NHS Sick Pay Calculator 2025/26: Full Pay, Half Pay & SSP Entitlement

No. The entitlement periods (months of full pay and half pay) are identical for all Agenda for Change bands from Band 2 to Band 9. The sole determining factor is your length of continuous NHS service. However, the monetary amount differs because full pay and half pay are calculated as a percentage of your actual salary. A Band 7 on half pay receives more money than a Band 3 on half pay, but both have the same number of months.

When you start a new sickness absence, your employer looks back exactly 365 days and counts all sick leave within that window. This amount is deducted from your total entitlement. For example, if you have 5+ years of service (6 months full + 6 months half) and already used 2 months of full pay in the past year, only 4 months of full pay remain. As older absences pass the 12-month mark, your entitlement gradually restores. Pregnancy-related sickness and injury at work are excluded from this calculation. This rule is defined in Section 14 of the Agenda for Change handbook.

Statutory Sick Pay for 2025/26 is £118.75 per week. You must earn at least £125 per week to qualify. SSP has 3 waiting days (unpaid) before payments begin. A Period of Incapacity for Work must last at least 4 consecutive days. If two sickness periods are separated by 8 weeks (56 days) or less, they are linked and treated as one continuous period. SSP can last up to 28 weeks. When SSP expires, your employer issues form SSP1 and you can apply for ESA or Universal Credit.

When occupational sick pay ends, SSP continues for up to 28 weeks total. When SSP ends, your employer issues form SSP1. You can apply for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit through Jobcentre Plus. If you cannot return to work, you may consider ill-health retirement through the NHS Pension Scheme using forms AW33E (tier 1, reduced duties) or AW240 (tier 2, permanent incapacity). You continue to accrue annual leave during paid sick leave, and your NHS pension membership is maintained. Speak to your HR department and consider seeking advice from your union (RCN, Unison, Unite).

For absences of 7 days or fewer, you can self-certify. From day 8 onwards, you need a fit note (Statement of Fitness for Work) from a GP, hospital doctor, registered nurse, occupational therapist, physiotherapist, or pharmacist. Fit notes can state "not fit for work" or "may be fit for work" with workplace adjustments. Extended absences require regular fit note renewals and may trigger occupational health assessment. You must notify your employer within their stated time limit, or within 7 days if no specific limit exists.

NHS bank workers without permanent contracts typically receive SSP only, not occupational sick pay. To qualify for SSP, bank staff must earn at least £125 per week on average and be unable to work for 4 or more consecutive days. Agency workers and zero-hours contract employees are also entitled to SSP if they meet the earnings threshold. Bank staff do not generally build continuity of service between shifts, so they do not accrue the service-based entitlements that permanent staff receive. If you hold both a substantive contract and a bank contract with the same employer, they are treated as separate contracts with different entitlements.