A paediatrician in the NHS in England earns £41,226 in the first foundation year and £113,565 to £150,569 as a consultant in 2026/27. The old figure of £48,000 to £89,000 that circulates online is out of date: pay is set by national NHS scales, so the real question is how long you spend at each stage. This guide shows every grade, the route in and what a paediatrician earns on top of basic pay.
Paediatrician salary UK 2026/27 by grade
Doctors in the NHS are paid on national scales. Paediatricians start on the foundation scale, move through specialty training, then become consultants on the 2003 contract.
| Grade or point | Salary 2026/27 | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation Year 1 (FY1) | £41,226 | Year after medical school |
| Foundation Year 2 (FY2) | £47,610 | |
| ST1/ST2 or CT1/CT2 | £55,355 | First two years of specialty or core training |
| ST3/CT3 | £67,325 | |
| ST4 to ST5 | £67,998 | |
| ST6 | £76,582 | |
| ST7 to ST8 | £77,348 | Check the BMA scale for your exact nodal point |
| Consultant, thresholds 0 to 2 | £113,565 | Starting salary |
| Consultant, threshold 3 | £120,249 | |
| Consultant, thresholds 4 to 7 | £123,672 | |
| Consultant, thresholds 8 to 13 | £135,645 | |
| Consultant, thresholds 14 to 19 | £150,569 | Top of the scale |
Source: NHS Employers pay circular M&D 1/2026 R2 (3.5% award from 1 April 2026) and the BMA resident doctor scale. Basic pay only; on-call and out-of-hours work is paid on top. We do not quote private-practice earnings because we found no official source for them.
Paediatrician pay point picker
How to become a paediatrician in the UK
The route is the same as for most hospital specialties and is set out by NHS Health Careers.
- Medical degree: 5 to 6 years, or 4 years for graduate entry.
- Foundation programme: 2 years (FY1 and FY2), registering with the GMC.
- Specialty training in paediatrics: ST1 to ST8, which NHS Health Careers says is usually completed within eight years. Full MRCPCH exams are needed to progress from level 1 (ST1 to ST3).
- Sub-specialty: Entry to the 17 paediatric sub-specialties is at ST6 or ST7.
- Consultant post: You apply once you are close to the end of training; consultant pay starts at £113,565.
What paediatricians say about the job
“The main skills you need are patience, perseverance and resilience.”
Kene, paediatrician, quoted by NHS Health Careers (only a first name is published). This is one person’s view. Source
Costs, hours and what affects pay
Registration: the annual GMC fee with a licence to practise is £481 from 1 April 2026, up from £463. Recent graduates can pay a discounted £184 fee.
Hours: a full-time consultant job plan is 10 programmed activities of four hours, which is a 40-hour contracted week. Resident doctors work rota patterns that include nights and weekends, so we have not quoted a single weekly figure.
What moves your pay: time in grade, on-call and out-of-hours work, locum shifts and, for consultants, additional programmed activities. Where you work changes pay very little because the scales are national.
Out of date elsewhere: some careers pages still show £29,384 for foundation doctors and £84,559 to £114,003 for consultants. Those are pre-2026 figures.
Paediatrician salary FAQ
How much does a paediatrician earn in the UK?
In England in 2026/27, a paediatric consultant earns £113,565 to £150,569 basic pay depending on years served. Foundation doctors start on £41,226.
How long does it take to become a paediatrician?
Medical school takes 5 to 6 years (4 if graduate entry), the foundation programme 2 years and specialty training in paediatrics about 8 years, so roughly 15 years to consultant level.
Do paediatricians earn more in London?
Not for basic pay, because NHS doctor scales are national. London does not have a different consultant pay scale in the national circular.
What is the GMC fee?
£481 a year with a licence to practise from 1 April 2026.
Is paediatrics competitive?
We could not find a current official competition ratio, so we do not quote one. Check the RCPCH and Oriel recruitment pages for this year’s numbers.
Sources and further reading
- NHS Employers pay circular for doctors, M&D 1/2026 R2 (July 2026)
- BMA pay scales for resident doctors in England
- BMA pay scales for consultants in England
- GMC fees for doctors
- NHS Health Careers: paediatrician
- NHS Health Careers: paediatrics training and development
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Updated November 2026. Figures are England 2026/27 basic pay; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland publish their own scales.
