Senior probation officer salary 2026/27
What a senior probation officer (SPO) earns at each Band 5 pay point, and what it leaves after tax and pension.
Work out your own take-homeOpen the probation pay calculator with this page’s figures filled in, then change anything to match your payslip.
Open the calculator →Band 5 pay points
| Pay point | Current | 2026/27 offer | Take-home a month (current) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £46,746 | £49,083 | £2,895 |
| 2 | £47,403 | £49,773 | £2,923 |
| 3 | £48,066 | £50,469 | £2,959 |
| 4 | £48,760 | £51,198 | £2,998 |
Full time, 37 hours, LGPS, tax code 1257L, outside London. The offer column is HMPPS’s 5% offer for 2026/27, not yet agreed.
Band 5 starts where Band 4 ends, so promotion from the top of Band 4 is worth £2,226 a year at current rates. Pay above £47,300 moves you to the 6.8% LGPS rate.
What a senior probation officer does
Senior probation officers manage a team of probation officers and PSOs. They oversee casework quality, make decisions on high-risk cases and support staff wellbeing and development.
- Line managing and supervising practitioners.
- Signing off risk assessments and recall decisions.
- Managing workloads across the team.
- Working with partner agencies and senior managers.
See your exact payAdd your hours, overtime, allowances, student loan and tax code in the probation pay calculator.
Calculate my pay →Common questions
How much does a senior probation officer earn?
Band 5 runs from £46,746 to £48,760 now, or £49,083 to £51,198 if the 2026/27 offer is agreed.