by the Home Office and the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB), and explains how to convert annual salary to an hourly rate.

Constable Pay Points and Progression

New constables start on pay point 1 at £31,164 per year, or pay point 2 at £32,472 if a force uses discretion to meet local recruitment needs. GOV.UK police pay scales show seven pay points for constables who joined on or after 1 April 2013. With annual incremental progression (subject to meeting the Pay Progression Standard), a constable typically reaches the top of the scale, pay point 7 at £50,256, within six years. The Home Office evidence to the PRRB for 2026/27 confirms these figures and notes that median earnings for constables in 2025 were £39,688 (England and Wales) or £45,140 for full-time equivalent officers.

Hourly Rate Calculation for Police Officers

Police full-time hours are 40 per week. The official formula for calculating the hourly rate of a part-time member (and by extension the standard hourly rate) is to multiply the annual salary by 6/12520, which equates to dividing by 2,086.67 (approximately). Using 52.14 weeks per year gives 2,085.6 hours. For a constable at pay point 1 (£31,164), the hourly rate is about £14.95. At pay point 7 (£50,256), it is about £24.11. These rates are before any allowances or overtime. To convert any hourly rate to annual salary, use our Hourly to Salary calculator.

London Weighting

Officers in the City of London or Metropolitan Police receive an additional London weighting of £3,150 per year, as per the Police Regulations. This is added to the annual salary before calculating hourly rates for part-time members. For a constable on pay point 1, the total would be £34,314, giving an hourly rate of approximately £16.45.

Overtime and Unsocial Hours

Police overtime is paid at different rates depending on when the work falls. The standard rate for working on a rest day is time and a third (×1.33). For bank holidays, it is typically double time (×2). Additionally, officers receive a 10% enhancement on basic pay for each hour worked between 8pm and 6am. These rates are set nationally but local force agreements may vary. For example, a constable at pay point 5 (£37,737, hourly £18.10) working an 8-hour rest day shift at time and a third would earn £24.07 per hour, totalling £192.56 before tax.

Comparison with NHS Pay Scales

For context, the NHS Agenda for Change pay scales for 2026/27 (effective from 1 April 2026) show a Band 5 entry salary of £32,073, with an hourly rate of £16.40 based on 37.5 hours per week. A Band 6 entry is higher. Police starting salaries are comparable but police roles involve shift work and higher overtime rates. The NHS uses a different overtime structure: weekday overtime at time and a third, Saturday at time and a half, and Sunday/bank holidays at double time. For more UK pay benchmarks, see our salary articles.

Senior Ranks

Sergeants earn between £53,568 and £56,208. Inspectors range from £63,768 to £68,982. Chief inspectors from £70,344 to £73,149. Superintendents start at £84,177 and can reach £99,015, while chief superintendents earn up to £115,785. These figures are from the Home Office evidence and the PRRB report. The government accepted a 4.2% consolidated increase for federated and superintending ranks from September 2025.

Important Caveats

• The figures assume full-time contracted hours with no unpaid overtime.
• Actual take-home pay depends on pension contributions, student loan repayments, and tax code.
• London weighting applies only to Met and City of London forces.
• Overtime rates may vary by force; always check your local agreement.
• Pay scales shown are for officers who joined on or after 1 April 2013; different scales may apply to earlier joiners.
• Hourly-to-salary conversions assume a steady contracted week with no unpaid overtime, bonus, tips or salary sacrifice. Annual ≈ hourly × hours/week × 52. Actual pay depends on rota, holiday pay method, London weighting and overtime rules. Always check your contract and official GOV.UK guidance.