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Ranger HQ fieldbook · UK conservation officer salary
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Local Authority (England and Wales, NJC) salary, 2026

Includes planning conservation officers (S69-S72 duties), nature conservation officers, biodiversity officers and countryside rangers.

HEADLINE BAND
£31,537 – £49,282
SCP 18 to SCP 38 (plus London weighting)
◇ Westminster City Hall, central London
PAY FRAMEWORK
NJC pay spine 2025/26 plus local discretion
2026/27 cycle
PENSION SCHEME
Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), employer rate c.21 percent
FIXED-TERM REALITY
approx. 25 percent fixed-term in advertised post sample
FTC bottleneck

Band-by-band ladder

SCP 18NJC SCP 18
Assistant Conservation Officer
£31,537 (2025/26 spine)
SCP 23NJC SCP 23
Conservation Officer
£34,434 (2025/26 spine)
SCP 28NJC SCP 28
Senior CO / Senior Planning CO
£39,152 (2025/26 spine)
SCP 33NJC SCP 33
Principal CO / Team Leader
£44,075 (2025/26 spine)
SCP 38NJC SCP 38
Conservation Team Manager
£49,282 (2025/26 spine)

Local authority conservation officers in England and Wales are paid on the NJC spinal column. The point figures here are the 2025/26 spine; the 2026/27 award of 3.30 percent was agreed in August 2026 (after UNISON's strike ballot closed on 6 August 2026 below the turnout threshold for industrial action), effective 1 April 2026 and backdated, so current pay is the 2025/26 point plus 3.30 percent. SCP 2 was deleted from the spine on 1 April 2026, so it now runs SCP 3 to 43. The typical band for a Conservation Officer is SCP 23-28, for a Senior or Principal CO SCP 28-33, and for a Conservation Team Manager SCP 33-38.

The role splits two ways. A Planning Conservation Officer (heritage/Listed Buildings/Conservation Areas, S69-S72 duties under the Planning Listed Buildings Act 1990) typically sits SCP 26-33 in shire districts and SCP 30-38 in unitary or London boroughs. A Nature Conservation or Biodiversity Officer typically sits SCP 23-30 depending on Environment Act 2021 BNG-related responsibilities.

London pay is delivered through separate Inner/Outer London pay spines rather than a flat national supplement; at these grades the effective uplift over the national point runs roughly £4,000-£6,000 (Inner) and £2,900-£4,000 (Outer). Where a borough applies the GLPC separate London allowance it is £4,319 (Inner) or £2,301 (Outer) from April 2025. The LGPS pension (defined benefit, employer rate c.21 percent) is a substantial uplift; on a £39,152 SCP 28 post that employer contribution is worth about £8,200/year of deferred income.

Questions this page answers

  • What NJC SCP do local authority conservation officers typically sit on?
  • How does a Planning Conservation Officer differ in pay from a Nature CO?
  • Which councils pay top of NJC vs bottom of NJC for the same role?
  • How does Inner/Outer London weighting change the headline?
  • What is the LGPS pension worth as a cash-equivalent uplift?

See also