Most pupils were off school at both Swinton High School in Salford and Prestwich Arts College in Bury today as teachers went on strike in protest at redundancy plans.
At Swinton High School, where teachers began the first of two days of industrial action against possible redundancies, trade union NASUWT apologised to parents and pupils for the disruption but stated that they were acting in the best long term interests of the school...
"If the threat of compulsory redundancies among teaching staff goes ahead it will have a serious impact on pupils' education" explained Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT "The NASUWT has undertaken extensive talks to try to resolve the issues of concern without sacrificing teachers' jobs, but the employer has failed to agree to any of our suggestions.
"The teachers at Swinton High School are all dedicated and committed members of staff who deeply regret any disruption caused to pupils and parents as a result of the strike" he said "but feel they have no other option faced with the threat to their jobs and the resulting impact on their students if these redundancies go ahead."
Dave Kitchen, NASUWT National Executive Member for Salford, added: "We have made every effort to secure an agreed way forward through genuine negotiation, but there has been no real attempt by the employer to address the concerns of teachers, who are understandably very worried about their jobs and the impact job loss will have on educational provision. The NASUWT continues to remain committed to further negotiations with the school to address the financial issues affecting teachers' jobs."
Mark Harrison, Head Teacher of Swinton High School, an `academy converter', blamed a drop in pupil numbers affecting school finances for potential redundancies...
"As we are funded by the number of pupils we educate, this means we cannot maintain the staffing for 1,000 children when numbers have dropped below this figure" he explained "The difficulty for all involved is that the drop in numbers, due to the historic dip in birth rates, is reversed over the next few years meaning we will be oversubscribed by 2020. However, financially the school cannot maintain the excess staffing in the interim. We feel that to accept the union's plans would greatly compromise the quality of education parents expect and our children deserve by leaving the school financially at risk.
"The Governors of the school have looked very carefully at the union's proposed alternatives to redundancy for a small number of staff" he added "However, we don't believe that the proposals go far enough to ensure the school maintains a sound financial position... The school remains keen to work alongside staff and the NASUWT to avoid the need for any compulsory redundancies."
The teachers' strike action at Swinton High School continues tomorrow, Tuesday, with only Year 7s and 11s able to attend.
Meanwhile, over at Prestwich Arts College, attended by many Salford pupils, staff are in the middle of six days of industrial action which began a few weeks ago. The pressure on Bury Council and the school's authorities is set to be turned up this week with three consecutive days of strikes which began today. Only Year 11s are being taught at the school.
Here, the strike is also about redundancies with two NUT teachers having been issued with compulsory redundancy notices, with effect from August, despite five new teachers being recruited in February.
"At least four of these vacancies could have been filled internally by existing staff, who are able and willing to teach those subjects" stated the NUT "We are told that the redundancies are necessary in order to achieve a balanced budget this financial year. Yet the two dismissals will only save the school a very small amount this financial year, an amount which is inconsequential in the context of a £4.3million budget, and one which could easily be carried forward as a temporary deficit.
"The Local Authority will allow a small temporary deficit provided the school gives a written and binding commitment to repay it over time; so why the indecent haste to carry through these dismissals now?" the union asked "Our members in the school do not want to be on strike; we want to be in the classroom, doing the job we all love. It is in the interest of the school, and most importantly of the children we teach, that we settle this sooner rather than later."
In a letter to parents, Head Teacher, Chris Hornby, wrote: "Along with other Bury schools and indeed many schools nationally, Prestwich Arts College has been seriously affected by cuts within our budget, which may result in staffing reductions. The NUT remains willing to reach a negotiated settlement to the current dispute, as indeed is the school."
The strike at Prestwich Arts College runs today, Tuesday and Wednesday.
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