Number of headteachers earning more than £100,000 rises by 14% in a year to a record 800 despite crackdown on public sector pay Number of school leaders on six-figure salaries rises by 100 in a year Education Secretary Michael Gove argued no teacher should earn more than the Prime Minister Experts blame allowing pay levels to be decided by individual schools By Andrew Levy Record numbers of headteachers and other school leaders are earning six-figure salaries, official statistics reveal. About 800 state school heads, deputies and assistant heads were paid at least £100,000 last year, up from 700 in 2011. A quarter of them received more than £110,000. A hundred were employed by primary schools, with 700 secondary school leaders in the same pay bracket. It means more than a fifth of heads at senior schools earn £100,000 or more. Around 800 school leaders earned more than £100,000, new government figures reveal (file picture) Experts fear the proportion of school funds they are taking up will soar further as the Government encourages more academies to open. These schools - which are centrally funded but independent of local authorities, allowing them to set their own pay levels - were responsible for 400 of the top-paid heads. The other 300 worked at state secondaries. There were just 345 academies in November 2010, but this number has risen to more than 2,800. Academy heads receive an average of £61,900 - £1,000 more than colleagues at local authority-run schools. The bumper pay packets mean top school leaders typically earn double the average headteacher's salary, which was £55,700 last year. The figures, released by the Department for Education, show the Government has failed to crack down on runaway pay increases at a time of austerity. Education Secretary Michael Gove said in 2010 that heads should not earn more than the Prime Minister. Days later it emerged an inner-city primary school headteacher was earning £231,400 plus a £45,123 pension contribution, a package worth almost double David Cameron's £142,500 salary. He was among 100 headteachers revealed to be earning more than £150,000. Education Secretary Michael Gove, pictured in Downing Street today, argued in 2010 that heads should not earn more than the Prime Minister Professor John Howson, an expert on public sector pay, said yesterday: "When the coalition came into power they made it clear they didn't want people in the public sector to earn more than the PM except in exceptional circumstances. The problem is, Michael Gove has given away the right to control that by allowing academies to pay what they want. He added the consequences would continue for decades because heads typically received a taxpayer-funded pension worth half their final salary. The situation also prompted fury among unions representing rank-and-file teachers - particularly as ordinary full-time teachers" pay has slipped from an average £37,900 in November 2011 to £37,600 at the end of last year. The two largest teachers" unions - the NUT and NASUWT, which represent 90 per cent of the work force - have already announced strikes later this year over pay, pensions and conditions. NUT general secretary Christine Blower warned the squeeze on pay would affect recruitment. Teacher numbers are up 4,000 on last year but 6,000 below a peak of 448,100 in 2010. "It is quite obvious that, despite what the Secretary of State says about his plans for the deregulation of pay, it is clearly not about paying a few teachers more but about paying the majority of teachers less," she said. We urge Michael Gove to reconsider his plans to deregulate pay and to think about a proper increase in teacher salaries. Secondary school pupils are being taught by thousands of teachers who do not hold a degree in their subject, according to Department for Education figures. About a quarter of maths teachers - 7,500 - do not have a qualification higher than an A-level. The situation is the same with a fifth of English teachers and a third of physics teachers. The figures are even higher in some subjects, with half of those teaching Spanish and information technology and 40 per cent of religious education teachers not qualified to degree level. A department spokesman said 96 per cent of teachers held qualifications at degree-level or above. A department spokesman said: "It's essential we have the best people in place to lead our schools if we are to raise standards. That's why decisions on pay are down to schools. Russell Hobby, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "Being a headteacher is a hugely demanding and influential role, equal in challenge to most private sector executive positions. Some posts demand exceptional salaries and in return deliver huge social benefits. Despite these headlines, however, the average head-teacher's salary is £55,700. On this figure, they have to be a teacher, possess business acumen, an HR expert, a mentor, an administrator, a social worker and an inspirational leader, to name just some of their responsibilities.