Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said that while he welcomed the pay rise for new teachers, this should be replicated for their older and more experienced colleagues.

“The experienced teachers who have worked so hard throughout the pandemic and the heads will be dismayed that they are being ignored,” he said.

“Some will certainly feel very aggrieved to be overlooked. Even the 8.9 percent rise this year for new teachers might not be much of a real term increase and the three per cent will be well below inflation.”

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Headteachers, said that school leadership supply was “teetering on the brink”.

He added: “School leaders’ pay has been cut by a fifth in real terms since 2010, and this, in combination with high stakes accountability, crushing workload, long hours, and inadequate school funding, is driving leaders from the job they love. We need a new, fair deal on pay to make a life-long career in education attractive and sustainable.”

Earlier this week, it was announced that the basic salary of politicians will increase by almost three per cent after the independent watchdog decided to upgrade their annual earnings.

The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority announced on Tuesday that the annual adjustment to MPs’ basic pay for 2022-23 will be 2.7 per cent – the same as the average increase in pay for public sector employees last year. It will bring the overall salary from £81,932 to £84,144 from April 1 – an increase of £2,212 per year.