01 · The starting salary
FTE is the full-time salary—not necessarily your pay
A 0.6 FTE role is 60% of the employer’s full-time hours. If the advertised FTE salary is £30,000, the simple pro-rata salary is £18,000 before tax. Actual Salary taxes the £18,000, not the £30,000.
02 · Days and hours
Three days is often 60%—but confirm the hours
Three equal days out of five usually means 0.6 FTE. It can differ if full-time staff work compressed hours or your working days are not equal. Use the percentage or contracted weekly hours supplied by the employer where possible.
03 · Term-time roles
Weekly hours and paid weeks both matter
Teaching assistants and other support roles may work reduced weekly hours during term time. Set the weekly FTE first, then select term-time and enter the paid weeks from the offer or payroll team. Contracts often add paid holiday weeks, so “39 weeks worked” does not automatically mean 39 paid weeks.
Tax and National Insurance depend on actual taxable pay. Pensionable pay can follow scheme-specific rules, so check the employer’s illustration as well.
Official help