Stoma Nurse Salary 2026/27: Band 6 to Band 7 Pay Explained

Last updated: 30 October 2026 · Figures verified against the NHS Employers 2026/27 pay circular.

By the NHS Bands Pay editorial team

Stoma care is the nursing specialty that looks after people who have had, or are about to have, a stoma: a colostomy, an ileostomy or a urostomy. The work starts before the operation, with counselling and siting the stoma, and it continues for years afterwards, with appliance fitting, skin care, dietary advice and help getting back to work, sport and ordinary life. It is intimate, practical work, and patients remember the nurse who got their appliance fitting right far longer than they remember most of their hospital stay. This page sets out the pay in full, from the Band 6 stoma nurse running clinics and visiting patients at home to the Band 7 nurse leading the service, with the unsocial hours, overtime, pension and London weighting figures that actually move the payslip.

Stoma nursing is a small specialty, and that smallness shapes the job. A district general hospital may have only two or three stoma nurses for the whole trust, and a community service may have fewer. The nurse carries a large caseload alone, works closely with colorectal and urology surgeons, and becomes the person patients ring when something goes wrong with a bag at a weekend. That breadth is the attraction for many nurses who move into the specialty, and it is also the reason the Band 6 to Band 7 split matters so much here. At Band 6, the nurse runs the caseload. At Band 7, the nurse leads the service, sets the standards, supervises the Band 6 team and answers for the service to the trust. The pay difference between the two is modest at the boundary, only £1,270 a year from Band 6 top to Band 7 entry, but the responsibility difference is not.

Stoma nurse pay 2026/27: the Band 6 and Band 7 scales

England awarded Agenda for Change staff 3.3% from 1 April 2026, and the award was paid on time in April salaries. The scales below are the 2026/27 England scales for a full-time 37.5-hour week. Hourly rates are annual pay divided by 52.2 weeks and then by 37.5 hours, which is the standard Agenda for Change conversion. Monthly pay is annual pay divided by 12. For the wider picture at each band, including the roles that share these scales, see the Band 6 salary guide and the Band 7 salary guide.

The chart above plots the annual figure at each step. The step structure matters for anyone planning a move into the specialty. A nurse appointed to a Band 6 stoma post starts at £39,959 and moves to the intermediate step and then the top through the normal Agenda for Change progression, which is tied to appraisal and time in post rather than to changing jobs. The full journey from Band 6 entry to Band 6 top is worth £8,158 a year, or £679.83 a month, before any enhancements. The step from Band 6 top to Band 7 entry is £1,270 a year, and the full journey from Band 7 entry to Band 7 top is worth £7,128 a year. Those small gaps are the honest reality of Agenda for Change: the big rises come from changing bands, not from moving steps, and the steps themselves are worth having but will not transform a salary on their own.

Progression is not instant, and it is worth being honest about the pace. Each band has three steps, and reaching the top takes several years of satisfactory appraisals. A stoma nurse who stays at Band 6 and runs the same clinics year after year will still see pay rise through the steps, but the rises stop at £48,117. After that, the only route to a higher basic is a Band 7 post, which is where the progression section below comes in.

What a stoma nurse actually does

Stoma work falls into three phases, and a single nurse often covers all three. Before surgery, the stoma nurse counsels the patient, explains what a stoma is and how it will work, and marks the site on the abdomen where the surgeon will form the stoma. Siting sounds like a small detail. It is not. A stoma placed where a belt sits, or in a skin crease, will leak, and a leaking appliance ruins clothing, skin and confidence in equal measure. Getting the site right is one of the highest-value acts in the whole specialty, and it is done in a clinic room with a pen, not in theatre.

After surgery, the nurse teaches the patient to manage the appliance: how to fit it, how to empty or change it, how to look after the skin around it, and what to do when it leaks or the skin gets sore. That teaching is done at the bedside and then repeated in clinic, because a patient who has just had major bowel or bladder surgery absorbs very little the first time. The nurse also deals with the complications that bring patients back: sore skin, retraction, prolapse, hernias around the stoma, and the blockages and high outputs that send ileostomy patients to hospital. Much of this work is done by phone and in clinic, with the nurse deciding what can be managed with a change of appliance and what needs a surgical review.

The third phase is the long one. A stoma is usually permanent, or at least long term, so the nurse follows patients for years. Clinic reviews check the appliance fit as weight changes, skin ages and bodies change shape. Home visits cover patients who cannot get to clinic. The nurse advises on diet, on returning to work, on swimming and sport, and on travel, including the practical questions patients actually ask: what to carry on a flight, how to manage a bag on a long journey, and what to do if an appliance fails away from home. For the neighbouring community caseload role, see the district nurse salary guide, which covers the Band 6 community nurse who often shares the home-visit workload. For the wider specialist ladder, see the clinical nurse specialist salary guide, which covers the Band 7 specialist role across specialties.

Trust-funded posts and industry-sponsored posts: the honest distinction

Stoma care is unusual among nursing specialties because the appliances patients use are made by a small number of companies, and those companies are closely involved with services. That closeness raises a fair question from anyone reading a job advert: who is actually paying this nurse? The answer decides whether the scales on this page apply at all, so it is worth stating plainly.

A stoma nurse employed by an NHS trust is paid on Agenda for Change at the band of the post. The trust buys appliances through its procurement route, and the nurse fits whatever product suits the patient. Appliance manufacturers may provide product training, samples and education support to the service, and stoma nurses attend manufacturer-run study days as part of keeping up to date. None of that changes the trust-employed basic. A Band 6 trust-employed stoma nurse earns £39,959 to £48,117 in 2026/27, and a Band 7 trust-employed lead earns £49,387 to £56,515, regardless of which company's bags sit in the clinic cupboard.

A small number of posts sit outside that picture. Some stoma support roles are employed by a manufacturer or by a home-delivery company, delivering appliances to patients at home and providing telephone or visiting support alongside the delivery service. Those posts are not NHS posts, they are not on Agenda for Change, and their pay is set by the employer, so no figure from the scales on this page can be quoted for them. The same applies to agency stoma nurses, whose hourly rate is set by the agency and the trust that books them, not by the Agenda for Change scale. Anyone comparing a trust advert with a company advert should check the employer first, because the two are different jobs with different pay systems even when the title on the advert is identical. For the agency and bank comparison in general, see the agency versus bank pay guide.

There is one more honest point here. Stoma nurses sometimes worry that accepting manufacturer training or samples compromises their independence. Trusts manage that risk through procurement rules and conflict-of-interest declarations, and the nurse's clinical judgement, not the supplier, decides which appliance a patient receives. The pay point is separate from the governance point: whatever the governance arrangement, a trust-employed nurse is paid the Agenda for Change figure for the band, and no product choice changes it.

Becoming a stoma nurse: the route in

Stoma nursing starts with registration. A nurse qualifies, normally in the adult field, and builds substantial clinical experience, typically on colorectal, urology or general surgical wards, or in district nursing where stoma patients are part of the caseload. Services then look for specialist stoma study on top of that registration. The exact course, entry requirements and funding are set locally by trusts and universities, so a nurse planning the move should check the detail with the service they want to work in rather than assuming one national route.

One honest point about the study: it helps you get the post, but it does not lift the band on its own. Agenda for Change pays the post, not the certificate. A Band 6 nurse who completes specialist stoma study stays on Band 6 until appointed to a Band 7 post. That can feel unfair given the study involved, and it is worth knowing before committing to a course. The return comes through access: lead and service-lead posts go to nurses who hold the specialist knowledge, and the Band 7 figures on this page are the reward for reaching those posts.

Unsocial hours: weekends and on-call

Clinic-based stoma work is mostly weekday work, so unsocial hours matter less here than in ward or community nursing. Community stoma work is different: patients at home need visiting seven days a week, and weekend visits are a normal part of some rotas. On-call cover also features in some services, with the stoma nurse advising ward staff and patients by phone out of hours. Agenda for Change Section 2 pays for those hours. For Bands 4 to 9, which includes Bands 6 and 7, the enhancements are time plus 30% for Saturday and weekday night hours (8pm to 6am) and time plus 60% for Sunday and public-holiday hours. Unsocial hours are counted as any time worked in those windows, not as whole shifts, so a Saturday visit that starts at 9am earns the enhancement for the hours worked that day.

Take a concrete example. A Band 7 stoma nurse at entry works a Saturday of 7.5 hours on community visits. At £32.80 an hour, that day pays £246.00, against £189.23 for the same hours on a weekday. A Band 6 nurse at entry working a Sunday of 7.5 hours at £32.66 an hour earns £244.95, against £153.08 on a weekday. Over a year, a community stoma nurse who regularly works one weekend day a week will see several thousand pounds of enhancement on top of basic pay, which is why two stoma nurses on the same step can take home noticeably different amounts. The unsocial hours and overtime guide works through the full Section 2 rules, including the different percentages that apply at Bands 2 and 3.

Overtime: time and a half, double on bank holidays

Overtime in Agenda for Change means hours above 37.5 a week. Part-time stoma nurses are paid at plain time, plus any unsocial enhancement that applies, for hours above their contracted hours up to 37.5; the overtime rates only bite above 37.5. For Bands 1 to 7, overtime is paid at time and a half, and at double time on bank and public holidays. Overtime and unsocial-hours enhancement cannot both be claimed for the same hours, so a nurse picks the better of the two for any given hour, and some staff elect time off in lieu instead of pay.

London weighting: what HCAS adds

The High Cost Area Supplement is paid on top of basic pay in London and the fringe zone. Inner London pays 20% of basic, subject to a minimum of £5,794 and a maximum of £8,746. Outer London pays 15%, with a minimum of £4,870 and a maximum of £6,137. The fringe zone pays 5%, with a minimum of £1,346 and a maximum of £2,270. Where the percentage falls below the minimum, the minimum is paid instead, and where it exceeds the maximum, the payment is capped. For the full HCAS rules, see the London weighting guide.

The cap bites early at these bands. A Band 6 stoma nurse at entry in inner London receives the full 20%, which is £7,991.80, but a Band 6 nurse at the top is already capped: 20% of £48,117 is £9,623.40, so the payment is held at £8,746. Every Band 7 step is capped in inner London, and every Band 7 step is capped in outer London too, where 15% of £49,387 is £7,408.05 against a £6,137 maximum. In the fringe zone, the Band 7 top is capped at £2,270, while the Band 6 entry figure of £1,997.95 sits inside the range and is paid in full. London weighting lifts the payslip, but at Band 6 and Band 7 it lifts it by a fixed maximum rather than by a straight percentage for most steps.

Pension: what comes off the payslip

NHS pension contributions in England and Wales for 2026/27 are provisional, calculated from the published tier structure rather than yet published as a final table, and the figures below use those provisional tiers. All Band 6 stoma nurses fall in the 9.8% tier, which covers pensionable pay from £35,156 to £52,778. Band 7 nurses at entry and the intermediate step also fall in the 9.8% tier, while the top of Band 7, at £56,515, falls in the 10.7% tier, which covers £52,779 to £67,668. The employer adds 23.7% on top of basic pay. For the full tier table, see the pension contributions guide.

Part-time pay is pro rata, and the maths is simple enough to check on a payslip. A Band 6 stoma nurse at entry working 0.6 whole-time equivalent earns 60% of £39,959, which is £23,975.40 a year. A Band 7 stoma nurse at the top working 0.8 whole-time equivalent earns 80% of £56,515, which is £45,212.00 a year. Unsocial-hours enhancements and London weighting are then calculated on the part-time basic in the same way, and pension contributions follow the tier that the whole-time equivalent salary falls in, not the part-time figure alone, so a part-time nurse should check the tier against the full-time salary for the post. The part-time pay guide works through the full pro rata rules.

Annual leave, uniform relief and the smaller extras

Annual leave under Agenda for Change Section 13 in England is 27 days plus 8 bank holidays for staff with up to 4 years of service, 29 days plus 8 for 5 or more years, and 33 days plus 8 for 10 or more years. Part-time stoma nurses receive the same entitlement pro rata. A nurse working 0.6 whole-time equivalent with 5 years of service receives 60% of 37 days, which is 22.2 days. Leave is counted in hours for staff on varied shifts, and community nurses should check how their trust counts leave, because the two methods give different answers for part-time rotas. The annual leave guide covers the hours conversion and the mid-year starter rules.

Uniform tax relief is a small but reliable extra. Nurses, midwives, healthcare assistants, therapists, radiographers, physiotherapists and dental nurses can claim a flat-rate expense of £125 a year for laundering a uniform, which is worth £25 a year in tax relief at the basic rate and £50 at the higher rate. It is claimed through a tax code change rather than through payroll, so it never appears on a payslip, but it is real money for a stoma nurse who washes a uniform at home. The tax code guide explains how to claim it.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Scotland awarded 3.75% from 1 April 2026 and moved to a 36-hour full-time week, with its own pay scale. Wales awarded 3.3% and paid it on time, with its own scale that differs slightly from England. This page quotes no Scotland or Wales Band 6 or Band 7 stoma figure, because the verified data file holds only the national awards and the Band 5 comparison points: Scotland Band 5 runs from £34,494 at entry to £42,977 at the top, and Wales Band 5 runs from £32,557 at entry to £39,631 at the top. Northern Ireland has a 3.3% recommendation for 2026/27 that had not been implemented as of late August 2026, so this page quotes no Northern Ireland figure. Stoma nurses in the devolved nations should check the national scale for their nation rather than applying the England figures on this page. For the national hubs, see NHS Scotland pay, NHS Wales pay and NHS Northern Ireland pay.

The honest picture: what stoma nurse pay does and does not do

Stoma nurse pay is solid, transparent and nationally set, which is its strength. A nurse can look up the band scale, add the unsocial-hours percentage for the rota, and know the gross figure within a few pounds. There are no hidden bonuses and no negotiation over the basic: the scale is the scale. The weakness is the ceiling. Band 6 tops out at £48,117, and a nurse who wants more must move to Band 7, which means leading a service, and beyond that the route narrows to the small number of senior specialist and management posts in a small specialty. Stoma nursing also carries demands that other nursing does not: the intimacy of the work, the judgement calls made in a patient's home with no colleague beside you, and the emotional weight of patients adjusting to a changed body. The unsocial-hours money compensates for the hours, but it does not compensate for the rest, and any nurse weighing a move into stoma care should spend time with a service first. The pay is fair for the band. The work is the reason to take it, not the salary.

Frequently asked questions

What band is a stoma nurse?

Most stoma nurses sit at Band 6, with lead stoma nurses and service leads at Band 7. In England in 2026/27, Band 6 pays £39,959 at entry, £42,170 at the intermediate step and £48,117 at the top, and Band 7 pays £49,387 at entry, £51,932 at the intermediate step and £56,515 at the top. The band follows the post, not the job title, so a stoma nurse running a clinic caseload and a stoma nurse leading a service can sit at different bands in the same trust.

How much does a stoma nurse earn a month?

In England in 2026/27, a Band 6 stoma nurse earns £3,329.92 a month at entry, £3,514.17 at the intermediate step and £4,009.75 at the top, before tax, National Insurance and pension deductions and before any unsocial-hours enhancement or London weighting. A Band 7 stoma nurse earns £4,115.58 to £4,709.58 a month. Those are gross figures for a full-time 37.5-hour week.

Do stoma nurses get unsocial-hours pay?

Yes, when the hours are worked. Agenda for Change Section 2 pays Bands 4 to 9 time plus 30% for Saturday and weekday night hours (8pm to 6am) and time plus 60% for Sunday and public-holiday hours. A Band 6 stoma nurse at entry earns £26.53 an hour on a Saturday or at night and £32.66 on a Sunday or bank holiday, against £20.41 plain time. At the top of Band 7, £28.87 an hour becomes £37.53 and £46.19. Clinic-based stoma work is mostly weekday work, so community and on-call stoma roles earn more enhancement than clinic-only posts.

Do stoma nurses get overtime pay?

Yes, for hours above 37.5 a week. Bands 1 to 7 are paid time and a half for overtime and double time on bank and public holidays. A Band 7 stoma nurse at the top of the band earns £43.31 an hour for overtime and £57.74 on a bank holiday, against £28.87 plain time. Part-time nurses are paid at plain time, plus any unsocial enhancement that applies, for hours above their contracted hours up to 37.5; the overtime rates only bite above 37.5. Overtime and unsocial-hours enhancement cannot both be claimed for the same hours.

How much is London weighting for a stoma nurse?

The High Cost Area Supplement is 20% of basic pay in inner London (minimum £5,794, maximum £8,746), 15% in outer London (minimum £4,870, maximum £6,137) and 5% in the fringe zone (minimum £1,346, maximum £2,270). A Band 6 stoma nurse at entry in inner London receives £7,991.80 on top of the £39,959 basic, for a total of £47,950.80. A Band 7 stoma nurse at the top in inner London is capped at the £8,746 maximum, for a total of £65,261. Where the percentage falls below the minimum, the minimum is paid instead.

What pension contribution does a stoma nurse pay?

Under the provisional 2026/27 tiers, all Band 6 stoma nurses pay 9.8% of pensionable pay, which is £326.33 a month at entry, £344.39 at the intermediate step and £392.96 at the top. Band 7 nurses pay 9.8% at entry and the intermediate step (£403.33 and £424.11 a month) and 10.7% at the top (£503.93 a month). The employer adds 23.7% on top, which is £9,470.28 a year at Band 6 entry and £13,394.06 a year at the top of Band 7.

How does stoma nurse pay differ in Scotland and Wales?

Scotland awarded 3.75% from 1 April 2026 and moved to a 36-hour full-time week, with its own pay scale. Wales awarded 3.3% and paid it on time, with its own scale that differs slightly from England. This page quotes no Scotland or Wales Band 6 or Band 7 stoma figure, because the verified data file holds only the national awards and the Band 5 comparison points: Scotland Band 5 runs from £34,494 at entry to £42,977 at the top, and Wales Band 5 runs from £32,557 at entry to £39,631 at the top. Northern Ireland has a 3.3% recommendation for 2026/27 that had not been implemented as of late August 2026, so this page quotes no Northern Ireland figure.

Are stoma nurse posts funded by appliance companies?

A stoma nurse employed by an NHS trust is paid on Agenda for Change at the band of the post, whatever company supplies the appliances. Appliance manufacturers may provide product training, samples and education support to a service, but that support does not change the Agenda for Change basic for a trust-employed nurse. A small number of posts are employed outside the NHS, for example by a manufacturer or a home-delivery company, and those posts are not on Agenda for Change at all, so their pay is set by the employer and cannot be quoted from the scales on this page. Check the employer on any advert before assuming Agenda for Change terms apply.

Source: NHS Employers unsocial hours payments. Pay figures: NHS Employers Agenda for Change pay circular 2026/27.