Average Social Worker Salary in Poole, United Kingdom for 2026

In this article, we will look at the average Social Worker salary for 2026 in Poole and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the British pound. To keep things simple, we are using the GBP currency code instead of the currency symbol £.

How Much Does a Social Worker Make in Poole?

A Social Worker working in Poole will typically earn around 20,100 GBP per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 10,300 GBP to the highest average salary of 33,000 GBP.

Average Annual Salary20,100 GBP
Average Monthly Salary1,675 GBP
Average Lowest Salary10,300 GBP
Lowest Monthly Salary858 GBP
Average Highest Salary33,000 GBP
Highest Monthly Salary2,750 GBP

These are average salaries for a Social Worker in Poole and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Social Worker to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Social Worker salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Social Worker Salaries in Poole

So we've looked at the average salaries a Social Worker will earn in Poole. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Social Worker can earn between 10,300 GBP and 33,000 GBP on average in Poole. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Social Worker in Poole is 20,100 GBP. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 20,100 GBP, and 50% of the population earn more than 20,100 GBP.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Social Worker salary in Poole, 25% of the population are earning less than 14,300 GBP while 75% of the population earn more than 14,300 GBP.

75% of the population earn less than 29,600 GBP, and 25% of the population earn more than 29,600 GBP.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Social Worker Salary by Experience Level in Poole

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Social Worker salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Social Worker in Poole that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 13,600 GBP.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Social Worker salary would increase to 16,000 GBP.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Social Worker, the average salary would be 22,200 GBP.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 27,400 GBP.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Social Worker with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 31,200 GBP.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Social Worker with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 33,200 GBP.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years-
13,600 GBP
2-5 Years+32%
16,000 GBP
5-10 Years+34%
22,200 GBP
10-15 Years+19%
27,400 GBP
15-20 Years+8%
31,200 GBP
20+ Years+7%
33,200 GBP

Social Worker Salary by Education Level in Poole

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Social Worker in Poole based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • High School. A Social Worker in Poole with a high school education can earn an average salary of 16,000 GBP.
  • Certificate or Diploma. A Social Worker in Poole with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 25,300 GBP.
  • Bachelor's Degree. A Social Worker in Poole with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 28,900 GBP.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School-
16,000 GBP
Certificate or Diploma+40%
25,300 GBP
Bachelor's Degree+25%
28,900 GBP

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in United Kingdom is around 29,600 to 88,700 GBP and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Social Worker Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Poole, a male social worker will earn an average of 20,000 GBP, while a female social worker will earn around 23,400 GBP.

This means that a male social worker earns approximately 15% less than a female social worker for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Poole

Male-
20,000 GBP
Female+15%
23,400 GBP

Social Worker Average Pay Raise in Poole

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Social Worker in Poole is around 10% every 16 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in United Kingdom is around 9% every 15 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 10 ÷ 16 ) × 12  = 8%

What this means is that a Social Worker in Poole can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 8% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Poole for 2026

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in United Kingdom.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking-
3%
Energy-
6%
Information Technology-
9%
Healthcare-
3%
Travel-
6%
Construction-
9%
Education-
3%

Social Worker Bonus and Incentive Rates in Poole

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Social Worker is a low bonus based job, with 29% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

71% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 1% to 3%.

Received Bonus-
29%
No Bonus-
71%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in United Kingdom earn approximately 7% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector-
72,700 GBP
Private Sector-7%
68,200 GBP

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Social Worker

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Social Worker in Poole.

Job TitleCategorySalary
Activity AideFundraising and Non Profit24,800 GBP
Activity CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit20,700 GBP
Activity LeaderFundraising and Non Profit45,300 GBP
Adoption SpecialistFundraising and Non Profit79,000 GBP
Assistant Programme OfficerFundraising and Non Profit46,300 GBP
Campaign ManagerFundraising and Non Profit88,500 GBP
Charities AdministratorFundraising and Non Profit52,800 GBP
Charities FundraiserFundraising and Non Profit56,600 GBP
Civil ServantFundraising and Non Profit23,400 GBP
Civil Service AdministratorFundraising and Non Profit35,600 GBP
Community Health WorkerFundraising and Non Profit24,400 GBP
Community Relations RepresentativeFundraising and Non Profit38,000 GBP
Community Service ManagerFundraising and Non Profit75,800 GBP
Community VolunteerFundraising and Non Profit23,400 GBP
Community WorkerFundraising and Non Profit20,700 GBP
Custodial WorkerFundraising and Non Profit27,400 GBP
Education Planning SpecialistFundraising and Non Profit78,700 GBP
Foundation AssistantFundraising and Non Profit31,700 GBP
Foundation DirectorFundraising and Non Profit105,800 GBP
Foundation Program Coordinator Fundraising and Non Profit61,700 GBP
FundraiserFundraising and Non Profit56,900 GBP
Fundraising CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit37,100 GBP
Fundraising DirectorFundraising and Non Profit102,700 GBP
Fundraising ManagerFundraising and Non Profit99,100 GBP
Grant WriterFundraising and Non Profit30,000 GBP
Healthcare Social WorkerFundraising and Non Profit26,600 GBP
Homeless Shelter WorkerFundraising and Non Profit24,400 GBP
Major Gift OfficerFundraising and Non Profit22,400 GBP
Orphan Program CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit39,500 GBP
Rehab AideFundraising and Non Profit29,600 GBP
Rehabilitation AideFundraising and Non Profit29,300 GBP
Sponsorship CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit35,500 GBP
Volunteer CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit30,100 GBP

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in United Kingdom, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

CityAverage Salary
Aberdeen23,400 GBP
Abingdon20,400 GBP
Armagh23,800 GBP
Bangor17,800 GBP
Belfast24,800 GBP
Birmingham27,600 GBP
Bradford22,800 GBP
Brighton26,200 GBP
Bristol27,800 GBP
Cambridge23,700 GBP
Canterbury23,200 GBP
Cardiff25,300 GBP
Chester20,900 GBP
Coventry25,300 GBP
Derby23,500 GBP
Derry23,800 GBP
Dundee23,800 GBP
Durham20,200 GBP
Edinburgh27,400 GBP
Exeter23,400 GBP
Glasgow27,100 GBP
Gloucester23,400 GBP
Hartlepool23,200 GBP
Inverness22,300 GBP
Kingston upon Hull23,700 GBP
Kirkwall18,900 GBP
Leeds27,300 GBP
Leicester25,300 GBP
Lincoln20,000 GBP
Lisburn20,700 GBP
Liverpool23,600 GBP
London27,600 GBP
Manchester26,500 GBP
Newcastle24,200 GBP
Newport23,400 GBP
Newry21,300 GBP
Norwich23,800 GBP
Nottingham23,700 GBP
Oxford25,300 GBP
Peterborough23,200 GBP
Plymouth21,500 GBP
Portsmouth23,800 GBP
Ripon20,000 GBP
Salisbury21,400 GBP
Sheffield24,200 GBP
Somerset24,800 GBP
Southampton25,300 GBP
St Davids19,100 GBP
Stirling21,700 GBP
Stromness17,800 GBP
Strontian17,800 GBP
Swansea22,000 GBP
Truro23,000 GBP
Wakefield20,900 GBP
Wells18,900 GBP
Winchester20,900 GBP
Wolverhampton23,500 GBP
York23,800 GBP

Salary Comparison by State

The table below includes links to the average salary for each state in United Kingdom.

StateAverage Salary
England41,400 GBP
Northern Ireland21,200 GBP
Scotland32,900 GBP
Wales19,300 GBP

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