01Your working pattern
Term-time pay applies two ratios: hours/days worked, then weeks worked. This is sometimes called a "double pro rata".
01What you need to earn
Quick reference
Common conversions at typical UK salaries, and statutory holiday entitlement by working pattern — useful for a fast sanity-check without touching the calculator above.
| FTE salary | 4 days (80%) | 3 days (60%) | Half-time (50%) | 22.5/37.5 hrs (60%) |
|---|
| Days / week | Total entitlement | Pro-rata bank holidays (of 8) | Flexible leave |
|---|
Frequently asked questions
What does "pro rata" mean?
It's Latin for "in proportion." A pro rata salary takes a full-time (FTE) figure and scales it down to match the hours, days or weeks someone actually works, so a role advertised at £30,000 FTE pays £18,000 to someone working 60% of full-time hours.
How do I calculate a pro rata salary?
Divide the hours or days you work by the full-time hours or days, then multiply that fraction by the FTE salary. For term-time or part-year contracts, multiply by a second fraction for weeks worked ÷ weeks in a year — that's the "double pro rata" used in the calculator above.
Does my hourly rate get reduced because I'm part-time?
No — by law it shouldn't. The Part-Time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000 entitle part-time staff to the same hourly rate as a comparable full-time colleague. It's only the total annual figure that falls, because fewer hours are worked.
Are part-time workers entitled to bank holidays?
Yes, but proportionally — not the bank holidays that happen to fall on their working days. A 3-day-a-week worker is entitled to 4.8 bank holiday days a year (3/5 × 8), regardless of which days those holidays land on. Most employers fold this into a single total leave allowance.
Is Statutory Sick Pay reduced for part-time staff?
The weekly SSP rate (£123.25/week for 2026/27) is the same regardless of hours worked. What changes is the number of "qualifying days" it's spread across — a 3-day-a-week worker gets SSP for 3 qualifying days off sick, not 5, so the daily rate is effectively higher than for a full-time worker.
How is pro rata worked out for term-time-only contracts?
Term-time staff — teaching assistants, school admin, lunchtime supervisors — work fewer than 52 weeks a year on top of working part-time hours. Their pay reflects both reductions: hours ratio × weeks ratio × FTE salary. Many employers spread this evenly across 12 monthly payments rather than paying only in term weeks.
What's the difference between the "hours" and "days" methods?
Both give the same answer as long as the hours worked each day are consistent. Use hours when a contract specifies a number of hours per week; use days when it specifies whole days. The calculator's "hours in a working day" field converts between the two for the hourly/daily rate and holiday figures.
How do I check a pro rata offer meets the National Minimum Wage?
Divide the pro rata annual salary by total annual hours worked to get an hourly rate, then compare it to the current National Living Wage floor (£12.71/hour for ages 21 and over in 2026/27). The calculator above does this automatically and flags anything below the floor.