Personal Assistant – Social Care Pay Uplift 2025-26
An increase in Self-Directed Support (SDS) Option 1 Budgets
What does this guidance relate to?
An increase in Self-Directed Support (SDS) Option 1 Budgets will take place which will allow for a pay uplift for the Personal Assistant workforce.
There will also be an uplift to Independent Living Fund Scotland (ILF Scotland) budgets from April to allow for a pay uplift for Personal Assistants
In late 2024 the First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government announced a pay uplift for adult and children social care workers as part of the Scottish Budget for 2025/26.
This funding will ensure the minimum hourly rate for workers providing direct social care to adults and children, including Personal Assistants, will rise from at least £12 to at least £12.60 per hour.
Who does it apply to?
This uplift is for directly paid Personal Assistants (PAs) providing assistance to individuals with assessed needs.
The Personal Assistant workforce receives their payment for the vital support they provide to enable the person to live independently. A PA is eligible for this uplift if they are directly paid by the social care support recipient or the person who is acting for a social care support recipient, who receives funds to pay PAs from Independent Living Fund Scotland or from a Local Authority or Health and Social Care Partnership through Option 1 Social Care (Self Directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013.
How should it be spent?
This funding is to be spent to uplift the pay of Personal Assistants and associated workforce costs.
This funding will enable pay for these workers to be uplifted from at least £12 per hour to at least £12.60 per hour. Where PAs are already paid more than £12.60 per hour, this funding should be used to increase pay above these levels. All funding should be spent on uplifting pay.
Local Authorities and ILF Scotland will write to PA employers to advise them of these changes and to inform them of the purpose of this uplift.
Please note – the hourly rate increase applies to Personal Assistants who support either children or adults