Responding to the pay offer made to school leaders and teachers in Northern Ireland, Jackie Bartley, President of NAHT Northern Ireland, said: "The offer from the employing authorities is a welcome step in our campaign for fair pay and working conditions for the teaching profession in Northern Ireland.

"For three years, teachers and school leaders have endured total pay stagnation, while colleagues in every other jurisdiction on these islands have been awarded successive increases. This has been on top of over a decade of real-terms reductions in pay.

"The pay context for the teaching profession has severely damaged the workforce, negatively impacted upon recruitment and retention, and has represented an injustice that could not be endured by the membership of NAHT, the school leaders' union.

"School leaders took decisive action, alongside colleagues from sister unions, to force government, the Department and the employers to the negotiating table."

Dr Graham Gault, NAHT's national secretary in Northern Ireland, said: "The formal offer is the employing authorities' response to a hard-fought industrial campaign. As a member-led trade union, we will now consult fully with our members in the coming days, to determine our democratic position.

"Whatever NAHT's membership chooses to do, this represents only a step on our wider campaign for proper restoration of pay and delivery of significant improvements around workload and well-being for those leading our schools across Northern Ireland."

School leaders and teachers in Northern Ireland have not received any increase in pay for over three years. For leaders, the offer represents an 11.2%-12.8% award, with some  backdating of pay if they accept the deal plus a £1,000 consolidated payment. The deal also removes the first pay increment for teachers, allowing their starting salary to rise to £30,000, representing a 24.3% offer.

NAHT Northern Ireland will be e-balloting members on the offer from tomorrow evening, Wednesday 13 March, with the e-ballot running until March 20 2024.