What is High Cost Area Allowance?
The High-Cost Area (HCA) allowance, also referred to as London Weighting, is a payment made to employees who work in London and the surrounding areas.
The allowance is divided into 3 levels, Inner, Outer and Fringe; the table below shows the current amounts.
| Area | 2022 rate |
|---|---|
| Inner London | 20% of basic salary, subject to a minimum payment of £4,888 and a maximum payment of £7,377 |
| Outer London | 15% of basic salary, subject to a minimum payment of £4,108 and a maximum payment of £5,177 |
| Fringe | 5% of basic salary, subject to a minimum payment of £1,136 and a maximum payment of £1,915 |
The NHS Handbook provides further information about the HCA. You can find information about HCA payment zones in appendix 8 (table 12). You can find information about HCA supplement in Appendix 9.
When is HCAS recorded in Trac, if it applies to an candidate?
The Leadership Academy (Lead Interviewer) will enter the information when moving the candidate from Interveiw to Offer. This will be input to the 'Other salary related information' section.
The HCAS amount does not appear in the Offer letter but this will be included within the Contract. The Leadership Academy will need to confirm the HCAS when moving the trainee to offer before the pre-employment checks are complete. This is so Trac can be updated and the HCAS amount is included in the Contract and added to the Electronic Staff Record (ESR).
This information will transfer to the Candidate Enrolment form (CEF). HR Shared Services (HRSS) will complete the form to ensure any allowance is reflects on the candidate's Contract and pay.
What Contract types does HCA apply to?
The payment amounts in the above table apply to those that have an Agenda for Change (AfC) Contract.
Other Contract types may pay the HCA allowance but the rate may differ to that in the above table. Those who are not employed on a AfC Contract should query the level of allowance with the Corporate HR team.
Does HCA require approval?
No, however the level of HCA must be added to the Offer table when this is submitted to enable the HR Shared Services (HRSS) Contracts team to include the allowance when creating a Contract of employment.
HRSS will only transact the HCA if it is in the additional salary details of the Offer table.