STRIKING teachers came together in Wokingham town centre on Thursday, April 27, to show solidarity after rejecting a pay offer, writes Nick Clark, Local democracy reporter.
After attending picket lines outside schools earlier in the morning, they came together first in Wokingham town hall, and then went on a march around the town centre, including a walk past Conservative party offices in Rose Street.
They then returned to Market Place for a rally.
The action comes after the National Education Union (NEU) turned down a proposed one-off payment of £1,000 for this school year and an increase of 4.3% for most teachers from the school year starting in September.
The government says that when added to a pay increase already confirmed this year, the £1,000 payment is effectively an 8% rise, and the proposed 4.3% increase is above the projected rate of inflation for next year.
But the union says this isn’t fully funded by the government, which is asking for headteachers to pay for most of the increase out of school budgets.
Alongside the usual features of a demonstration—placards, whistles and chanting—there were also cakes, face painting and balloon modelling for children.
Joint district secretary of Wokingham NEU Michelle Purdie told the rally: “We have shown that it’s not just about us. I don’t think any of us could accept a pay offer that will take money from our schools.
“We are telling the government do better. We will not back down. This fight will continue.”
Striker Charlie Small, who teaches at Reading Girls’ School, said workload and pay were causing some teachers to quit. “I’m a first-year teacher, and there are people I trained with who have dropped out.
“I teach and work another job so I can pay rent and build a future. I know that teaching is not about money, but we still need to live.”
Matt Knight, president of Wokingham NEU responded to concerns about the disruption to children’s education that the strike will cause. He said: “I spoke to a child this morning about why we’re doing it.
“If this money is taken from the budget, we’re going to lose money for things like teaching assistants for special educational needs. We’re going to lose the more non-core subjects. This money can only go so far.”
Teachers are set to walk out again on Tuesday, May 2.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Any strike action is hugely damaging. We have made a fair and reasonable pay offer to teachers recognising their hard work and commitment.
“Thanks to the further £2 billion we are investing in our schools, next year, school funding will be at its highest level in history.”
