Answers · UK 2025/26

What is the take-home pay for an NHS Band 2 employee?

NHS Band 2 roles -- healthcare assistants, porters and admin support -- typically pay roughly £24,000 to £24,800 a year on the Agenda for Change pay scale. On a representative salary of £24,400 in 2026/27, take-home pay after Income Tax (£2,366) and National Insurance (£946.40) is £21,087.60 a year, or about £1,757.30 a month -- before NHS Pension Scheme contributions.

Last updated: 10 July 2026Last reviewed: 10 July 2026How we verify

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Band 2 is the entry point of the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale, covering healthcare assistants, porters, domestic and administrative support staff, with pay points typically spanning roughly £24,000 to £24,800 a year -- exact figures depend on the annual pay award and any high-cost-area supplement in London and the South East. Taking a representative salary of £24,400 for 2026/27: taxable income after the £12,570 Personal Allowance is £11,830, all within the 20% basic rate band, giving £2,366 Income Tax. National Insurance is 8% of £11,830 = £946.40. Combined deductions of £3,312.40 leave £21,087.60 take-home pay a year, around £1,757.30 a month. All NHS staff are automatically enrolled in the NHS Pension Scheme, with employee contribution rates set on a tiered structure -- Band 2 earners typically fall into a lower tier around 5.2% to 6.5% of pensionable pay, deducted before tax, which reduces the net figure shown above further. Band 2 pay sits close to the National Living Wage of £12.71 an hour, and the NHS has committed to review the lowest pay points to keep them above the statutory minimum as it rises each April.